A Live Green, Live Smart Briefing 
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Americans emphatically say they want to live in an environment that is healthy and sustainable. Between 1994 and 2005, residents of 45 states voted to finance investments of more than $30 billion in local conservation measures to preserve air, water, land and other resources; these investments acknowledge the interrelationships between community development and environmental sustainability. And the human experience is part of the national environment.
One concept current among those seeking ways of creating communities in which design aids environmental goals (and policy goals beyond environment) is called “Smart Growth.” Proponents of Smart Growth believe that combining the practices of mixed land use, compact building design, walkable neighborhoods, preservation of existing open space, and increased transportation options maximize community collaboration for better – more liveable and sustainable - new developments and revitalized neighborhoods.
Smart Growth’s specific applications vary from place to place, but the concept is essentially a way of creating neighborhoods that place workplaces, homes and services closer together to minimize the need to travel for everyday activities, and to provide favorable conditions for social, civic and physical activity.
The Economics of EnvironmentSmart Growth calls for quality design and planning that allow more compact development, which not only saves open space and habitat, but also reduces the need for environmentally costly roadways and utilities that accompany the unchecked expansion referred to as “sprawl.” Studies show that environmentally sensitive development can save communities money to be used for amenities such as schools, health care and public transportation.
Simply taking a vehicle per household off the road reduces infrastructure and carbon costs, and may decrease time wasted in traffic gridlock in ways that benefit families economically and personally. Better design of traffic and public spaces can protect water, green spaces and indigenous species of plants and animals. Decreased building size (and higher quality design and materials) reduces the cost of raw, manufactured, and transported lumber, metal, petro-chemicals and other materials.
This seems obvious in new suburban and exurban developments and upgrades, but it is also important for existing urban locales: Parks, scenic areas and other protected open spaces not only increase the value of surrounding property, but promote recreation and relaxation. Quality building and access to services for people of varying economic and social resources provides greater security and quality of life in aging and redeveloping urban settings – and controls costs both to the public purse and individual pocketbooks.
It’s in the DetailsMost of the benefits that Smart Growth brings to communities show up in the details of physical design and zoning for ease of access and low-maintenance use. Cities that develop pedestrian friendly (and transportation rich) settings also promote local service and retail businesses by making local shops along accessible routes.
Residents of all ages are increasingly attracted to employers in smartly developed cities, because it is easier to integrate their home and work lives in these settings. Mixed use developments can manage traffic patterns and zoning to facilitate both liveliness and quiet living; cluster developments can meet the specific needs of a variety of demographics, including age and mobility.
Long-term planning and vision enable cities to establish and preserve valuable artistic, historic, and cultural legacies. Smart Growth principles can, for instance, help cities whose cobblestone streets, dignified churches, and tree-lined avenues would once have been obliterated by un-integrated redevelopment. Smart Growth can help a city keep the heritage that is preserved by these landmarks, and to develop dynamic new structures, services and spaces that enhance a place’s livability.
Dealing with DevelopmentAlthough the word development often carries a negative connotation along with it, positive change is very real through Smart Growth planning. Because development involves local governments, private contractors and oftentimes state and/or federal laws, citizens have the responsibility to voice their opinions and needs to these different sectors of development in order to implement Smart Growth practices effectively and justly.
A common concern many residents have about new development is the rising cost of living that has been a traditional concomitant to development. Smart Growth challenges that assumption by conserving utilities, decreasing transportation costs and combining mixed-income housing options in order to keep prices fair and to make functional communities available to as many people as possible. Thoughtful, environmentally and socially sensitive development can help create economic opportunities, build great places to live and visit, preserve valued qualities of communities, address impediments to thriving community and economic conditions, and protect common (and personal) environmental resources.
There is no one best way to develop “smart” but attention to long-term sustainability, adaptability, and conservation will be crucial in changing environmental and geo-political circumstances.