Calendar:
Friday, March 11 - Tuesday, March 15
NLC Congressional City Conference, Washington, DC
Wednesday, March 16
7:00 pm - MUMPO Meeting, Room 267
Thursday, March 17
12:00 pm - Restructuring Government Committee Meeting, CH-14 AGENDA: Multi-Family Garbage Collection; Four-Year Terms
1:30 pm - Budget Committee Meeting, CH-14
AGENDA: Review March 23 Budget Retreat Agenda; Revenue Update; Storm Water Public Hearing Process
Information Items:
2030 Long Range Transportation Plan & Air Quality Conformity Plan for One-Hour Ozone Standard Requirements.
Staff Resource: Norm Steinman, 704-336-3939
The Mecklenburg-Union Metropolitan Planning Organization (MUMPO) is announcing that the 2030 Long Range Transportation Plan and the accompanying Air Quality Conformity document for the one-hour ozone standard will be available for public review starting on March 14, 2005. A public hearing will be held on March 30 in the Government Center. The public review period will end on April 12, 2005. MUMPO is scheduled to adopt the 2030 Long Range Transportation Plan and the accompanying Air Quality Conformity document on April 20, 2005. The two documents will then be sent to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), so that EPA will confirm that MUMPO's 2030 Long Range Transportation Plan meets the Federal conformity requirements.
Following EPA's verification, MUMPO will be in compliance with the Clean Air Act and the Transportation Equity Act of the Twenty-First Century (TEA-21). Federal law requires that transportation plans in nonattainment areas be updated every three years. Since the 2025 Long Range Transportation Plan was adopted on April 15, 2002, that plan will not be valid after April 15, 2005. Therefore, there will be a conformity lapse from April 15 until EPA concurs with MUMPO's 2030 Long Range Transportation Plan and the accompanying Air Quality Conformity. There are no contracts involving Federal dollars scheduled to be awarded for transit or roadway projects during the expected two-week conformity lapse, the last two weeks in April.
City Council previously endorsed the projects and financial assumptions in the 2030 Long Range Transportation Plan. Therefore, no further Council action regarding this plan or conformity determination for the One Hour Ozone Standard is required.
Staff is continuing to prepare a Transportation Plan and Regional Conformity Determination for the 8-Hour Ozone Standard due June 15, 2005. City Council will be asked to direct its MUMPO representative regarding that Plan if it differs from the Plan for the One Hour Ozone Standard.
Business Equity Loan Program Update
Staff Resource: Richard Bargoil, 704-336-2142
The City's Business Equity Loan Program, formerly the City Within-a-City Loan Program, was established in 1992 under the umbrella of the CWAC initiative. Since 1992 the City, working in participation with banks, has approved 152 loans to small businesses totaling $5.3 million and has leveraged approximately $31 million in private bank loans. Attached is a report setting forth the current status of the program. The report created for City Council will also be used as a marketing tool for the program.
