National Award for Smart Growth Achievement 2003 Winners

• A Message from the Administrator
• Smart Growth and the Environment
• National Award for Smart Growth and Achievement Winners
• About the Award
• Overall Excellence in Smart Growth
• Built Projects
• Policies and Regulations
• Community Outreach and Education
• Public Schools
• 2002 Winner Updates
• Smart Growth Trends and Opportunities
• Acknowledgements

This publication is also available as a PDF (20 pp, 2.4 MB, about PDF).

Smart growth techniques can improve air and water quality, preserve wetlands, protect critical open space, and spur redevelopment of brownfield sites. While all development affects the environment, the following examples show that strategic consideration of how and where growth occurs can minimize impacts.

• A study in South Carolina found that a low-density development scenario consumed eight times more open space, and generated 43 percent more runoff, four times more sediment, almost four times as much nitrogen, and three times the phosphorous as compared to more compact, town-centered development.¹
• In a 2001 study conducted by George Washington University, researchers found that for every acre of brownfield redeveloped, a minimum of 4.5 acres in a greenfield area is saved.²
• A study in Orlando, Florida discovered that in contrast with low-density growth patterns, more concentrated development would result in a loss of 20 percent fewer acres of wetlands and floodplains.³
• In a comparison between San Francisco residents and households in Danville-San Ramon where residents have fewer transportation choices, the average household burnt 339 fewer gallons of gasoline, and emitted 14 kg fewer hydrocarbons, 12 kg fewer nitrogen oxides, and 98 kg fewer carbon monoxide per year. ⁴ The higher densities and greater mix of commercial, residential, and employment uses in San Francisco fostered more trips by walking, cycling, and transit.

Smart growth practices like redeveloping brownfields; creating compact, walkable neighborhoods; providing transportation choices; preserving environmentally sensitive areas; mixing residential, office, and retail amenities; and taking advantage of existing infrastructure can lessen the environmental impacts of development. Well-conceived smart growth policies and programs that promote these practices can yield substantial environmental benefits and boost the quality of life in our communities. For more information about the environmental benefits of smart growth, please see: www.epa.gov/smartgrowth.

OVERALL EXCELLENCE IN SMART GROWTH

Metropolitan Council
Minneapolis-St.Paul Metropolitan Area, Minnesota
Livable Communities Program

BUILT PROJECTS

Department of the Navy-Southwest Division
Naval Facilities Engineering Command
San Diego, California
The Village at NTC

COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND EDUCATION

Cuyahoga County Treasurer's Office
Cuyahoga County, Ohio
Housing Enhancement Loan Program

POLICIES AND REGULATIONS

Georgia Department of Community Affairs-
Office of Quality Growth
State of Georgia
Georgia Quality Growth Program

PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Wake County Public School System/City of Raleigh
Raleigh, North Carolina
Moore Square Museums Magnet Middle School

The principles of smart growth include:

• Mix land uses.
• Take advantage of compact building design.
• Create housing opportunities and choices for a range of household types, family sizes and incomes.
• Create walkable neighborhoods.
• Foster distinctive, attractive communities with a strong sense of place.
• Preserve open space, farmland, natural beauty, and critical environmental areas.
• Reinvest in and strengthen existing communities and achieve more balanced regional development.
• Provide a variety of transportation choices.
• Make development decisions predictable, fair and cost-effective.
• Encourage citizen and stakeholder participation in development decisions.

Livable Communities Program
Metropolitan Council
Minneapolis-St. Paul
Metropolitan Area, Minnesota

Funds provided by the Livable Communities Act (LCA) are used by communities in the Minneapolis-St. Paul region to put the principles of smart growth into practice. The LCA provides financial and technical support to public entities and their private sector partners to redevelop urban brownfield sites, produce lifecycle and affordable housing, and create or revitalize town centers and neighborhoods.

For More Information
Elizabeth Ryan
Director
Housing and Livable Communities
Tel: 651-602-1615
elizabeth.ryan@metc.state.mn.us

"In these few years, I have seen a tremendous surge of innovation and creativity in the planning and construction of redevelopment projects and housing developments across the region. The Livable Communities programs have leveraged 'hard cost,' in-the-ground investments in our cities amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars."

