[Vision2020] PR - NLC Conference Report

[Stephanie Kalasz]

City of Moscow
206 E Third Street
Moscow, ID 83843
Contact: Gary J. Riedner, City Supervisor
p     |  208.883.7006
e     |   griedner at ci.moscow.id.us<mailto:griedner at ci.moscow.id.us>
w    |  www.ci.moscow.id.us<http://www.ci.moscow.id.us>

PRESS RELEASE
Annual National League of Cities Conference Report

December 14, 2012 (Moscow, Idaho) - As 3,000 city leaders gathered in Boston for NLC's 2012 Congress of Cities and Exposition, NLC members and leaders carried out the governance of the organization, electing new officers and board members and appointing a new executive director. The NLC Board also approved Nashville, TN as the location for the 2015 Congress of Cities.

At the conference, the NLC membership elected Marie Lopez Rogers, mayor, Avondale, AZ, to lead the organization as president for 2013. The organization elevated Chris Coleman, mayor, St. Paul, MN to First Vice President and chose Ralph Becker, mayor, Salt Lake City, UT as Second Vice President.  On December 6, NLC's board approved the appointment of Clarence E. Anthony as the association's new executive director. Anthony will assume the executive director role at NLC in early January 2013.  Mayor Nancy Chaney was honored to serve as a member of the nominating committee for selection of the NLC's leadership.

As NLC's 89th Congress of Cities and Exposition drew to a close, NLC's voting delegates - representing more than 900 credentialed votes -- ratified changes to the organization's National Municipal Policy that will guide the organization's federal advocacy with Congress and the Administration for the year ahead.  A full report on the policies and resolutions adopted by NLC can be found here<http://www.nlc.org/Documents/Influence%20Federal%20Policy/report-of-the-2012-ABM2.pdf>.

Panel discussions and roundtables held to investigate and debate the issues at hand were notable on many levels.  Those Chaney participated in specifically included:



*                    Integrating Green Infrastructure in Your Community. Panel was moderated by Jan Marcason, Council Member from Kansas City, MO, and featured a) Ken Shafer, Exec Director Milwaukie, WI Metropolitan Sewer District and Chair of the Urban Water Sustainability Council; b) Mark Focht, First Dep Commissioner Philadelphia Parks & Rec, and President-Elect American Society of Landscape Architects; and c) Robert Cantoreggi, Public Works Director, Franklin, MA. Low-impact technologies & strategies to conserve water, protect water quality and meet environmental mandates, while reducing infrastructure costs. Chaney noted, "The array of expertise and experiences made for a credible and engaging panel discussion about topics of timely importance to the City of Moscow."


*                    Strengthening Neighborhoods and Families: Roundtable Discussion on Health.  This session involved best sharing best practices, local challenges, prospective changes to policies and funding, etc. as related to access to healthy food choices, including vending machines, and ways to enable and encourage more active lifestyles. Chaney noted, "This roundtable was simultaneously inspirational and reinforcing. It afforded a reality check that health costs and residents' well-being are related to community investment in parks, trails, and bicycling infrastructure, employer health policies, and wholesome food choices, including in schools and low-income neighborhoods. Moscow's participation in the Poverty on the Palouse series and with Latah Economic Development Council's discussions about establishing a food innovation and resource center here are spot-on."

Other activities at the conference included the University Communities Council meeting that Chaney chaired which featured Dr. Peter Rabinowitz from Yale School of Medicine, who spoke about NLC's One Health Resolution, examples of inter-relationships among human, animal, and ecological health, and implications for education, research, and local government.  Chaney notes, "When Dr. Rabinowitz visited the Palouse last year, I was pleased to introduce him to leaders at the Paul G. Allen School for Global Animal Health at WSU, and TerraGraphics Environmental Engineering in Moscow. WWAMI medical education also seems well-suited to the interdisciplinary concept of One Health."

Also at the conference, NLC recognized the City of Moscow for recent completion of key health and wellness goals for Let's Move! Cities, Towns and Counties (LMCTC).   LMCTC is a major component of First Lady Michelle Obama's comprehensive Let's Move! initiative, which is dedicated to solving the childhood obesity epidemic within a generation.

"We applaud local elected officials in Moscow, Idaho for stepping up to the challenge of Let's Move! Cities, Towns and Counties and making measurable progress in their efforts to improve children's health," said NLC President Ted Ellis, mayor of Bluffton, IN.

Three medals in three of the five goal areas were awarded to the City of Moscow for action taken to improve access to healthy affordable food and increase opportunities for physical activity.


*                    Goal 1 - Start Smart, Start Early - Bronze, entered into partnerships with early childhood agencies

*                    Goal 3 - Smart Servings for Student - Bronze, MSD School Lunch Program

*                    Goal 4 - Active Kids at Play - Gold, mapped playgrounds, developing a Parks Master Plan

Chaney explains the importance of the events such as these, "Conferences like this provide unparalleled educational opportunities, chances for networking, sharing best practices, and gathering information from vendors, corporate sponsors, agency funders, and more. NLC's collective voice, representing some 19,000 cities and towns nationwide, is a powerful tool for congressional advocacy, particularly in challenging economic times."

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Story Contact: Gary J. Riedner, City of Moscow
Phone: 208.883.7006
Email: griedner at ci.moscow.id.us<mailto:griedner at ci.moscow.id.us>


The City of Moscow delivers quality municipal services while ensuring responsible use of resources.
We anticipate and meet the needs of our diverse population in order to build public trust and enhance a sense of community.





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