CSPDC staff kicked off the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) READY Local Development District (LDD) program with stakeholder outreach meetings involving local government and community leaders. Meetings occurred with local government representatives from the counties of Bath, Highland, and Rockbridge, the cities of Buena Vista and Lexington, and the towns of Glasgow, Goshen, and Monterey in August and September. CSPDC followed up with an ARC READY LDD presentation to community leaders in September and October.

Currently, the remaining stakeholder outreach meetings are scheduled in the Rockbridge Area on October 12 at 11 AM (Virginia Innovation Accelerator in Buena Vista) and on October 26 at 11 AM (Virginia Horse Center in Rockbridge County/Lexington). Over the course of the next several months, CSPDC staff will facilitate stakeholder engagement meetings to develop, prioritize, and compete for federal funding to source locally developed projects.

Initial regional feedback on areas for community improvement generally involve housing (inventory, affordability, quality), infrastructure (poor condition, aging, non-existent, needs expanding), workforce development (economic growth, jobs, livable wages), and wraparound services (daycare/childcare). Targeted funding includes, but is not limited to,  the American Rescue Plan Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. For more information on the ARC and their READY Appalachian programs visit: https://www.arc.gov/, or contact the CSPDC at (540) 885-5174.

Both the Staunton Augusta Waynesboro Metropolitan Planning Organization (SAWMPO) and the Harrisonburg Rockingham Metropolitan Planning Organization (HRMPO) have new websites. PDC staff worked with the communications consultant company Avid Core to facilitate the transition of both websites to the WordPress platform.

Each of the websites have been refreshed and reorganized to be more visually appealing and easier to navigate. In addition to improved navigability, the HRMPO and SAWMPO websites include Google Translate to provide translation options for visitors who would prefer to access the websites in a language other than English.

The new websites will keep the MPOs’ work, past and current, accessible to the public as we engage with them on planning matters inside the MPOs.

Visit the new MPO website at www.hrvampo.org for the Harrisonburg-Rockingham MPO and www.sawmpo.org for the Staunton Augusta Waynesboro MPO.

Senator Tim Kaine returned to the Shenandoah Valley on September 22 to meet with local elected officials and business owners to hear about the progress made toward turning the 48.5-mile corridor into a trail. After listening to the group in Front Royal, Senator Kaine said, “The more model trails are up and running, the more small towns can see the benefits and want to get on board,” emphasizing the importance of demonstrating how successful rail trails can be for small businesses and Valley communities.

The Rail Trail Partnership also launched a new website (https://www.shenandoahrailtrail.org/) with an interactive map, opportunities to donate to the Friends of the Shenandoah Rail Trail non-profit, and a sign-up for news updates. Rail Trail social media channels on Facebook and Instagram now showcase upcoming events and videos demonstrating the transformative power of rail trails to small communities like the nine towns along this corridor.

At its September 12 meeting, the GO Virginia State Board unanimously approved the Shenandoah Valley Center for Advanced Learning’s (SVCAL) proposal for the Go2Work program. Partnering with local governments and local industry leaders, Go2Work aims to get students ready for high demand jobs in our region, particularly in the manufacturing and transportation sectors.

SVCAL will use GO Virginia funds to add new career education and technical programs for students in industrial maintenance, aviation technology, and heavy equipment as well as to make significant upgrades to its equipment for training high school and adult apprenticeship students in precision machining, welding, and auto and diesel technology.

SVCAL’s campus is in Fishersville and serves the public school systems of Augusta County, Staunton, and Waynesboro. Adult education extends into neighboring counties.

SVCAL is coordinating with Blue Ridge Community College to offer dual enrollment for some programs which means students can get a head start on their careers while still in school and smoothly transition into jobs or advanced training. The program will not only benefit students, but it will also boost the local workforce with highly skilled employees.

The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is accepting applications to the Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) this year. TAP is a subset of the Surface Transportation Block Grant Program (STBG) in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). Every two years, localities can submit project applications to TAP, which provides 80% federal funding for non-motorized transportation improvements. Eligible projects include sidewalks, trails, bike lanes, and all activities previously eligible under the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act and Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21^st Century Act (MAP-21).

The local applicant must provide the remaining 20% of the project cost. TAP applications are due by October 2, 2023. The City of Harrisonburg, the Town of Bridgewater, and Rockingham County are applying for TAP projects in this round. Of the eight projects being applied for by the City, Town, and County, five are sidewalk projects, two are shared use path connections, and one is for non-infrastructure Safe Routes to School activities. VDOT will review the applications and announce project awards in Spring 2024, with the projects funded through the FY 2025 Six Year Improvement Program to be approved by the Commonwealth Transportation Board in June, 2024.