THA Toolkit

The Transportation and Housing Alliance (THA) Toolkit First Edition is now available and ready for use. The Transportation and Housing Alliance (THA) is a statewide initiative linking public and private efforts in the areas of housing and transportation. The Toolkit was produced through a grant awarded to the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission (TJPDC) by the Virginia Board for People with Disabilities (VBPD). VBPD recognized the important role of Planning District Commissions in developing and using this Toolkit. The purpose of the Toolkit is to assess housing and transportation needs, project future needs, identify overlapping issues and opportunities, and develop workable solutions. The THA Toolkit can help give a voice to people who don’t participate in public workshops, who rarely respond to surveys, and who are difficult to reach through formal channels. Including a wide range of needs in the planning process makes it more likely that the resulting plans and investments will work for people with different needs and abilities.

The Toolkit is best used as part of a planning effort for a region, community or neighborhood. It gives planners additional tools to analyze data numerically and through mapping. It also provides a checklist to assess the study area in a variety of dimensions to evaluate the livability and efficiency of its transportation systems, housing stock, and services. The Toolkit can be used:

• As a part of a locality’s Comprehensive Planning process
• As part of a community plan or transportation study
• As an element in the Needs Assessment for people with disabilities
• To help determine desirable locations for housing or services
• To evaluate proposed projects and their impact on the surrounding area

As part of the grant continuation awarded by the Virginia Board for People with Disabilities (VBPD – www.vaboard.org) contracts for projects using the Transportation and Housing Alliance (THA) Toolkit have been awarded. Projects underway include using the THA Toolkit include the New River Valley Employment Mobility Project and enhancements to the Coordinated Human Service Mobility Plan for the Rappahannock Rapidan Regional Commission. The George Washington Regional Commission (GWRC) has completed an additional section for the THA Toolkit on Economic Market Analysis. Four additional proposals were approved by the Review Team, with contracts currently in negotiation. A second RFP will be issued during the first quarter of 2008

Goal: The goal of this project is to develop a Transportation and Housing Alliance (THA) that will serve as a conduit of information, resources, technical assistance and education. The THA will make public policy recommendations in the areas of transportation and housing and work to build and improve community infrastructure in localities and statewide.

Objectives:

• Working through the Virginia Association of Planning District Commissions (VAPDC), develop a THA Steering Committee of stakeholders, including TJPDC Executive Director Harrison Rue (chair of the VAPDC Transportation Committee) and representatives from DRPT, DHCD, VHDA, the Disability Commission, VCTB, transit providers, Piedmont Housing Alliance (fair housing), VBPD, The Endependence Center and representatives from four other Planning Districts.
• Develop an Assessment Tool to assess the housing and transportation needs, project future needs and identify overlapping issues and opportunities. TJPDC staffs the Jefferson Area Disability Services Board and Transition Council, the Metropolitan Planning Organization, the Rural Transportation Technical Committee, and the non-profit Housing Directors Council, and will work with these groups to develop the tool prior to presentation to the THA Steering Committee.
• Working through the Virginia Association of Planning District Commissions (VAPDC), educate PDCs throughout the state and others who influence the building of community capacity in the areas of housing and transportation. Educational programming will be presented and materials will be distributed at quarterly and annual VAPDC meetings.
• Document the process and develop a comprehensive report to the VBPD and the Legislative Disability Commission on status, findings, and recommendations.
• Strengthen existing partnerships and form collaborative relationships to develop strategies for the necessary planning needed to implement identified goals and recommendations. Institutionalize the THA as a standing group of the VAPDC.

Acknowledgements

The Transportation and Housing Alliance came about through the work and vision of the Virginia Board for People with Disabilities (VBPD). VBPD identified the need to develop collaboration between housing and transportation stakeholders and professionals for the purposes of building the capacity of transportation and housing access and choice in communities throughout Virginia. VBPD articulated their vision for the full inclusion of people with disabilities in their communities through improving transportation and housing opportunities in their Grant Funding Announcement for 2005, issued in December 2004. The proposed Transportation and Housing Alliance project included the development of a tool to assess housing and transportation needs, project future needs, and identify overlapping issues and opportunities. VBPD identified Planning District Commissions (PDCs) as principle players in this statewide effort, working with state agencies and other organizations throughout Virginia.

Partners

The Transportation and Housing Alliance (THA) has been established as a standing committee of the Virginia Association of Planning District Commissions (VAPDC). The goal of the THA is to serve as a conduit of information, resources, technical assistance and education. The THA will make public policy recommendations and work to build and improve accessibility and interconnection between housing and transportation in localities and statewide. The THA Steering Committee consists of stakeholders across the state, including representatives of:

Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transit (DPRT)
Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD)
Virginia Housing Development Authority (VHDA)
Centers for Independent Living (CILs)
disAbility Resource Center
Virginia Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB)/ Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT)
Fair Housing
Virginia Board for People with Disabilities (VBPD)

Five Planning Districts in Virginia:
Mount Rogers
Northern Virginia
Thomas Jefferson
George Washington
Accomack-Northampton

Purpose of Toolkit

The main product of the Transportation and Housing Alliance (THA) is this Toolkit. The purpose of the Toolkit is to assess housing and transportation needs, project future needs and identify overlapping issues and opportunities. The key outcome of using the Toolkit is a clear understanding of the current transportation and housing needs of people with disabilities and others who may otherwise be excluded from the planning process.