Two new housing-related initiatives are underway at the CSPDC. Later this month, CSPDC staff will submit an application for Virginia Housing Community Impact Grant funds to conduct a regional housing study. The CSPDC is eligible for $20,000 per city and county in the region, totaling $200,000 in grant funds. If awarded, the study will kick off in May 2022, and will span across a two-year period. The first year will involve data analysis, stakeholder engagement, and producing an interim data report, while the second year will focus on developing regional, partner-based, and locality-specific recommendations and strategies.

The CSPDC is co-applying for these grant funds with the Virginia Center for Housing Research (VCHR), the Commonwealth’s official housing research agency. VCHR has a successful track record of analyzing regional housing data, and has led several PDC-wide housing studies. VCHR’s strategies and recommendations will be developed in partnership with HousingForward Virginia, a statewide housing policy and research agency. The CSPDC and VCHR have submitted a draft application and are awaiting a preliminary letter of support from Virginia Housing before final submission.

Additionally, the RFP for affordable housing developers seeking gap funds through the PDC Housing Development Program closed on February 3^rd. The CSPDC received 14 applications, representing more than 700 affordable units and $4.3 million in requested gap funds. CSPDC staff is currently reviewing all applications, and will announce award decisions in March 2022.

The University of Virginia’s Weldon Cooper Center released its official population estimates for Virginia counties and independent cities this January. The Weldon Cooper Center’s estimates provide an accurate approximation of a locality’s population count on July 1^st, 2021.  Government agencies use this data for funding allocations, planning, and budgeting purposes.

The CSPDC’s 2021 population estimate is 307,875. From the prior year, the region’s population grew by 664 people or .2%. Since the 2020 Census, Bath County experienced the greatest growth change. From 2020 to 2021, Bath County added 67 people to their population count, a 1.6% population increase. In contrast, Highland, Rockbridge, and Rockingham Counties and the City of Lexington experienced a slight population decline since the 2020 Census.

Notably, localities with large college populations were often undercounted in the 2020 Census. For localities with a 20% college population, like Harrisonburg and Lexington, the Weldon Cooper Center compared its 2020 and 2021 estimates in order to correct the undercount.  Once the remainder of 2020 Census Data is released, the Cooper Center will revisit estimates and make necessary adjustments.

The 2021 population estimates are available on the Weldon Cooper Center website. Yearly population data is also available on the CSPDC’s Regional Data Center.

Virginia Department of Health staff will present program details on the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) programs: Drinking Water Infrastructure Construction Funding and Septic & Well Assistance Program at a virtual workshop March 16, 2022, 12:00 pm – 3:00 pm. These programs have been funded through the Virginia General Assembly with funds provided by the Federal Department of the Treasury.

More details and registration can be found here:  CPE Water Quality Broadcast 2022

Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) is holding an open grant round for $11 million in Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) grants from February 1-March 15, 2022. LWCF is reimbursement program for the acquisition and/or development of public outdoor recreation areas.

All LWCF assisted areas must be maintained and opened, in perpetuity, as public outdoor recreation areas. The LWCF is a 50-50 percent matching reimbursement program. An updated program manual, application materials, and applicant resources are available at: https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/recreational-planning/lwcf

Transportation needs in the Harrisonburg Rockingham region are changing, and the Harrisonburg Rockingham Metropolitan Planning Organization (HRMPO) is offering residents an exciting opportunity to share community priorities that will shape the future of the region’s transportation network.

HRMPO, which is staffed by CSPDC, is providing several ways for residents to convey input that will guide the development of the region’s 2045 long range transportation plan (LRTP) over the next year.

HRMPO is working with Avid-Core, a strategic communications firm based in Northern Virginia. Avid-Core will support the HRMPO throughout the 2045 Long Range Transportation Plan process with a three-phase Public Engagement Plan. Avid-Core and MPO staff have developed a multi-media strategy to engage with the region’s diverse communities, and to raise the MPO’s profile as the regional transportation planning body charged with implementing a collaborative, comprehensive process for investing in transportation improvements. During February, 2022, Avid-Core is helping the HRMPO promote the online Visioning Survey, which will inform priorities in the 2045 Long Range Plan.

The LRTP will cover all modes of transportation across the City of Harrisonburg, the towns of Bridgewater, Dayton, and Mt. Crawford, and portions of Rockingham County. The first phase of the LRTP process is visioning. Residents are invited to:

• Fill out the online visioning survey between February 1 and March 2, 2022.
• Tune into the webinar on February 16, 2022 at 7 p.m. or watch the recording on-demand.

HRMPO 2045 Long Range Transportation Plan from CSPDC on Vimeo.

The community priorities identified in the survey will guide which transportation projects are considered in the LRTP, and to develop the evaluation criteria for projects.

Visit hrvampo.org/lrtp for more information and to sign up to receive email updates on the LRTP.

Over the last several months the GO Virginia Region 8 Shenandoah Valley Sites Enhancement Project has been making quick progress in completing necessary due diligence on significant and attractive sites throughout the region. The project will expand our region’s capacity to attract new business investment by advancing the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Business Ready Tier level for sites located throughout the Shenandoah Valley. Activities include wetlands delineation, geotechnical exploration, boundary survey, topographical survey, cultural resource review, threatened and endangered species review, Phase 1 environmental site assessment and master planning. Our region’s close proximity to interstate, rail, and airline transportation, as well as the Port of Virginia makes the Valley a well-suited location for new or expanded business, however, lack of ready-sites has been a significant reason for loss of prospects in the past. Project completion is expected by Q2 of 2022.

Applications for affordable housing developers seeking funds through the PDC Housing Development Program are now open. In July 2021, the CSPDC was awarded $2 million in funding to support the creation of new affordable housing units. Specifically, the CSPDC is positioned to provide gap funds toward the creation of at least 20 affordable units by July 1, 2024. The CSPDC has released a Request for Proposals for non-profit, public, and private affordable housing developers seeking gap funds for proposed affordable housing development. The application will remain open until Thursday, February 3^rd, 2022 at 5pm. Applications will be reviewed by a panel of CSPDC staff, and funding decisions will be made in March 2022. Application materials can be found on the CSPDC website at https://cspdc.org/programs-services/housing/, and should be submitted to Olivia Raines at olivia@cspdc.org.

On Wednesday, January 12^th from 9am-11am, the CSPDC will be hosting an ‘Office Hours’ session for those interested in applying for PDC Housing Development Program funds that have questions about the application process. Click here to download the calendar invite. For additional guidance or to see if your project is eligible, please see our RFP Guidelines, or contact Olivia Raines.

This December, the GO Virginia State Board awarded The Advancement Foundation a $550,000 Per Capita Grant for an Ag Innovation Center in downtown Buena Vista.  The Advancement Foundation will repurpose a vacant industrial site into a multiuse manufacturing, business incubation, and product development facility.  GO Virginia funds will support staff and programming at the Ag Innovation Center.  The project aligns with the City of Buena Vista’s new Downtown Revitalization Plan, as well as the CSPDC’s Ag Enterprise Feasibility Study and JMU’s Industrial Hemp Study (two GO Virginia-funded initiatives).  CSPDC staff assisted the grant application and will administer the GO Virginia grant.