For the next four weeks, we will be featuring the finalists for the 2022 Greater Ohio Sustainable Development Awards, which will be announced at the 2022 Greater Ohio Summit. Each week will feature a brief summary of each award and the finalists for the awards, including why they have been nominated for this distinction.

This week, we present the finalists for the Public Sector Leader Award. This Award recognizes an entity or individual operating in the public sector who has exemplified outstanding leadership and innovation in advancing policies or programs that incentivize and enable community reinvestment and sustainable development in Ohio’s cities and regions.

Finalist Number 1: Senator Matt Huffman. Senator Huffman has been nominated for being a strong and successful champion of the Brownfield Remediation Fund, a $350 million grant program that will help clean up environmentally contaminated sites. This program ensures every county in the state receives a base amount and can compete for additional funds. The Program has already made commitments to long standing, high profile sites around the state and will make more announcements in later 2022. The $350 million is expected to leverage millions more in private funds and remediate dozens of sites around the state.

Finalist Number 2: The Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority. The Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority (aka “The Port”) purchased a distressed portfolio of 194 homes in Hamilton County. The acquisition of this portfolio and the organization’s commitment to create pathways to homeownership for moderate income residents in the county is a huge victory for protecting middle neighborhoods and housing for middle income families.

Finalist Number 3: Walk.Bike.Ohio. Created by the Ohio Department of Transportation, Walk.Bike.Ohio represents the first major official statewide pedestrian and bike planning initiative. Walk Bike Ohio has produced new funding programs, increased technical assistance for communities, and supporting hundreds of infrastructure features to make it safer and more enjoyable to bike and walk in Ohio.

The winner of the Public Sector leader award, along with the winners in the three other categories, will be announced at the Keynote Luncheon during the 2022 Greater Ohio Summit. There is still time to register. Visit the summit page here on our website to learn more and to register to attend.