Mayors Push Stimulus Plan for Main Street

Gary Fields reports on urban issues. Miami Mayor Manuel Diaz , president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, says mayors are “excited” to hear President-elect Barack Obama talk about economic stimulus for Main Street America. Obama’s focus on job creation falls in line with what mayors around the country are suggesting in a plan they have developed, he said in an interview Monday after speaking at the National Press Club in Washington. The mayors’ nearly $90 billion proposal, called MainStreet Stimulus, combines parts of proposals discussed in both the House and Senate; it would fund community development block grants and energy block grants for infrastructure and green jobs. The largest portion of the mayors’ plan, totaling $32 billion, would be used for highway construction and improvements. Diaz said that 150 cities, responding to a recent survey by the Conference of Mayors, identified various projects that would improve infrastructure and communities while creating ... (link)