Resource Guide
General Information
List Serves (Receive E-Mails):
Rural Update
To:
Subject: subscribe
Body: your name, organization, mailing address, phone number, fax number, website address
Community Revitalization
To:
Body: subscribe frkdplan
First Name
Last Name
Rural Development
To:
Body: sub ruraldev
First Name
Last Name
People:
Center for Community Support
Texas A&M University
(979) 458-3239
http://ccs.tamu.edu
Rural Information Center
www.nal.usda.gov/ric
Civic Plus (website maintenance)
www.civicplus.com
Funding:
Federal funding opportunities for rural areas
http://www.nal.usda.gov/ric/ruralres/funding.htm
Grants for rural communities
www.conservationgrants.com
Neighborhoods On-line Fundraising
http://www.libertynet.org/nol/Funding/funding.html
State of Texas Grant Alert Program
http://www.governor.state.tx.us/divisions/stategrants
Funding Solutions
www.funsol.com
STELLAR Fundraising
www.stellarfundraising.com
Land Use
General Information:
US Department of Energy Center of Excellence for Sustainable Development
http://www.sustainable.doe.gov/landuse/luintro.shtml
Urban Land Institute
www.uli.org
Institute for Local Self-Government Community Land Use Project
http://www.ilsg.org/index.jsp?displaytype=§ion=land&zone=ilsg
EPA Smart Growth Initiative
http://www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/index.htm
Law:
State of Texas Property Code
http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/statutes/pptoc.html
Legal Information Institute at Cornell University
http://www.law.cornell.edu/topics/land_use.html
Land Use Law
Washington University
http://www.landuselaw.edu/
Pace University Land Use Law Center
http://www.pace.edu/lawschool/landuse/
Examples:
City of Cedar Park Comprehensive Plan
http://www.ci.cedar-park.tx.us/Miscellaneous/compplan/index.html
Flatonia, TX Comprehensive Plan
http://www.destinationflatonia.com
City of Austin
http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/development/
City of Victoria
http://www.ci.victoria.tx.us/planning/index.htm
Housing
Websites:
Assorted Housing Links
www.nal.usda.gov/ric/faqs/housin~1.htm#afford
Regulatory Barriers to Developing Affordable Housing
http://www.huduser.org/rbc/
USDA Rural Development Housing Programs
http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rhs/
HUD Rural Housing and Economic Development
http://www.fedgrants.gov/Applicants/HUD/ODGMO/AT/FR-4932-N-01/Modification1.html
Housing Assistance Council
(202) 842-8600
www.ruralhome.org
People:
Rural Development Office, USDA
www.rurdev.usda.gov
www.rurdev.usda.gov/tx
Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs
Community Development Programs
(512) 475-3900
www.tdhca.state.tx.us
Cen-Tex CDC
www.grandcentraltexas.org
Capital Area Housing Finance Corporation
http://www.cahfc.org/
Texas Low Income Housing Information Service
(512) 477-8910
www.texashousing.org
Habitat for Humanity
www.habitat.org
Enterprise Foundation
David Danenfelzer
(888)533-2244
http://www.enterprisefoundation.org/
Funding:
Information on funding sources can be found at the "people" websites listed above
Economic Development
Websites:
Rural Information Center
www.nal.usda.gov/ric
SBA Online Library
http://www.sba.gov/lib/library.html
Small Business Information Sites
www.INC.com
Tip Sheets for Tourism Development
www.travel.state.tx.us
Succession Planning Information
http://dept.kent.edu/oeoc/SPP/Index.htm
People:
Service Corps of Retired Executives
(800) 634-0245
www.score.org
Small Business Administration
www.sba.gov
Small Business Development Centers
www.sbaonline.sba.gov/sbdc
Small Business Survival Committee
www.sbsc.org
National Retail Foundation
www.NRF.com
Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center
(800) 625-4876
www.tmac.org
Funding:
Skills Development Funds Program
Texas Workforce Commission
(512) 936-3120
www.twc.state.tx.us/customers/bemp/bempsub6.html
Other funding available on the websites listed
Downtown Revitalization
General Information:
Downtown Research & Development Center
http://www.downtowndevelopment.com/
An Annotated Webliography of Downtown Revitalization Resources
(Compiled by the University of Hawaii at Mano)
http://sustainable.state.fl.us/fdi/fscc/news/world/0009/drr.htm
