Eagle Tribune - Tsongas Touts Bill to Create Urban Green Space

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Congresswoman Niki Tsongas yesterday announced new legislation to help urban communities turn blighted environments into public parks or other usable green spaces.

The Groundwork USA Trust Act was developed in consultation with the non-profit group Groundwork Lawrence and would create a dedicated federal funding stream to ensure support for the 20 existing Groundwork programs nationwide, enabling other cities to launch similar initiatives.

The current Groundworks USA system does not have a dedicated source of funding and is split between National Park Service (NPS) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), limiting existing trusts from effective planning and preventing expansion into other communities.

Tsongas' bill would provide stability by centralizing administration in the NPS and authorizing $15 million for each fiscal year through 2017. The legislation would establish a Groundwork USA Trust Program, which would allocate grants of up to $400,000 to local communities and would allow Groundworks USA to produce 5-8 new trusts each year.

"Creating green-space and public parks in urban communities is an excellent way to revitalize neighborhoods and further economic development in our cities," Tsongas said. "The City of Lawrence has worked extensively with Groundwork Lawrence to transform blighted areas of the city into usable community space...," Tsongas said in a statement.

"This legislation is extremely valuable to Lawrence and well as other underserved communities; it supports our efforts to leverage public, private, and foundation dollars for building truly sustainable communities," said Heather McMann, Executive Director of Groundwork Lawrence.

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