As part of the Obama Administration’s Partnership for Sustainable Communities, which is encouraging cities across the country to develop more housing choices, Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) officials met in Miami Feb. 18 with representatives of 125 business and civic entities.  As reported in The New Colonist, the roundtable discussion focused on a holistic approach to developing job growth, affordable housing, quality schools, support for the arts, and reliable transportation in making communities more livable.  HUD’s Deputy Secretary Ron Sims said the goal is to find new approaches to old problems.  Last fall HUD awarded $4.25 million to the South Florida Regional Planning Council of Hollywood to develop plans for more prosperous, socially inclusive and environmentally sustainable communities.  Click here to sign up for HUD’s bi-monthly online newsletters.