By Kevin McCarty
August 6, 2012

Conference of Mayors President Philadelphia Mayor Michael A. Nutter recently appointed Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to lead a new mayors- task force on innovative financing of local infrastructure.

The action reflects the priority Nutter, as Conference of Mayors President, has placed on raising investment levels to address growing city infrastructure needs. In recent remarks praising Emanuel for his leadership on these issues, Nutter said, “We support the Emanuel Administration's emphasis on investing in Chicago's urban infrastructure as well as looking outside the box to leverage private financing for these critical projects.”

The newly-established Chicago Infrastructure Trust championed by Emanuel is already being seen as a model for the public-private financing of infrastructure in cities throughout the country. “In this era of tight budgets, mayors across the country are looking for new ways to keep their urban infrastructure from crumbling through smart and strategic investments that increase economic growth and job creation as well as keep cities modern,” Nutter said.

Emanuel, who will chair the new mayors- panel, officially named the Innovative Infrastructure Financing Task Force, addressed a group of Washington (DC) policy-makers last month on his efforts in Chicago. Specifically, he made the case that improving local infrastructure is crucial to the future of cities, touting innovative ways urban centers across the country can support infrastructure investment during this period of economic challenges and constrained public spending, especially at the federal and state levels.

In his remarks before a Center for American Progress'sponsored session, Emanuel talked about his strategy for infrastructure improvements and why such investments are so vital to the city's future. “You can't have 21st century economy operating on a 20th century foundation. It is unsustainable. It just can't happen.”

He explained that his Chicago Infrastructure Trust is “…a way for mayors to make progress when Washington has slowed down [its investment].” Citing successful efforts to include an expanded TIFIA program in the new federal transportation law (P.L. 112-141), he said, “TIFIA is one of the most innovative pieces of this legislation. It is kind of a cousin of the Chicago Infrastructure Trust.”

Acknowledging the urgency of finding new solutions to the nation's infrastructure challenges, Emanuel said, “No city can survive with an aging infrastructure.”

In a related action, the Conference of Mayors released a new metro economies report (http://www.usmayors.org/metroeconomies/) as part of last month's Summer Leadership Meeting in Philadelphia, with findings that underscored the need for increased investment in infrastructure, particularly transportation infrastructure in metro areas, to ensure steady progress toward full economic recovery.