115963 | TCDI Administration

This project will support the key policies of Connections 2050 by ensuring a diverse and competitive regional and local economy by encouraging reinvestment in the region by coordinating regional transportation, land use, redevelopment, and economic development.
At the regional level, staff will continue to lead, participate, and support economic development investment strategies in the region; including managing and maintaining the regions Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS), as required by the US Economic Development Administration (EDA). Tasks may include completing and submitting the CEDS updates to EDA, amending the list of vital projects as appropriate, assisting in grant applications to EDA, and working with federal and regional partners to identify how to best advance the CEDS goals. To continue to comply with EDA guidelines, staff will explore the regions vulnerability with regard to a major economic downturn caused by natural events, loss of a major employer, pandemic or similar major health crises, or international trends. Staff will continue to engage and build partnerships with US EDA and other economic development practitioners and provide for potential US EDA funding applications. Additional activities may include convening economic development partners for project development and reaching out to county partners outside of the DVRPC service area. Staff will continue to analyze employment and industry data and report on regional trends and any other data requests as part of our economic analyses supporting the long-range plan and CEDS.
Rating the Region: Staff will provide updated data and analysis for the regional comparisons report (Rating the Region), as part of our Connections 2050 efforts, by collaborating with long-range planning staff to add the Rating the Region indicators to DVRPCs existing Tracking Progress dashboard. Indicators for the regional CEDS will also be combined with the Tracking Progress indicators to expand the Tracking Progress dashboards scope. Updates will be made to increase user accessibility and readability.
Access to Tourist Destinations: Staff will continue to identify livability and sustainability strategies to tie the quality and location of transportation facilities to multi-modal accessibility of tourist destinations and employment. Tasks may include working with local communities to make better use of their tourist destinations, convening tourism stakeholders in the region, and addressing multi-modal feasibility to tourist destinations.
Camden County Missing Middle Housing: Since many of the regions mature communities face social, economic, transportation (motorized and nonmotorized), and infrastructure challenges, staff will continue community development and revitalization efforts that strive to implement Connections 2050, and assist with investment and equitable development strategies at the local level. Specifically, staff will collaborate and assist on the Housing Initiative developing specific case studies in Camden County on missing middle housing. As part of the Housing Initiative, staff will use the Regional Economic Development Forum (RCEDF) to provide outreach to communities highlighted in the identified case studies to discuss the research and best practices.
Retail Districts: Staff will continue to monitor community resilience, specifically for the regions identified retail districts and downtowns to address pandemic recovery needs. This may include zoning recommendations, street design flexibility, and/or convening stakeholders. The retail district typology work will continue to be evaluated and enhanced.
Roebling Steel Plant Land Use and Feasibility Study (Florence Township, Burlington County, NJ): Staff will assist on the Roebling Steel Plant Land Use and Feasibility Study to determine the highest and best use of this brownfield transit-oriented development, including market feasibility. Tasks may include land use and zoning research, census and retail data collection, regulatory document research, and outreach including stakeholder interaction and presentations.
Regional Community and Economic Development Forum (RCEDF): Staff will hold a minimum of two but up to four meetings of the Regional Community and Economic Development Forum (RCEDF). At least two meetings will be used for the Housing Initiative case study outreach meetings. The RCEDF facilitates networking and coordination between the region's transportation, economic development, and land use planning professionals on issues of regional importance; fosters greater cooperation between agencies; and strives to coordinate regional transportation and land use planning activities with the needs of the economic development community.
TCDI: Program administration of the Transportation and Community Development Initiative (TCDI) grant program will continue. FY 2023 will include project solicitation for eligible New Jersey communities with project selection in spring 2023. Projects will then be managed by DVRPC staff and this will include all tasks related to procurement, invoicing, progress reports, and outreach meetings, as necessary. Staff will continue to maintain the TCDIdirect (project management) database specifically providing project management for previously awarded FY22 Pennsylvania projects.
Municipal Outreach: Staff will continue municipal outreach through educational events and workshops. These events provide Certification Maintenance (CM) credits for American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP) members. Staff will maintain the Municipal Funding Resource (MFR) which provides a list of grant programs for stakeholders. The MFR is a shared online database with our county partners that enables each to share programs and opportunities.
Completion of this work may require the purchase of equipment and data services.
Tasks
1. Work with EDA and regional stakeholders on the development of the regional CEDS.
2. Maintain the economic development webpage and subpages with current data.
3. Update Tracking Progress interface to include regional and CEDS-related economic development indicators.
4. Analyze multi modal access to tourist destinations.
5. Assist on the Camden County Housing Missing Middle analysis.
6. Identify and engage local stakeholders and community leaders, as well as provide local technical assistance to communities on revitalization strategies through educational events and workshops.
7. Provide analysis on the Roebling Steel Plant Land Use and Feasibility Study.
8. Convene a minimum of two (2) but up to four meetings of the Regional Community and Economic Development Forum (RCEDF). Two meetings specifically for the Housing Initiative outreach and case studies.
9. Develop the FY 23 TCDI Program Guidelines and updated webpage.
10. Maintain the TCDI Direct project management database.
11. Deliver Municipal Outreach presentations as requested.
12. Provide AICP CM credits as requested.
13. Work with county partners to maintain the Municipal Funding Resource Database.
Products
1. CEDS Key Regional Economic Development Project Database.
2. Memos or products as requested by US EDA (as it pertains to our pending Economic Development District (EDD) status), as well as EDA support letters for potential funding applicants.
3. Economic Data bulletins and/or Snapshots.
4. Updated Tracking Progress dashboard that includes metrics to compare regions.
5. Technical memo on increasing multimodal access to tourist destinations.
6. Deliverable/Report on Camden County Missing Middle Housing.
7. Retail District analysis.
8. Roebling Steel Land Use and Feasibility Study deliverable(s).
9. Minutes of the Regional Economic Development Forum Meetings (RCEDF)
10. FY 23 TCDI Program Guidelines and updated webpage.
11. TCDI Direct project management database.
12. Municipal Outreach presentations as requested.
13. AICP CM credit event surveys.
14. Municipal Funding Resource Database.
*PA TIP - MPMS #115963 - $170,000 STU/Toll Credit Match for TCDI Admin;