- Karen J. Anderson Mayor, City of Minnetonka and past president National League of Cities

LCA funding helped to transform segments of Excelsior Boulevard (above) into a vibrant, mixed use corridor in St. Louis Park, a first ring suburb of Minneapolis. The Excelsior and Grand project (right) adds almost 350 residential units and 160,000 square feet of retail to the area.

The Guardian Angels development (above), located in the traditional downtown of Hastings, used LCA funding to construct affordable townhomes and apartments, a domestic abuse shelter, and redevelop a church, rectory, and school into a community center.

Consistently ranked among the top locations in the country to raise a family or establish a business, the Minneapolis-St. Paul region is experiencing rapid population growth. The metropolitan area is showing signs of growth-related stress: increasing traffic congestion, rising housing prices, and dwindling open space. Instead of trying to limit growth, the Minnesota State Legislature provided the Metropolitan Council with a voluntary, incentive-based approach to help communities grow in a way that addresses a variety of the region's issues. In 1995, the legislature passed the Livable Communities Act (LCA) to get innovative projects off the ground.

The LCA underwrites three distinct grant programs: Tax Base Revitalization (brownfield cleanup), Local Housing Incentives (lifecycle and affordable housing), and the Livable Communities Demonstration Account (mixed use projects). Supported by a metro area property tax authorized by the legislature, the LCA uses a straightforward grant application, with well-established selection criteria guiding the evaluation process. To be eligible for funding from any of the three grant programs, municipalities must first choose to develop a housing action plan that addresses affordable housing needs and provides a variety of housing types.

From 1996 to May 2003, the Council awarded LCA 292 grants totaling nearly $100 million. The grants are expected to leverage more than $3.3 billion in private and other public investments. LCA funding has helped create an anticipated 7,260 new or rehabilitated housing units, 1,911 new or rehabilitated rental units, 11,400 new or retained jobs, and 940 acres of reclaimed polluted land.

The voluntary program has engaged 106 communities in the seven-county metropolitan area. Annual requests for grants consistently exceed the funds available. The range of funded projects reflects the diverse urban, suburban, and rural communities in the region. In Hastings, a mid-sized town south of St. Paul, the Guardian Angels project used LCA funds to construct affordable apartments and to redevelop a church and school into a community center. An award to St. Louis Park, a first-ring suburb of Minneapolis, created a walkable town center with ten new buildings and 660 housing units along an aging commercial corridor.

BUILT PROJECTS

The Village at NTC
Department of the Navy- Southwest Division Naval Facilities Engineering Command
San Diego, California

The Village at the Naval Training Center (NTC) brings attractive, affordable housing to military families through an innovative public-private partnership. The traditional neighborhood design creates a place where families can live and play and have easy access to employment and shopping.

For More Information
Anthony Megliola Public/Private Venture Team Leader
Southwest Division Naval Facilities
Engineering Command Department of the Navy
Tel: 619-532-1489
megliolaam@efdsw.navfac.navy.mil

"My wife is going to reenlist if we can stay here." - Kyle Williams, Resident
The Village at NTC

The Village at NTC offers a range of housing types, while seamlessly connecting to the adjacent neighborhood.

Re-using former military bases and addressing the lack of decent and affordable military housing are concerns that many cities and the Armed Forces face. At the San Diego Naval Training Center, the Department of the Navy addressed these issues in a development that serves as a welcome addition to the nearby Point Loma community. In partnership with private developers, financiers, and property management teams, the Navy built a new neighborhood of high quality, affordable military housing on the former base.

The Village at NTC redevelops a 50-acre parcel of the historic naval training facility and is part of a much larger city-led Base Reuse Plan. Designed using principles of New Urbanism and extensive public involvement, the Village contains 500 affordable housing units, a seven-acre site for a future elementary school, a community center, recreational space, and embraces the Navy Exchange as an existing corner grocery store. With well-designed public spaces, pedestrian-friendly streetscapes, and regional architectural styles, the Village integrates smoothly with the existing residential and commercial context of the historic city. Implementation of smart growth principles can be seen throughout the Village. Not only is it located within three miles of downtown on an underutilized urban site, but it is connected seamlessly into the existing urban fabric, and provides access to alternative transportation options and a public school site. Following traditional neighborhood design, automobile access to the housing is from rear alleys, leaving the building fronts available for features such as porches and landscaping.

