Ms. Kaminowitz:

I can tell you from 22 years of professional experience with an MPO... The Census Bureau doesn't need (or want) to know about your MPO planning area boundary. Urbanized areas and MSAs, CMSAs, etc are geographic definitions only. The Census Bureau puts them out for general reference purposes, and then other agencies like FHWA and FTA use them for funding allocations etc., or for data gathering (like the BEA and BLS). The Census Bureau stays out of this "political football" territory.

My organization (Metroplan in Little Rock, Arkansas) has generally kept our transportation planning boundary on census tract lines to make data analysis, i.e. estimates and projections, a little simpler. But that is of course your organization's option.

Jonathan Lupton AICP

Research Planner

Metroplan

501-372-3300

From: Mara Kaminowitz [mailto:mkaminowitz@baltometro.org]
Sent: Monday, November 16, 2015 2:40 PM
To: ctpp-news@chrispy.net
Subject: [CTPP] drawing MPO boundaries

Hello,

We are in the process of drawing a new MPO boundary to reflect changes to the 2010 urbanized area.  There are several options being looked at for exactly how to set the new boundary but we are not currently considering Census geography.  Does an MPO boundary get submitted to the Census bureau, and if so are there requirements to snap it to blocks?

Mara Kaminowitz, GISP
GIS Coordinator
.........................................................................
Baltimore Metropolitan Council
Offices @ McHenry Row
1500 Whetstone Way
Suite 300
Baltimore, MD  21230
410-732-0500 ext. 1030
mkaminowitz@baltometro.org
www.baltometro.org