CCI Selects Alexandria, VA for "Safe + Smart Cities" Pilot Project

WASHINGTON, Dec. 18, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Part of the Washington, DC metropolitan region, at no cost to its taxpayers, will soon learn how to harden its resiliency and maximize its operational performance through the efficient use of technology. 

The City of Alexandria, VA has been selected by the Chesapeake Crescent Initiative (CCI) for its second "Safe + Smart Cities" pilot program. The first pilot was conducted in Newark, DE; CCI is now finalizing its "blueprint" for Newark containing a variety of practical recommendations, such as increasing electric grid resiliency and system redundancy. CCI also is linking communities similarly situated to Newark, DE together so that the lessons learned from the blueprint might have a larger impact on the region. 

CCI is a public-private collaborative founded six years ago to support technological innovation. Its Safe + Smart Cities coalition comprises a group of world-class experts from technology industries, academia, government, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the law, and the financial sector. Through its pilot projects, the coalition is providing pro-bono expertise and recommendations to selected municipalities in the mid-Atlantic region of Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia.

These recommendations are intended to provide pragmatic and feasible options to help visionary urban communities achieve or exceed their "safe and smart" objectives while also increasing global competitiveness, sustaining regional economic growth, and improving citizens' lives.

"Responding to the threat of climate change and sea level rise is central to my vision for a new Virginia economy," said Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe. "The CCI pilot project in Alexandria will provide valuable information and unbiased recommendations that can help enhance our communities' resilience, quality of life, and economic growth through technology and innovation."

"Alexandria is pleased and honored to be selected as a participant in CCI's Pilot Program," said Alexandria Mayor William Euille. "We believe the benefits we will gain in collaboration and partnership with the consulting team will enable our city to enhance its sustainability, resilience, and smart cities commitment toward our future growth and success."

"It's hard to imagine that 99 percent of the physical world is not connected to the Internet," said Clifford J. Thomas, Managing Director of Cisco Systems, Inc. "But cities can now act as hubs for the 'Internet of Everything,' where people, things, data, and processes can be connected to deliver new and amazing value for citizens."

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SOURCE The Chesapeake Crescent Initiative