Saturday, June 19 - Open Forum

The Northeast-Midwest Congressional Coalition and the Northeast-Midwest Institute, in coordination with Congresswoman Niki Tsongas, will convene a policy forum on Saturday June 19, 2010. 

Sign up to attend the forum!

"The Role of Federal Policy in Advancing Innovative Land Re-Use and Sustainability in Mid-Sized Older Industrial Cities"

At the forum Congresswoman Tsongas will hear testimony from various experts about the role of federal policy in restoring economic prosperity and improving the overall livability of post-industrial cities.  Expert testimony will focus on issue areas including smart growth policies, historic preservation, and brownfield and vacant land re-use. 

Following the oral statements, the Congresswoman will engage in a question and answer session to extract precise considerations for improving federal policies from the experts.  Immediately after the session, members of the audience will have the opportunity to meet and share success stories and challenges with the policy experts and staff from the Northeast-Midwest Congressional Coalition and Institute. For more information or to provide written testimony, contact Greg Lewis at the Northeast-Midwest Institute, 202-464-4005, glewis@nemw.org.

AGENDA

8:00 AM	Continental Breakfast and Refreshments (Provided by the National Trust for Historic Preservation)
9:00 AM	Welcome, Brian Martin, District Director, Office of Congresswoman Niki Tsongas
9:05 AM	Introduction of Congresswoman Niki Tsongas, Christine Kontra, Legislative Director Northeast-Midwest Coalition
9:10 AM	Call to Order and Opening Remarks, Congresswoman Niki Tsongas
9:15 AM	Panel 1 - Broad Perspectives on Federal Policy Alan Mallach, Nonresident Senior Fellow, Metropolitan Policy Program of The Brookings Institution The Honorable Parris Glendening, Former Governor of the State of Maryland and President of the Smart Growth Leadership Institute Dr. Alan Hecht, Director for Sustainable Development, Office of Research and Development, US Environmental Protection Agency Bob Van Meter, Executive Director, Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), Greater Boston
10:00 AM	Questions and Discussion with Experts, Congresswoman Niki Tsongas
10:30 AM	Panel 2 - Practitioner Perspectives on the Role of Federal Policy Wendy Nicholas, Director of the Northeast Office, National Trust for Historic Preservation Andre Leroux, Director, Massachusetts Smart Growth Alliance John Schneider, Executive Vice-President, MassINC
11:30 AM	Questions and Discussion with Experts, Congresswoman Niki Tsongas
11:55 AM	Closing Remarks, Congresswoman Niki Tsongas