Through the public/private partnership, the Village at NTC has provided quality, affordable housing units for military families based in San Diego. The Village has been highlighted in Navy publications as a high quality, pedestrian friendly, traditional neighborhood design for military family housing. Two additional sister neighborhoods based on the design of the Village are planned for other redevelopment sites in San Diego. The Village at NTC acts as a model of design and process for the redevelopment of military family housing-making these attractive military neighborhoods a welcome addition to existing communities.

The Village at NTC has been used as a model for redevelopment of military housing throughout the country.

POLICIES AND REGULATIONS

Housing Enhancement Loan Program
Cuyahoga County Treasurer's Office
Cuyahoga County, Ohio

The Cuyahoga County Treasurer's Office-working with private banks and local municipalities-has helped finance more than 4,700 home improvement loans worth over $57 million, stemming out-migration, helping residents stay in their homes, and strengthening compact, diverse and livable neighborhoods, for less than $1 million per year.

For More Information
Howard Katz
Director of Strategic Planning
Cuyahoga County
Treasurer's Office
Tel: 216-443-7563
trhek@www.cuyahoga.oh.us

Even in the absence of an overall smart growth policy, state and local governments with an investment portfolio and willing lending partners could replicate the Housing Enhancement Loan Program.

"The loan came at a very good time for us. Our family's funds were low. I was very satisfied with the HELP loan, and we will be staying in this house longer as a result of the loan."
- Edward Caraszi Homeowner Berea

Since beginning in 1999, HELP has generated over 4,700 loans totaling more than $57 million, with an average five-year loan of $12,000.

In a survey of borrowers, over 60 percent of respondents said they would not have made the investment in their property without HELP. These improvements have attracted new residents, boosted property values, and stabilized the tax base and local school districts. Cities have even noted a "halo effect"-neighbors of HELP loan recipients have made home improvements without county assistance.

The program has had a great impact at a lower cost than anticipated. The County was willing to invest $1.2 million in foregone interest annually on HELP, but the annual interest foregone has never exceeded $900,000. The leveraging is powerful-a $10,000 loan only "costs" the County $300 in foregone interest the first year, and even less in subsequent years.

HELP has persuaded both Franklin County (Columbus) and Hamilton County (Cincinnati) to enact similar programs, and the State Treasurer changed Ohio law to make matching funds available to counties with eligible programs.

The owners of these four houses on Maywood Road in South Euclid have used HELP loans to renovate their homes. The overall effect is to stabilize the neighborhoods and increase property values. Housing Enhancement Loan Program.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND EDUCATION

Georgia Quality Growth Program
Georgia Department of Community Affairs- Office of Quality Growth
State of Georgia

The Georgia Office of Quality Growth provides a full menu of resources to communities looking for better ways to grow. Rather than regulating, the state fosters exchanges of local success stories, provides model ordinances, and sends resource teams to communities that request assistance.

For More Information
Jim Frederick
Director
Georgia Department of Office of Quality Growth
Tel: 404-679-3105
jfrederi@dca.state.ga.us

The Office of Quality Growth's success stems from the recognition that each state-and each community within the state-has unique conditions and issues, which can be best addressed by local solutions that use the principles of smart growth.

"Without the help we got from the Office of Quality Growth, we might still be struggling with how to develop housing close to the workplace that our workers can afford to purchase. But now, we are working on an infill program in Dalton, and Whitfield County is looking at Traditional Neighborhood Developments and Planned Unit Developments, which were recommended by the Resource Team."
- Butch Sanders, Dalton City Administrator

OQG worked with Whitfield County and Murray County in North Georgia to retain the historic character along the Cohutta-Chattahoochee Scenic Byway.

More informed communities make more informed decisions about how and where they want to grow. Since 2000, the Office of Quality Growth (OQG) in the Department of Community Affairs has helped communities implement smart growth principles. Their approach? 1) Focusing assistance efforts on the communities that are ready for implementation of smart growth; and 2) Educating communities about smart growth success stories in Georgia to foster peer-to-peer interaction and support among local officials.

