Huntsville's Green 13 Council hears suggestions at town hall meeting

HUNTSVILLE, AL -- Like the space projects Huntsville is best known for, Saturday's town hall meeting with the Green 13 Council included a historically successful approach  getting a lot smart people in one room to figure out how to solve a complex problem.

The problem in this case is finding sustainable approaches to building, transportation, energy and the environment and developing an education and communication strategy to spread the word.

The Green 13 Council was established by Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle in May. It is charged with producing a report by February for the mayor and City Council with recommendations on how Huntsville can become a national leader in green initiatives.

The town hall meeting Saturday at the City Council chamber drew nearly 100 people. Rodney Pennywell, who chairs Green 13, and members of the group outlined the steps they have taken to have their report ready by February.

Along with plenty of research and meetings, they have looked at plans other cities have adopted. The plans drawn by the City of Chattanooga drew special praise from several Green 13 members, who also stressed they were committed to providing ideas that can be implemented.

The second half of the two-hour session was a public comment period. Several cyclists thanked Battle for making a commitment to promoting cycling and protecting cyclists. Their ideas included more bike racks in public places, a revision to the city ordinance that bars cycling on city sidewalks and adoption of a "Complete Streets" policy. read more here