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What if we labeled unwalkable neighborhoods like we do cigarettes?

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The Surgeon General of the United States will kick off a new nationwide Call to Action later this morning, aiming to help Americans lead healthier lives—by making walking and physical activity built-in features of more of our neighborhoods.

Over the past decade, scores of research has shown the correlation between physical inactivity and sprawl development. Today, 10 percent of the preventable deaths in America are related to physical inactivity and its related diseases, including obesity, heart disease, and diabetes—and communities without safe places to walk are part of the problem. Smart Growth America’s 2003 report Measuring the Health Effects of Sprawl was one of the first to examine this issue. Today, the Surgeon General is making it a national health priority.

Complete Streets LOCUS

Saco, ME is breaking out of short-term cycles with long-term thinking

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SacoPhoto: Saco, ME, Jasperado via Flickr.

Maintaining New England traditions is at the top of Saco, ME’s agenda. How can this small city maintain the physical, economic, and cultural assets that make it unique while also changing in ways that make it a desirable destination for tourists, homebuyers, businesses, and investors?

Saco recently wrapped up a future visioning process intended to answer these questions and guide future public investments and economic development initiatives. Mayor Don Pilon, a member of Smart Growth America’s Local Leaders Council, explains that short Council terms (lasting just two years) were part of the impetus for the visioning process, known as Bridge 2025. “We all sit down and think through what we want to accomplish in the two years that we have,” Mayor Pilon explained, but there was rarely common vision for what should happen beyond that budget cycle. To establish that, Mayor Pilon deliberately stepped back and supported a process that put businesses, residents, and other stakeholders in the driver’s seat. “This had to be driven by the public,” he explained. “When we’re gone, this needs to be continued by the stakeholders. This is their product, not our product.”

Local Leaders Council

Now hiring: Transportation Program Manager

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Smart Growth America is seeking a Transportation Program Manager to help communities across the country better coordinate land use and transportation policies. This person will deliver technical assistance to state agency staff, work with town and city leaders across the country, and advocate on transportation policy and program issues with members of Congress.

Uncategorized

Now hiring: Research Analyst

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Smart Growth America seeks a skilled and versatile Research Analyst to support and conduct technical and quantitative analyses regarding a wide variety of issues associated with the built environment and transportation, including economics, real estate, social equity, and the environment.

Uncategorized

With LEED-ND, Sanford, FL could be the next best example of green development

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A rendering of Sanford’s historic downtown district. Photo courtesy of Littlejohn.

Sanford, FL wants to create better, more sustainable, well-connected neighborhoods—particularly around the recently opened SunRail commuter rail station and the city’s Lake Monroe waterfront property. To help achieve that goal, Sanford sought assistance from Smart Growth America with a technical assistance workshop, held on August 4 and 5, 2015.

Sanford leaders want to look beyond the development of individual buildings to a larger district. Smart Growth America’s workshop provided an overview of one such way to do that—the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Neighborhood Development (LEED-ND) standards. LEED-ND is about realizing how each piece of development plays a critical role in the performance of a community as a whole.

Technical assistance

Just the right size

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IL Chicago Lawrence Ave Woman on bike credit Hanna Kite
A new bike lane on Lawrence Avenue in the Ravenswood neighborhood of Chicago. Photo by Hanna Kite

This post is the fourth in a series of case studies about Complete Streets people, places, and projects. Follow the full series over the next several weeks.

A road diet, bicycle lanes, and a profusion of pedestrian improvements have subtly transformed a low-key Chicago neighborhood.

The Ravenswood neighborhood in Chicago, especially the northwest section along Lawrence Avenue, has a quiet, residential feel. Many people in the neighborhood have lived there for decades, and the area attracts families with young children. Six bus routes and two train lines serve the neighborhood, and ridership rates are high. Buildings in the neighborhood are at most only three or four stories high, and a pharmacy, grocery store, handful of boutiques, and cafes serve local residents. In general, Ravenswood is mostly free from the hustle and bustle of the more hip areas of Chicago.

Complete Streets

Complete Streets News — August 2015

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We’re hiring — The National Complete Streets Coalition, a program of Smart Growth America, seeks a passionate, professional leader to serve as its Director. The successful candidate will build upon a decade of success by taking the Complete Streets movement to the next level. The Director, who will be based in Washington, DC, will be an organized, focused, personable leader with seven to ten years of experience.

Complete Streets Local Leaders Council

Expect fewer delays

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DC Washington construction ROW credit WABAAn open bicycle lane and clearly marked pedestrian walkway, such as this one in in D.C., are the exception, not the norm during construction projects. Keeping bicycle lanes free during short-term construction projects also help maintain the safety and efficiency of bicycle networks. Photo: Washington Area Bicycle Association

This post is the third in a series of case studies about Complete Streets people, places, and projects. Follow the full series over the next several weeks.

People on foot and bike are often pushed to the wayside during construction projects. New policies in Washington D.C. and Chicago could change that.

Complete Streets

Knoxville, TN welcomes Smart Growth America for workshop on transit-oriented development

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knoxville-tnKnoxville wants to build on the success of places like Market Square (above). Photo via.

Downtown Knoxville, TN, is seeing a resurgence. New businesses and residents are moving to the area, and the City is working hard to bring similar success to neighborhoods throughout the city. Could investments in public transportation help?

To help answer that question, leaders in Knoxville welcomed Smart Growth America on July 15 and 16, 2015 for a technical assistance workshop on transit-oriented development. Chris Zimmerman, Smart Growth America’s Vice President of Economic Development, and Dena Belzer, President of Strategic Economics, spoke with elected leaders, municipal staff, representatives from regional and state agencies, and Knoxville residents about how investment in public transit could multiply the city’s economic development successes.

Technical assistance
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