The new chairman of the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission called for a state constitutional convention yesterday to rewrite Pennsylvania law so that local governments can more easily consolidate.

Noting that a 1968 constitutional convention stopped short of enabling mergers and consolidations, Washington County Commissioner Bracken Burns said, "This time we need to get it right."

Comparing the structure of local government to a used car, Mr. Burns said, "We bought it 300 years ago ... about the only thing that works well are the brakes."

Mr. Burns made his comments during the conclusion of the second annual Equitable Development Summit, a half-day gathering sponsored by the University of Pittsburgh's Johnson Institute for Responsible Leadership and Sustainable Pittsburgh, a nonprofit organization that advocates "sustainable development."

The summit also marked the release of a report comparing five cities that were once major manufacturing centers, but which have struggled to redefine themselves in recent decades: Baltimore, Cleveland, Detroit, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

The report, compiled by PolicyLink, a California think tank, advocates regional development that "reduces economic and social disparities" by such initiatives as reverse-commute programs that provide transportation between suburban employers and inner-city neighborhoods, and land banks that recycle vacant and abandoned properties.

PolicyLink President Judith Bell presented highlights from the report, followed by a roundtable discussion with a half-dozen leaders from the nonprofit and business communities, each of whom offered facts in support of regionalizing and simplifying local government.

Cheryle E. Campbell, field office director for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, pointed to HUD surveys indicating that "excessive" regulations hinder housing affordability by adding $29,000 to $50,000 per unit to housing project costs.

Sustainable Pittsburgh's Director Court Gould said that in working with other groups focussing on development, a set of common concerns or "emerging policy initiatives" are emerging.

The organization plans to follow up yesterday's meeting with a series of forums throughout the region in order to build consensus about what the priorities should be in regional development. That consensus will be part of the annual conference in May.

While declaring that he did not want to "short-circuit" any discussion about policies and priorities, Mr. Gould did urge those present to give special attention to public transportation in coming months, noting that the Pennsylvania Transportation Funding and Reform Commission is scheduled to issue its final report to the governor and the general assembly by Nov. 15, 2006.

By that time, Mr. Gould said, Port Authority Transit and other transit authorities across the state "will be in full crisis mode" due to lack of funds.