OQG offers impressive services to Georgia communities, including a Web-based toolkit of ways to put smart growth principles into practice at the local level (e.g., improving strip commercial corridors, creating infill development, preserving open space), model ordinances, a clearinghouse of Georgia examples of quality growth projects, on-site visits by Resource Teams, and direct technical assistance. OQG partners with over 40 organizations through the Georgia Quality Growth Partnership to provide many of these services.

Several new programs are being piloted by OQG: 1) Advisory Clinics, which are expert panels made available at major in-state conferences for one-on-one consultation and advice about local smart growth projects; 2) Special Issue Retreats with key local officials for hands-on work with a recognized expert in a particular approach; 3) Quality Growth Assessments that provide a comprehensive review of a local government's regulations, plans, policies, and development patterns to identify barriers to implementation of smart growth; and 4) Consultants' Bureau, in which professional facilitators lead local planning and visioning meetings while bringing smart growth principles into the discussion.

Many communities follow up by applying for grants to implement the ideas put forward by OQG experts. To date, OQG has provided $350,000 in grants to 27 communities. Grants have included new projects, such as a detailed master plan for a South Rome neighborhood and infill design guidelines and development regulations for Dalton, both of which resulted from Resource Team recommendations. Other projects have included corridor studies, demonstration projects, ordinance development, and review of regulatory barriers to smart growth.

PUBLIC SCHOOLS

The Moore Square Museums Magnet Middle School is situated in the heart of Raleigh's cultural and arts district, providing students with a unique educational opportunity that draws on down-town cultural institutions. The new school is a source of pride and an important resource for the community. Within walking distance to diverse neighborhoods, it has helped strengthen and revitalize the surrounding area.

For More Information
George Chapman
Planning Director
City of Raleigh Planning Department
Tel: 919-890-3654
george.chapman@ci.raleigh.nc.us

"Because our campus is located in the heart of downtown Raleigh, we are ideally situated to realize our goal-joining with museums and cultural organizations to enhance learning. Students, teachers, and parent volunteers can walk to many museums, and museum staff can readily visit our campus to lead student projects. The convenience of the museum resources is an essential component of our identity." - Cathy D. Bradley, Principal Moore Square Museums Magnet Middle School

This aerial view shows the four-acre Moore Square campus surrounded by neighborhood streets and single-family homes, and adjacent to a park.

For some time, there has been a national trend toward constructing big schools and requiring large sites. Increasingly, however, communities are realizing that large, new campuses may have adverse consequences for a neighborhood's quality of life. In response, citizens, parents, and school administrators are calling for schools that fit the needs of individual communities. These individuals recognize that schools do more than house children for the day. They affect home-buying decisions and traffic patterns. They present opportunities to create neighborhood centers for education and civic life. The Moore Square Museums Magnet Middle School exemplifies this approach to school siting.

The Moore Square Museums Magnet Middle School is a new facility on a four-acre city block on the east side of downtown Raleigh. The school is located in the larger Downtown East Residential Redevelopment Area-an area targeted for housing and community development. The site was assembled by removing several blighted and vacant structures. Despite the relatively small lot size, students have access to a full sized gymnasium and two playing fields that are used for daily physical education classes as well as intramural sports.

The school is drawing new residents and other redevelopment to the area, helping to stabilize the community. The school accommodates 492 students in grades six through eight, many of whom applied specifically to attend the school. Its downtown location provides a setting that allows students to explore the cultural venues of the city. The school's partnerships with several museums and arts facilities enrich the curriculum with unique learning opportunities. Traditional downtown uses, including business, residential, and religious, also add to the stimulating learning environment. Situated only one block away from the school, Capital Area Transit system's bus center extends access to the school beyond adjacent neighborhoods, creating a socially and economically diverse student body. The school's location also allows students to get plenty of exercise as they walk to local museums as part of their daily routines.

The Moore Square Museums Magnet Middle School has generated substantial community support for increasing downtown investment, expanding residential opportunities within the city, and concentrating sensitive development within areas of existing infrastructure and service provision.

