As the Obama administrations works on its urban strategy, it is turning to Atlanta’s own Catherine Ross to help.
Ross, director of the Center for Quality Growth and Regional Development at Georgia Tech, has been asked to be part of the recently created White House Office of Urban Affairs.
President Barack Obama established the Office of Urban Affairs to give greater emphasis on the needs of cities.
Specifically, the office is coordinating the various federal agencies that impact cities and urban policies. The office also will explore policies that “best leverage the assets of our metropolitan areas,” according to a release.
The director of the Office of Urban Affairs, Adolfo Carrion Jr., recently said that the administration is working on a national agenda for metro areas.
Ross, who has been a guest columnist for SaportaReport, has become an internationally-recognized on “megaregions” — corridors of metro areas that are economically interdependent.
She has paid special attention on the Piedmont-Atlantic Megaregion, which includes the Charlotte-Atlanta corridor and points beyond.
Before becoming head of the Georgia Tech Center, Ross was founding executive director of the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority. She lost that position after the election of Gov. Sonny Perdue.
Congratulations to Catherine on her ever progressing work.
Tom