Events

A new model for analyzing city development

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Madison, WI, is the first city to use a forthcoming analysis model from Smart Growth America and RCLCO.

Every town and city makes decisions about how to grow and what kind of development to build. These decisions shape entire neighborhoods, and form the foundation of American communities as we know them.

These decisions also impact a city’s finances. Some development patterns generate net revenue, others run a deficit. A smart growth approach can help cities build in ways that support long term fiscal health, and a new tool will help local leaders understand specific ways this approach can help their community.

Next week Smart Growth America and RCLCO will unveil a new model for analyzing the fiscal performance of urban development. This new model will be applicable in every town or city across the country, and is designed to help cities understand what financial returns their development currently generates—and what strategies could generate better returns in the future.

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Register for today's webinar on "Evaluating Complete Streets Projects"

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Communities have seen amazing results from their Complete Streets projects. These projects have made streets safer, increased the number of people biking, walking, and taking transit, and have been related to broader economic gains. But too few communities measure these results.

Complete Streets

Neighborhood revitalization workshop teaches Maryland leaders new strategies and ways to overcome challenges

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Maryland revitalization workshopLocal leaders from Western Maryland and Maryland’s Eastern Shore discuss revitalization challenges and successes.

Nearly twenty members of the Maryland Chapter of Smart Growth America’s Local Leaders Council gathered in Silver Spring, MD on Friday, March 13 for a Revitalizing Downtowns and Regional Centers for the Triple Bottom Line workshop sponsored by Smart Growth America and 1000 Friends of Maryland. Montgomery County Councilmember Hans Riemer, an Advisory Board member of the Maryland Chapter, sponsored the event at the Silver Spring Civic Building in the heart of Downtown Silver Spring.

Local Leaders Council

Building great places in the Los Angeles area? Join our LOCUS LinkUP on March 26

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Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade isn’t the only walkable neighborhood in the Southern California anymore. Photo by LandAinLA.

Southern California is going through an urban transformation that’s making the region more walkable, one city block at a time—and we are bringing together the people making it happen.

Developers and investors working on walkable real estate projects are invited to join us on Thursday, March 26, 2015 for the LOCUS LinkUp: Building the Next Walkable Places in Southern California.

LOCUS

Registration now open for the 2015 Local Leaders Council Policy Forum

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Are you a local leader working to build a robust downtown, expand housing choices, or create healthy neighborhoods? If so, we want you to join us in Washington, DC this spring.

Elected and high level appointed officials from around the country are invited to Smart Growth America’s Local Leaders Council second annual Policy Forum from May 31 to June 1, 2015 in Washington, DC. The Local Leaders Council is a bipartisan group of over 200 councilmembers, mayors, agency directors and county officials who share an interest in smart growth.

Local Leaders Council

Coming soon: "The WalkUP Wake-Up Call: Boston"

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Walkable real estate development projects and places are on the rise nationwide. Over the past year, LOCUS has looked at how these trends are playing out in Atlanta and Washington, DC.

On March 11, we’ll reveal new analysis of which walkable urban places—or “walkUPs”—are changing the real estate landscape in another major American city: Boston. 

The WalkUP Wake-Up Call: Boston will, for the first time ever, analyze the different forms and economic use of all land use across metro Boston and rank Boston-area communities based on economic and social equity metrics. 

LOCUS

Incoming Massachusetts cabinet secretaries top speaker lineup at 2015 New England LOCUS Leadership Summit

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The 2015 New England LOCUS Leadership Summit: Closing the Next [Smart Growth] Deal on March 11, 2015 in Boston, MA, will bring together real estate industry leaders and public officials from across the region to advocate, network, makes deals, and connect with one another. To frame the event’s discussions, we are excited to announce these confirmed speakers … Continued

LOCUS

Learn all about the third edition of "The Innovative DOT"

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innovative-dot3-cover-thumbEarlier this month we released the third edition of The Innovative DOT: A handbook of policy and practice. The new and improved guide includes tools for state DOTs working to improve safety, alleviate congestion, improve system reliability, accelerate project delivery, preserve valuable assets, reduce environmental impacts, and enhance economic opportunities—all in an era of constrained budgets.

We want to make it as easy as possible to use the new guide, so Smart Growth America and our co-authors the State Smart Transportation Initiative are hosting a free webinar all about it.

Join us tomorrow, January 27, 2015 at 3:00 PM EST to learn about new features of the 2015 edition and to discuss how transportation professionals have applied the manual. Hear from panelists Billy Fields, Assistant Professor of Political Science at Texas State University; Roger Millar, Vice President of Smart Growth America and Director of Smart Growth America’s Leadership Institute; Adetokunbo “Toks” Omishakin, Deputy Commissioner/Chief of Environment & Planning at the Tennessee DOT; and Chris Spahr, SSTI Project Assistant. The speakers will highlight new features in the third edition, and how state DOTs across the country are already putting the manual into action.

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Nominate a developer for the 2015 National LOCUS Leadership Awards

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Nominate a developer!

Do you know a real estate developer or investor who is creating great walkable places and has displayed exemplary public leadership to advance smart growth development? If so, nominate them for the 2015 LOCUS Leadership Awards! We are granting awards in three categories:

Developer/Investor of the Year
Affiliate of the Year (includes Architects, Lawyers, Planners, Engineers, etc.)
Richard Baron Award for Affordable Housing

The LOCUS Leadership Awards recognize real estate developers or investors who have demonstrated exemplary commitment to public leadership for walkable, sustainable development. These awards represent an excellent opportunity to showcase and reward a game-changing developer who is influencing the future of real estate. Last year, LOCUS honored Meea Kang, President and co-Founder of Domus Development LLC for her accomplishments in smart growth affordable housing development in California and across the nation.

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