Bay Area 2050 Final Plan Initiatives Adopted by Oversight Bodies | New

Bay Area takes one step closer to realizing its $ 1.4 trillion strategy to improve housing, transportation, economic and environmental concerns as two watchdog agencies approved final Bay Area Plan roadmap 2050 on Thursday, October 21.

The plan, broken down into 35 different strategies, hopes to improve the quality of life in the nine counties of the Bay Area with five principles in mind: accessibility, connectivity, diversity, health and vibrancy.

Under Senate Bill 375, the oversight agencies of the Association of Bay Area Governments and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission are responsible for developing a long-term plan to adequately meet the needs of ” a larger population, which includes adequate housing, infrastructure improvements and employment opportunities, as well as solutions to mitigate climate concerns.

It took almost four years of preparation and over 20,000 contributions from community members, but the pioneering organizations agreed to take the next step in the process, which they call the implementation plan.

“Building and preserving affordable housing. Adapting to rising sea levels. Bringing more people closer to their jobs and more jobs closer to the people. Sharing prosperity in an equitable way. These are all of great strides forward, ”wrote Alfredo Pedroza, MTC president and Napa County Supervisor. A declaration. “But the new plan can serve as the North Star for the Bay Area journey through 2050.”

The implementation plan is what will turn that goal sheet into action, according to the MTC. Over the next five years, the two agencies will work to carry out 80 actions with the help of relevant organizations and local policy makers.

“The implementation plan is a commitment to do tough things, not just think about it,” Therese McMillan, executive director of ABAG-MTC, said in a statement. “While these steps need to be taken gradually, they will lead to a more equitable and resilient Bay Area.”

These actions build on the previous long-term Plan Bay Area 2040, supported by assessments of pre-existing local authorities, financial resources, political support and capacity. Some near-term steps include adopting new pilot programs for affordable housing strategies, hiring more workers in the infrastructure and transportation industries, investing in studies on highway congestion, and upgrading. implementation and protection of conservation areas.

While the project requires an additional $ 780 billion in revenue to implement its goals, the MTC and ABAG plan to work with their partners to secure funds at the local, regional, state and federal levels. It also means that the plan must build on existing agencies and programs that mirror the 30-year plan before all financial resources are secured.

“Plan Bay Area 2050 reflects a shared vision that cannot be implemented by any single agency,” ABAG Board Chairman and Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguin said in a statement. “To carry out all of these strategies, ABAG and MTC will need to strengthen our existing partnerships and form new ones, not only with our cities and counties and the state government, but also with the federal government, businesses and organizations. non-profit. “

MTC representative John Goodwin said that while the 2050 plan has more concrete areas of focus and short-term goals than previous plans, agencies have recognized that they cannot do the job themselves. same.

And in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, which MTC and ABAG say has had new, long-term effects on the region’s prosperity on all fronts, resilience is key to the project.

“We’re going to have to work with a lot of partners, public and private,” Goodwin said in a statement. “The implementation plan candidly identifies where MTC and / or ABAG already have the capacity to act, where we have partial capacity, and where our influence is limited and where the roles of our partners will necessarily need to be more important.”