Polk County Supervisor Angela Connolly has received a national award for her leadership as an elected official for her efforts leading three significant regional planning initiatives in Greater Des Moines.

The Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations (AMPO) named Supervisor Connolly as this year’s recipient of the national Award for Outstanding Elected Official Leadership, recognizing her leadership roles in The Tomorrow Plan, Capital Crossroads and DART Forward 2035. The award was announced Wednesday at the 2015 AMPO Annual Conference in Las Vegas.

“This is an incredible honor and certainly one I never anticipated,” Supervisor Connolly said. “There are hundreds of people who have committed their creativity, passion and hard work to develop these plans – and then put them into action, improving the lives of tens of thousands of residents. I would like to express my gratitude for all of their service to the community.”

Many improvements to Greater Des Moines have roots in the plans for which Angela played a leadership role, including:

• Co-chair of The Tomorrow Plan, a long-range, government-led plan for the sustainable development of the Greater Des Moines metropolitan region over the next 40 years (dmampo.org/the-tomorrow-plan).

• Tri-chair of Capital Crossroads, a five-year, business-led plan for improving the central Iowa region, including a
  50-mile radius around the State Capitol (www.capitalcrossroadsvision.com).

• Commissioner of DART Forward 2035 Transit Services Plan, an ambitious long-range plan for improving transit service provided by the Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority (www.ridedart.com).