The Northeast Ohio Sustainable Communities Consortium Elects Leadership for Regional Planning Efforts

The newly formed Northeast Ohio Sustainable Communities Consortium announced today that the organization filled three key leadership positions at its March 16th meeting.

The organization, which is leading the development of a cooperative regional sustainability plan for Northeast Ohio, appointed Hunter Morrison as program director. In this role, Morrison will be responsible for coordinating the overall development and implementation of a plan that links economic development to equitable housing, land use, transportation, community development and infrastructure. Morrison served most recently as the director of campus planning and community partnerships at Youngstown State University. He previously served as the planning director for the City of Cleveland. He played leadership roles in Civic Vision as well as Youngstown 2020. Morrison has also provided planning support in Lorain and Summit Counties.

Morrison served as president of the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA) for three years (1990, 1991, and 2000) and helped guide development of the agency’s long-range transportation plan. NOACA is the metropolitan planning organization for Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain and Medina counties in Northeast Ohio and functions as the Consortium’s fiscal agent. The agency’s executive director, Howard R. Maier, FAICP, serves as treasurer for the Consortium.

Members of the Consortium elected Steve Hambley and Jason Segedy to executive positions on the board of directors. Hambley, who is a Medina County commissioner and 2011 NOACA Governing Board president, will serve as chairman. Jason Segedy, director of the Akron Metropolitan Area Transportation Study (AMATS), will serve as vice chairman of the Consortium. The board will guide the development of the regional plan and foster regional cooperation on government services and infrastructure investments.

“As a rapidly growing county, Medina’s future, along with the rest of the region, is dependent on active participation in sustainable regional economic development and infrastructure planning,” said Hambley. “Hunter’s vision, understanding of Northeast Ohio and depth of planning experience will strongly position the Consortium and region to deliver a successful framework and tangible results on this issue that is so vital to the pocketbooks and quality of life of the citizens of Northeast Ohio.”

“Hunter brings a wealth of credentials to this new position – vision, experience in planning, a great diversity of knowledge and a passion for the holistic ‘community development’ concept,” said Cynthia E. Anderson, president, Youngstown State University. “He is an innovative thinker and has the unique ability to transfer vision and planning expertise into the community planning context.”

Funding for the Sustainable Communities plan comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), which awarded Northeast Ohio $4.25 million as part of the new federal Sustainable Communities Initiative. Other funding includes a $500,000 grant from the Fund for Our Economic Future, and cash or in-kind contributions from an additional 22 cities, counties, metropolitan planning organizations and housing authorities. Northeast Ohio was one of 45 regions selected for funding nationwide.

“The Sustainable Communities Initiative is re-defining how regions plan and develop for the future,” said Morrison. “I am honored to join this organization and have the support of Steve Hambley and Jason Segedy. Steve has played a leadership role on the front lines of these issues for several years, while Jason represents an emerging generation of leadership.”

“Local governments in Northeast Ohio, now more than ever, are feeling the stress from economic challenges and state budgetary pressures,” said Brad Whitehead, president of the Fund for Our Economic Future. “Participating in regional and collaborative planning is one way that local governments can ease financial and economic burdens.”

The 12 counties included in the plan are: Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain, Mahoning, Medina, Portage, Summit, Stark, Trumbull and Wayne.

For more information, contact Howard Maier, NOACA Executive Director at 216-241-2414, ext. 380, Sara Byrnes-Maier, NOACA Short Range Planning Team Manager, at ext. 308, or Molly Johnson, The Fund for Our Economic Future, at 216-456-9806.