New CAC Members for the MPO

The Metropolitan Planning Organization’s (MPO) Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) is beginning 2017 with new members. During the past few months, the CAC membership subcommittee was tasked with the difficult assignment of narrowing down several qualified applicants to fill two vacancies on the CAC. As a result, the MPO’s governing body, the Urbanized Development Commission (UDC), approved the appointment of Carrie Geppert and Audra Staebell. In addition, Ryan Kerkvliet was appointed to serve an additional three-year term on the CAC. 

Carrie Geppert works for South Dakota Advocacy Services as the PAAT Program Director, where her role is to investigate, monitor, advocate, and provide resources for individuals and persons with disabilities. She also has experience in serving for several other committees and organizations in the community such as the Community Development Committee and South Dakota Parent Connection.

Audra Staebell is the Marketing and Communications Coordinator for the University Center-Sioux Falls where she will be able to serve as a liaison between higher education and the formal transportation planning process. She also has experience in serving for several other committees and organizations in the community such as Lutheran Social Services and the Sioux Falls Area Chamber of Commerce. 

The CAC is an important component of the MPO’s transportation planning process, which directs and oversees all transportation planning and programming activities within the official metropolitan planning area, including the Cities of Brandon, Crooks, Harrisburg, Hartford, Sioux Falls, and Tea, as well as portions of Lincoln and Minnehaha Counties. The CAC is the committee established to solicit public participation into the local transportation planning process with membership comprised of interested citizens representing various segments of the population within the planning area. The CAC serve as liaisons between the general public and the formal transportation planning process. The CAC, along with the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) serve as advisory committees to the Urbanized Development Commission, the decision making board of the MPO, which is primarily comprised of elected officials from the government participants of the MPO. To learn more, or become involved with the MPO planning process, please visit the MPO’s website at www.siouxfallsmpo.org.