Shelley Poticha

Poticha also hopes to redefine the term "federal affordable housing" so that it includes energy-and-transportation costs associated with living in a particular place. According to a study by the Federal Transit Administration and HUD, families who use a car as their primary mode of transportation spend about a quarter of their budget on travel. Families who use public transportation spend just nine percent on average.

This is important because many low-income Americans depend on the government for rent assistance and will only recieve help if they live in areas deemed "affordable."

But if federal authorities took cost-of-living into account, they would be able to subsidize the cost of living in urban, sustainable areas where the rent may be higher than in the surrounding suburbs, the overall cost of living is much lower because of the public services offered.

In the long run, Poticha has two goals for her office: working with policymakers to explain sustainability so that urbanites understand what it means for them. She also hopes to expand green-development efforts from niche policies to programs used by 30 to 40 percent of Americans.

"The time of being a boutique movement is gone," Poticha said. "The door is open to move thorugh."

Another major part of Poticha's job will be working with the Environmental Protection Agency and the departments of Transportation and Energy to ensure that there is a coherent approach to urban planning.

Transit-Oriented Development

Shelley has been a longtime advocate of transit-oriented development (TOD). She even co-authored a book of case studies on the topic called The New Transit Town.

TOD is a development strategy that emphasizes creating high-density urban centers that host homes, businesses and civic spaces. Additionally, these spaces must offer a range of public-transportation options like buses and light rail (many designers even make a rail station one of the central features of the urban center).

Urban planners also emphasize walkable cities that encourage pedestrians, bikers and skaters. Parking is generally limited to discourage car use.

This design style is becoming increasingly popular; municipalities will spend about $250 million on 400 new TOD projects in 2009, and Americans will take 10 billion rides of public transportation, a number marking the highest rate in 50 years.

"People have rediscovered cities and urban living,'' Poticha told the New York Times in June 2009. Examples of TOD include Denver; Charlotte, N.C.; Portland, Ore.; and Salt Lake City.

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