January 25, 2021 By: Mariia Zimmerman

Tags: #ComnunityChange, #FordFoundation, #HousingJustice, #HomeIsEssential, #HUD, #BidenHarris

Comments Off

A New Deal For Housing Justice

MZ Strategies is proud to be one of the contributing authors to the “New Deal for Housing Justice” Playbook released today by Community Change, a national organization that builds the power of low-income people, especially people of color, to fight for a society where everyone can thrive. The playbook addresses 5 key policy questions for federal leaders to address as they shape the future of housing and infrastructure policy and investment in the new Biden-Harris administration and 117th Congress..

March 16, 2017 By: Mariia Zimmerman

Tags: #infrastructure, #LentenAppeal, #PopeFrancis, #Trump infrastructure, #transit, #CDBG, #Trump budget, #FY2018 budget, #HUD, #USDOT, #Brookings

Comments Off

In Response to Trump Budget, A Lenten Appeal for America's Communities

It’s that time of year again. For Catholics, March is Lent, a time of commitment to sacrifice and good deeds. It’s also when we get the annual Lenten Appeal request to tithe in support of the Church’s ability to serve as God’s emissary on earth and help those most in need. In Washington DC, March is budget season. The time of year when the Administration unveils its spending priorities for the coming year and when Congress demonstrates where it will invest the trillions of dollars provided by American taxpayers. This year, the disconnect between God’s priorities and Republican priorities could not be more clear, unless we focus only on the word sacrifice.

June 19, 2014 By: Mariia Zimmerman

Tags: #HUD, #DOT, #EPA, #sustainability, #sustainable communities, #planning, #APA

Comments Off

Five Years of Federal Partnership for Sustainable Communities

Earlier this week, and without any fanfare, the Federal Partnership for Sustainable Communities turned five. This anniversary is a bittersweet one for me. I was incredibly honored to serve as the Deputy Director for the Office of Sustainable Housing and Communities (now the Office of Economic Resilience) at HUD to help stand up this historic effort. With new leadership at HUD, DOT and EPA, its time to weigh in and make the case for sustained government collaboration. We need efforts like the Partnership for Sustainable Communities -- not to grow government, but to make sure that we're recalibrating programs and policies so that they meet the new challenges and opportunities of a 21st Century America.

March 04, 2014 By: Mariia Zimmerman

Tags: #FY2015budget, #MAP21, #transportation, #sustainability, #USDOT, #HUD

Comments Off

It’s Budget Time Again in Washington

Transportation highlights from the FY2015 budget released today by the Obama Administration seek to put reauthorization of the federal surface transportation program on the political radar before we run out of money this summer. Will Congress kick the can until after the mid-term elections? The President's Budget Proposal provide fodder and ideas about ways to pay for it through tax reform that may motivate advocates and the Hill to act in the coming months, or at least elevate the national debate.

January 10, 2014 By: Mariia Zimmerman

Tags: #War on Poverty, #HUD, #USDOT, #FTA, #income inequality, #community development, #Fair Housing, #transit, #urban planning, #poverty

Comments Off

Looking Back and Looking Ahead on 50th Anniversary of the War on Poverty

In reflecting on notable achievements from 2013, I am struck by three separate federal actions that received little fanfare but are important to the War on Poverty’s arsenal. Each respond to one of the most profound lessons we have learned over the past 50 years -- the causes of poverty are often inter-related and cannot be successfully addressed by only focusing on housing, or education, or employment. Rather, integrated approaches are needed.

April 12, 2013 By: Mariia Zimmerman

Tags: #2014budget, #sustainable communities, #economic resilience, #HUD, #T4America, #transporation finance

Comments Off

HUD Rebrands Its Sustainability Initiative around Economic Resilience

Two new updates worth spotlighting: 1) The Obama Administration has finally released its FY2014 budget proposal which includes a re-branded $75 million Integrated Planning and Implementation grant program at HUD (formerly the Sustainable Communities Initiative) ; and 2) a new State Transportation Funding Proposal tracker by T4America to help follow the evolving set of proposals by Governors and State Legislatures to fill the funding gap created by insufficient federal support for highways, transit, bike and rail projects.