National Main Street Center (Main Street USA)
http://www.mainst.org/
International Downtown Association
http://ida-downtown.org/
Texas Downtown Association
http://www.texasdowntown.org/
Pew Partnerships
http://www.pew-partnership.org/viableeconomies/downtown.html
Examples of Revitalization:
City of Huntsville, TX
http://www.huntsvillemainstreet.com/
City of Bertram, TX
http://www.bertramchamber.org/Community/Preservation/DowntownRestoration.asp
City of La Grange, TX
http://mainstreet.fais.net/
City of Summerside, Canada
http://www.investinsummerside.com/projects/facade.cfm
St. Croix Valley Development Design Study
http://www.metrocouncil.org/planning/stcroixvalley/stillwater_drse.htm
City of Oakland, Maine
http://www.oaklandmaine.com/downtown.html
Town of Paradise, West Virginia
http://www.townofparadise.com/downtown_revitalization.htm
Funding:
National Park Service
(Mainly for historic preservation)
http://www.ncptt.nps.gov/fundingopps/
http://www2.cr.nps.gov/hpf/hpf-fund.htm
Texas Department of Agriculture Rural Economic Development Division
http://www.agr.state.tx.us/eco/rural_eco_devo/economic_development/fin_smalltown.htm
US Department of Agriculture Rural Development
http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/
Parks and Recreation
General Park Information:
Texas Parks and Wildlife
www.tpwd.state.tx.us (General Information)
Lower Colorado River Authority
www.lcra.org
National Park Service
www.nps.gov
Trust for Public Land
http://www.tpl.org/
Rails to Trails Conservancy
www.railstrails.org
Greenspace Design
E-mail:
http://www.greenspacedesign.org/home.html
Texas Trails Network
www.texastrails.org
Playground and Other Equipment:
(This is not an endorsement of a particular company, just an information resource)
South Texas School Furniture
1-800-353-3685
www.texaslibrary.com
Gametime, Inc.
1-800-235-2440
http://www.gametime.com/
Landscape Structures, Inc.
1-888-438-6574
http://www.playlsi.com/
Playground Equipment.Com
This is a site sponsored by several manufacturers of playground equipment
http://www.playground-equipment.com/
Funding:
Lower Colorado River Authority
Paul Scallon
1-800-776-5272
www.lcra.org
Texas Department of Transportation / TEA-21
www.txdot.state.tx.us
Gametime, Inc.
1-800-235-2440
http://www.gametime.com/funding.htm
Texas Parks and Wildlife
www.tpwd.state.tx.us/grants
The Urban Parks Institute
http://urbanparks.pps.org/topics/funding/
The Trust for Public Land
http://www.tpl.org/
Infrastructure
Water:
Texas Water Development Board
http://www.twdb.state.tx.us/
Lower Colorado River Authority
www.lcra.org
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
www.tceq.state.tx.us
Water Infrastructure Network
http://www.win-water.org/
American Water Works Association
http://www.win-water.org/
Texas Office of Rural Community Affairs (ORCA)
www.orca.state.tx.us
USDA Rural Development
http://www.usda.gov/rus/
Wastewater:
Public-Private Partnerships in Water and Wastewater Infrastructure
http://www.ip3.org/water2000.htm
National League of Cities
http://www.nlc.org/nlc_org/site/policy_legislation/win/index.cfm
WaterWorld
http://ww.pennnet.com/
Texas Office of Rural Community Affairs (ORCA)
www.orca.state.tx.us
USDA Rural Development
http://www.usda.gov/rus/
Electricity:
Lower Colorado River Authority
www.lcra.org/energy
Fayette Electric Co-op
http://www.kilowatt.com/
American Public Power Association
www.appanet.org
Electric Reliability Council of Texas
www.ercot.com
The Electricity Forum
http://www.electricityforum.com/
Streets:
Texas Department of Transportation
www.dot.state.tx.us
State Infrastructure Bank
http://www.dot.state.tx.us/revexp/sib/sibtoc.htm
Capital Area Regional Transportation Planning Organization
http://www.capco.state.tx.us/CARTPO/CARTPO_Home.htm
Fayette County
http://www.co.fayette.tx.us/
US Department of Transportation
www.dot.gov
Emergency Services:
Firefighting.com
http://www.firefighting.com/
Fire and EMS Network
http://www.Fire-EMS.net/
Texas Department of Public Safety
http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/
Texas Department of Health Bureau of Emergency Management EMS Standards
http://www.tdh.state.tx.us/hcqs/ems/stndhome.htm
Schools:
Texas Education Agency
www.tea.state.tx.us