COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND HOUSING 

NATIONAL RESOLUTION ON SUSTAINABLE REDEVELOPMENT OF DISASTER-AFFECTED COMMUNITIES

WHEREAS, 5,000 floods, 1,000 tornadoes, 10,000 violent storms, and other natural disasters strike the United States each year, and the loss of life and property from extreme natural events appears to be increasing; and

WHEREAS, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) estimates that natural disasters are costing property owners, business and government agencies $1 billion weekly; and

WHEREAS, virtually all cities in the United States are vulnerable to natural disasters of one type or another; and

WHEREAS, natural disasters often are followed by Federal disaster assistance dollars, representing a sudden infusion of redevelopment capital into disaster-affected communities; and

WHEREAS, in the wake of natural disasters, communities face an opportunity to reconstruct buildings, businesses, public facilities and infrastructure with modern technologies and best practices that make them safer, stronger, more efficient, more cost-effective and more environmentally and economically secure; and

WHEREAS, in the course of reconstruction, many communities strive to solve problems and realize goals beyond disaster recovery, and to derive as many benefits as possible from disaster recovery dollars; and

WHEREAS, new sustainable development technologies and practices are available that can help communities prevent pollution, save energy dollars, increase local disposable income, decrease tax pressures, improve air quality and public health, and achieve a wide range of other benefits; and

WHEREAS, the practice of striving for these multiple benefits has been termed "sustainable redevelopment" and is encouraged by the President’s Council on Sustainable Development; and

WHEREAS, sustainable redevelopment holds promise of making U.S. cities stronger economically, environmentally and socially;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the United States Conference of Mayors affirms its support of sustainable redevelopment as a key strategy in disaster recovery and in State and Federal programs designed to assist communities in disaster recovery; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the United States Conference of Mayors calls upon Federal agencies and the Congress to earmark 1% of disaster relief appropriations for direct technical assistance to disaster-affected communities to help them engage in sustainable redevelopment; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the United States Conference of Mayors calls upon Federal agencies to require that Federal disaster assistance teams and private organizations contracted by Federal agencies to assist disaster-affected communities have up-to-date expertise in sustainable development technologies and practices; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the United States Conference of Mayors calls upon Federal agencies to create a "Sustainable Redevelopment Strike Team" that can be deployed to disaster-affected communities to help them incorporate sustainable technologies and practices into long-term recovery plans; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the United States Conference of Mayors calls upon Federal agencies to create an interagency task force, as proposed by the President’s Council on Sustainable Development, to better coordinate their assistance to disaster-affected communities so that such assistance results in sustainable redevelopment; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the United States Conference of Mayors urges the Joint Center for Sustainable Communities to undertake educational efforts and peer-to-peer exchanges to help communities understand and plan for pre-disaster planning and post-disaster recovery that leads to sustainable redevelopment, and to incorporate disaster mitigation into community planning initiatives; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the United States Conference of Mayors supports and encourages its members to participate in public and private efforts to mitigate the loss of life and property from natural disasters, including FEMA’s Project Impact and the showcase communities program of the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety.