http://cptv.vo.llnwd.net/o2/ypmwebcontent/2011/2011_04_26_sg%20110426%20tod%20forum.mp3
Despite less than six months in office, Governor Dannel Malloy was a crowd favorite at Tuesday's transit forum in Hartford.
One of his fans was Floyd Lapp, director of the Southwestern Regional Planning Agency.
"Here comes another bouquet for former mayor Malloy," Lapp said.
Lapp was one of many at Tuesday's forum who said Governor Malloy’s experience rebuilding the area around Stamford's train station while mayor should serve the state well.
The event was organized by proponents of transit-oriented development. It's a type of urban planning that aims to revitalize areas around train stations with mixed use housing, office and retail space. The idea is to encourage people to ditch their cars, and take public transit instead.
In Connecticut, some of the most talked about area for transit-oriented development is along the proposed commuter rail line between New Haven and Springfield.
Jonathan Rose founded a company that builds green and transit-friendly projects. He says the state needs to make development attractive to builders.
"And if we align the incentives with the transit, then we're going to get the development in the right place," Rose said. "And we're going to be creating the infrastructure in the future that is much more competitive than sprawl."
In February, the state bond commission released $5 million for planning projects that was set aside a few years ago. But only two towns along the Springfield line were earmarked funds -- Windsor and Meriden. They'll also have to share the money with towns along the Hartford-New Britain Busway and other rail lines in the state.