WRT's work on the Sustainable Communities Initiative with EPA New England and the Hartford Capitol Region Council of Governments was presented on Friday February 5, 2010 at the 9th Annual New Partners for Smart Growth Conference in Seattle. The session, "Sustainable Visions: Developing a Coordinated Approach Toward Sustainability in Connecticut's Capitol Region", focuses on the effectiveness of the Smart Growth Implementation Assistance grant from the U.S. EPA in implementing smart growth principles and the importance of approaching smart growth implementation collaboratively across all governmental levels and policy making. The work includes a case study approach which utilizes model guidelines to turn a defunct shopping center into an affordable, green, mixed-use development, and the role that this grant played in launching a regional Sustainable Communities Initiative in the Connecticut Capitol Region.

The links below show the documents WRT produced in close collaboration with the regional communities, US EPA, New England EPA, and a development consulting firm:

• Together We Can Grow Better: Smart Growth for a Sustainable Connecticut Capitol Region
• Smart Growth Guidelines for Sustainable Design and Development
• From Grey to Green: Sustainable Practices for Redeveloping a Vacant Shopping Center