This is the week: The deadline is fast approaching to register for one of the nation's premier smart growth conferences - the Friday, January 13th deadline is just a few days away! Avoid late fees and reserve your place NOW at this not-to-be-missed event!

Reserve your room now: The deadline for our $133 group rate (single/double) at the Sheraton San Diego Hotel and Marina is Wednesday, January 11. We expect the block of rooms for this event to sell out by then, so don't delay and make your reservations NOW! To make your reservation, call (800) 325-3535 and indicate you are attending the New Partners conference. Reservations made after January 11 will be accepted on a space-available basis only, and the group rate is not guaranteed.

Great Reset, Reshape and Redesign: Faced with shrinking budgets, high unemployment, unpredictable oil prices, climate change impacts and more, it has become obvious that we must creatively change the way we live and work to set the stage for a more vibrant, prosperous future. One of the highly anticipated plenaries, "The Great Reset: Reshaping Our Economic and Physical Landscape to Meet New Needs," explores how public officials can support this transformation with infrastructure and policies at the regional and local level. Invited speakers include San Jose Economic Development Director Kim Walesh, Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory, Detroit Mayor Dave Bing, and Seattle Councilmember Richard Conlin.

Designing our communities with people in mind can go a long way in moving us to a cleaner environment, a more resilient economy, and improving public health. On Friday morning (Feb. 3), the plenary on "Places for People: How Transportation Choices, Infill Development and Good City Design Can Reshape our Communities" will address how providing transportation choices, investing in infill development, and engaging in good city design can help communities become places where residents can thrive. With examples from New York to California, see how local leaders and developers have increased transportation choices, created a more pedestrian-focused environment, and made infill development a reality – bringing affordable housing and essential services closer together for the people who live there, especially those most in need. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is among the invited speakers.

The popular Michael Freedman (Freedman Tung & Sasaki Urban Design) will close out the conference on Saturday afternoon with a keynote on "Community Design and Urban Innovation for a Knowledge Economy." Over the past century, we have progressed from an economy based on agriculture to an economy based on manufacturing, and now to a resource-constrained, knowledge-based economy. Throughout history, land use patterns have evolved, based on the needs of each type of economic base. Freedman will examine the land use patterns that will accommodate today's knowledge-based economy – one where innovation is key and oil, water, and other natural resources are increasingly constrained.

Something for everybody: The multi-disciplinary program is packed with sessions on numerous cutting-edge smart growth and sustainable communities issues, including 15 tracks that address key issues such as public health, housing, transportation, economic revitalization, and equitable development. The conference also features 13 tours of local model projects throughout the San Diego region, including bike and walking tours on Sunday, Feb. 5.

Get credit: The conference program features over 100 dynamic plenaries, breakouts, implementation workshops and trainings. Almost all of these sessions have already been accredited for AICP planners through APA-CM and/or through ASLA for landscape architects. We have also applied for credit for several sessions for architects through the AIA.

Register NOW! For more details on the conference program, tours and pre-conference events, and to register today, visit http://www.NewPartners.org. The registration deadline is Friday, January 13.

See the New Partners for Smart Growth conference web site. www.NewPartners.org

For more information: Melissa Harper-Barton, Local Government Commission
1303 J St., Suite 250, Sacramento, CA 95814 US
phone: 916-448-1198 ext. 308; email: [email protected]