During the general election season, Adam repeatedly touched on the potential impact Barack Obama's metropolitan background could have on his policy priorities in the White House. Well, here's the first good sign: the Washington Post's Al Kamen is reporting that he is following through on his pledge to create an Office of Urban Policy:

[P]lans are underway to establish a White House Office of Urban Policy in order to better coordinate federal efforts to help America's cities, according to Obama transition co-chair Valerie Jarrett.

"He's going to have a White House chief of urban policy," Jarrett told the Trotter Group, an organization of black columnists. [...]

Despite the many national problems confronting the new administration, she continued, Obama remains committed to earlier pledges to establish such an office. "Because he began as a community organizer on the South Side of Chicago, he understands at the local level is really where you can impact change and that local government can play a vital role as we try to jump start our economy," she said. "So having somebody in the White House, because there are so many different agencies that really can impact urban America and to have one person whose job it is to really pull all of that together, is really a critical position. And there are plenty of terrific candidates for that spot."

Obama laid out his plans for this office with greater specificity on his campaign website.