The entrance of Moore Square Middle School is located at an intersection, providing convenient access by foot for students and teachers. Moore Square Museums Magnet Middle School.

2002 WINNER UPDATES

OVERALL EXCELLENCE IN SMART GROWTH
Arlington County, Virginia
Rosslyn-Ballston Metro Corridor

For Arlington County, one challenge in implementing a successful smart growth program has been creating and retaining affordable housing. In 2003, they worked with EPA to commission case studies of affordable housing policies in comparable jurisdictions. The report included an overview of Arlington County's program, as well as case studies from Berkeley, CA; Montgomery County, MD; Cambridge, MA; Seattle, WA; and Vancouver, BC. The County will use the report to learn about affordable housing policies of other communities and consider incorporating aspects of effective programs into its own program design.

POLICIES AND REGULATIONS
City/County Association of Governments of
San Mateo County, California

Transit-Oriented Development Incentive Program In the past year, construction began on another project that will receive funding through the San Mateo TOD Incentive Program: the Colma BART Apartments. This project will receive $300,000 and will result in 144 units built at a density of 72 units per acre. The Franklin Street project is now 90 percent completed. Given the success of the TOD incentives, C/CAG is currently considering a similar program to encourage creating jobs near transit. Eligible projects would have to provide commuter benefits such as transit passes and parking cash out programs. EPA has helped C/CAG develop a Web site to provide information about its programs.

BUILT PROJECTS
Town of Breckenridge Planning Department
Colorado

Wellington Neighborhood Breckenridge continues to refine its urban design and planning policies to reflect the town's values and vision. Among other progressive efforts, the town is considering creating criteria for public investments to ensure that new infrastructure and facilities maintain and improve the quality of life. The town is also planning a multi-modal, mixed-use transportation hub that will help visitors get around without cars and reach the ski slopes from downtown using a gondola. EPA will assist Breckenridge in a study of other towns that have adopted codes or incentive programs that encourage smart growth and sustainable development.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND EDUCATION

Massachusetts Executive Office of
Environmental Affairs
Community Preservation Initiative

EPA helped Massachusetts convene a June 2003 workshop which formally introduced Governor Mitt Romney's Sustainable Development Principles-an important step in the process of creating a sustainable development agenda for the commonwealth. Governor Romney and Commonwealth Development Secretary Douglas Foy outlined growth trends and the need to change development patterns. Managers from the Commonwealth Development agencies-Environment, Energy, Housing, and Transportation-discussed sustainable development and proposed ways to implement the Sustainable Development Principles. Based on information gathered at the workshop, teams in each agency are now working to create Action Plans that will form the basis of a Sustainable Development Blueprint for the Commonwealth.

Managers from the Massachusetts Office on Commonwealth Development attend a working session on sustainable development on June 27, 2003.

Development in Arlington County's Rosslyn-Ballston corridor.

"We really appreciated receiving the EPA's Smart Growth Award. Not only because of the attention it focused on Arlington, but because EPA has helped us to explore ways of maintaining housing affordability in our transit corridors." - Chris Zimmerman Arlington County Board Member

"The EPA Smart Growth Achievement Award helped focus attention on the important growth issues Massachusetts faces. EPA's assistance in convening a meeting of key state managers from environmental, transportation, housing and energy agencies has enhanced our team approach to addressing land use issues in the Commonwealth." - Douglas I. Foy Secretary, Office for Commonwealth Development

Smart Growth Trends...

• Between 2001 and 2002, the number of smart growth developments increased 26%.
• More than70% in 2001. 6,000 main street and downtown revitalization projects are underway throughout the country.
• 75% of all parks and open space ballot measures on local and state ballots in 2002 were passed by voters-an increase from 70% in 2001.

• On average, 15% of a city's area is comprised of usable, vacant land that is available for development.
• Up to one-third of the demand for new housing over the next couple of decades is likely to be for townhomes, apartments and other forms of dense housing.
• Approximately one out of every 14 shopping malls in the U.S. has been classified as a "greyfield mall." Redeveloping these sites would generate $11 billion in construction activity.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS