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Smart Growth America cultivates vibrant, sustainable communities with diverse living and transportation options, enhancing quality of life for all.
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Throughout the year, we host a number of in-person and virtual events covering topics related to public health, social equity, and climate resilience.
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Smart Growth America cultivates vibrant, sustainable communities with diverse living and transportation options, enhancing quality of life for all.
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On Thursday, June 26th, LOCUS and Smart Growth America hosted the second webinar in the “Building the Stack” series. This series of conversations with real estate developers and community partners focuses on demystifying how to finance and build high interest projects. This recent webinar focused on approaches to building small scale and missing middle housing and featured four speakers from across the country.
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From missing starter homes for young families to a dearth of homes available for seniors hoping to downsize but stay in their communities, the impacts of so-called “missing middle housing” are being felt throughout the country. The Building the Stack series is designed to dig into the challenges with developing key project types, like missing middle, by allowing attendees to explore real case studies with a variety of stakeholders who are developing the projects, providing the financing, or steering development in their communities. This webinar featured four experts who are leading the way in infill development, sustainable housing, and community-based planning solutions in their respective communities. Jim Heid, Founder of UrbanGreen and CRAFT DnA, defined missing middle housing, spoke to the challenges developing at a small scale, and talked through the innovative and flexible approach that was needed to get one dense, missing middle style project completed. Shannon Morgan, President and Co-Founder of Renovare Development and a missing middle housing developer from Michigan, highlighted specific high-impact projects in Michigan and how they were financed while Greg Minott, Managing Principal at DREAM Collaborative, spoke to examples in the Boston area. Jennifer Settle, Senior Associate at Opticos Design, rounded out the conversation with a discussion of the barriers to missing middle housing, including zoning, a development ecosystem less used to creating these types of units, and community opposition.
<h3>Key takeaways</h3>
Throughout the webinar, a number of key takeaways emerged:
1. Missing middle and small scale projects require creativity to complete. Jim Heid discussed a project where a creative approach to parking requirements allowed for an innovative design that ultimately brought development costs down. Shannon Morgan discussed intricate capital stacks that included new funding sources from the State of Michigan explicitly intended to support missing middle housing.
2. Missing middle and small scale projects require collaboration to complete. Multiple speakers noted the need for local government officials to think of themselves, and act as, collaborators on projects. Greg Minott described a 74 unit mixed income project in the Boston area that was made possible by a partnership with the city where the property was provided for only $1. Shannon Morgan noted a major project that was developed on a public parcel and another project that was anchored by a collaboration with a local Habitat for Humanity branch.
3. Examples and model projects exist across the country in communities of all sizes. Speakers highlighted missing middle projects from across the country, including in Ypsilanti, Michigan, Roxbury, Massachusetts, and Healdsburg, California.  
4. The rules of play—zoning, code, etc.—directly shape what is built in a given community and they can be altered to better support the development of missing middle and small scale projects. 
<h3>Don’t miss the next installment!</h3>
On Thursday, July 24th, join us for a conversation on innovative approaches to housing development. Alternative approaches in financing or project development can be slow to move from one community to another. This conversation will feature leaders championing new models for funding and constructing smart growth-aligned housing types such as co-ops and affordable housing.
[button type=&#8221;info&#8221; block=&#8221;true&#8221; size=&#8221;lg&#8221; link=&#8221;https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Xwi-kvzQTzueWUkE293K0g&#8221;]Learn more and register here! [/button]
<h3>Consider joining LOCUS</h3>
Are you a purpose-driven developer or investor? Consider joining Smart Growth America’s <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/programs-and-coalitions/locus/">LOCUS coalition</a>! LOCUS, latin for ‘place’, is a national coalition of real estate developers and investors who advocate for smart growth at the federal level, with occasional work at the state and local levels. LOCUS brings together real estate developers and investors from across the country to change policy and to build neighborhoods that are more economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable for America’s future. LOCUS is driven by the vision of a country in which every person lives in a vibrant and healthy community. Membership provides access to monthly briefings, policy development conversations, and curated newsletters to keep you and your organization informed. Take advantage of a 20 percent off discount on membership through the summer and learn more about joining LOCUS <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/programs-and-coalitions/locus/join-locus/">here</a>!

News

Building the stack: Approaches to building small scale and Missing Middle housing webinar recap

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On Thursday, June 5th, LOCUS and Smart Growth America kicked off the “Building the Stack” webinar series, a series of conversations with real estate developers and community partners focused on demystifying how to finance and build high interest projects, with the first webinar on utilizing the federal Opportunity Zone tax incentive to build housing.
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The Building the Stack series is designed to dig into the challenges with developing key project types, explore real case studies, and hear from a variety of stakeholders about their experience developing and financing these projects. With Congress poised to extend the federal Opportunity Zone (OZ) tax incentive, it is an important time for developers and communities to revisit successful uses of the OZ tool in its first iteration from across the country. Attendees heard from Natalie Mason of Capital Square, a developer behind several successful OZ-driven residential projects, Mayor Sharetta Smith of Lima, OH, who built a unique public-private partnership to bring OZ investment to her community, and Robin Schabes, a community development leader working to educate and connect stakeholders to drive OZ investment in Chicago.
<h3>Key takeaways</h3>
Each speaker highlighted the work taking place in the communities they operate in but across the discussion, a few key takeaways emerged:
1. The Opportunity Zone incentive has been a significant community development tool that has brought new investors into community development. Natalie Mason spoke to why the tool works for investors and how it helps fill gaps in project funding, particularly for multifamily residential deals.
2. Rural Opportunity Zones faced structural barriers to OZ investment, including a thinner developer pool, a capital preference for more urban geographies, and community concerns about transparency. Mayor Sharetta Smith spoke to the way that local government actors can help de-risk and spur OZ investment in their communities by seeding the first dollars for projects, doing intentional preparation for OZ investment, and leaning into partnerships with local institutions to support projects.
3. The Opportunity Zone incentive can, and has, delivered high-impact community serving projects. Robin Schabes highlighted impact-focused projects in the greater Chicago area, including the Hope Manor Village project which repurposed vacant lots into supportive housing and married OZ funding with the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit.
4. An extension of the Opportunity Zone incentive is included in the tax bill under consideration in Congress. While the precise details of the extension are not yet solidified, the webinar discussed the parameters of the program as was being discussed at the time. <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/subscribe/">Sign up for the LOCUS newsletter</a> to stay tuned for more updates on the extension as they become available.
<h3>Don’t miss the next installment!</h3>
On Thursday, July 24th, join us for a conversation on innovative approaches to housing development. Alternative approaches in financing or project development can be slow to move from one community to another. This conversation will feature leaders championing new models for funding and constructing smart growth-aligned housing types such as co-ops and affordable housing.
[button type=&#8221;info&#8221; block=&#8221;true&#8221; size=&#8221;lg&#8221; link=&#8221;https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Xwi-kvzQTzueWUkE293K0g?eType=EmailBlastContent&amp;eId=df150c33-1367-4827-a34b-a0628ed585cf#/registration&#8221;]Learn more and register here! [/button]
<h3>Consider joining LOCUS</h3>
Are you a purpose-driven developer or investor? Consider joining Smart Growth America’s <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/programs-and-coalitions/locus/">LOCUS coalition</a>! LOCUS, latin for ‘place’, is a national coalition of real estate developers and investors who advocate for smart growth at the federal level, with occasional work at the state and local levels. LOCUS brings together real estate developers and investors from across the country to change policy and to build neighborhoods that are more economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable for America’s future. LOCUS is driven by the vision of a country in which every person lives in a vibrant and healthy community. Membership provides access to monthly briefings, policy development conversations, and curated newsletters to keep you and your organization informed. Take advantage of a 20 percent off discount on membership through the summer and learn more about joining LOCUS <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/programs-and-coalitions/locus/join-locus/">here</a>!

Opportunity Zones

Webinars

Building the stack: Opportunity Zones for residential development webinar recap

Land Use and Development

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Smart Growth America’s Champions Institute successfully finished its 2025 cohort in June. Together, we worked with local elected officials from 10 states to build knowledge and skills around Complete Streets, downtown revitalization, and other local initiatives that create places where families can be active together and live healthier lives. Demonstrating leadership and a commitment to creating change, these champions will now work to deploy local action plans developed as part of the program. 
Smart Growth America (SGA) selected 14 local officials from across 10 states to participate in the <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/news/meet-the-2025-champions-institute-cohort/">2025 Champions Institute</a>. They included mayors, city council members, and county board members. Major cities like Nashville, TN as well as smaller communities such as Lake City, SC were represented, signifying the fact that Complete Streets can be adopted in places of any size or background. This program, supported by CDC’s Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity, aims to build capacity among local elected officials who are looking to adopt and implement a Complete Streets approach.
Participants took part in a series of virtual sessions to build capacity and increase skills around areas necessary to adopt and implement Complete Streets. These included expert presentations on topics such as policy, design, and zoning and opportunities to get their hands dirty with activities on messaging and community engagement. Happening in parallel to the virtual sessions, each participant received the opportunity to work with a member of SGA staff on developing an action plan to create a strategy to improve community design back home.
<h2>Creating action for change</h2>
One of the cornerstones of the Champions Institute is the action plan created by each participant throughout the program. This action plan aims to be a roadmap for how local elected officials can begin implementing strategies they learned in the virtual sessions to address a known challenge in their own community. In the past, Champions Institute participants have adopted policies, implemented street design changes, hosted community workshops, and more.
<h4>Policy drafting and improvements</h4>
A number of the 2025 participants identified policy changes that were needed for their communities to lead to improved implementation of Complete Streets. This includes Complete Streets policy updates in Rochester, MN and incorporating Complete Streets elements into an already in-progress update to a comprehensive plan in Leon County, FL. Some places will be using what they learned in the program to draft a completely new policy such as in Clarksville, TN.
<h4>Changes to Support Biking and Walking</h4>
Several communities will see changes to their streets as a result of the Champions Institute. A project already underway in Clarksville, TN will incorporate more Complete Streets elements to focus on meeting the transportation needs of a growing population. Princeton, NJ could see an expansion of its advisory bike lanes combined with education efforts to improve their use by drivers and bikers alike.
<h4>Engagement and education</h4>
One of the major themes that came from this cohort was the need to communicate the benefits and possibilities of Complete Streets among their colleagues and throughout their communities. Whether it&#8217;s communicating about projects being installed in Lexington, KY or advancing the narrative around biking in Nashville, TN, the 2025 Champions recognized that getting more community members engaged and on board in Complete Streets will only make their efforts more successful. Several participants, including Shawnee, KS, recognized that to do so would mean establishing working coalitions around the topics discussed in the program.
<h2>Inspiring leadership</h2>
Throughout this year’s Champions Institute, participants continuously demonstrated leadership not only around creating safer places to walk, bike, and be physically active, but in their overall vision for their communities. They came together regularly despite busy schedules to share challenges, offer insights and encouragement to their peers, and were willing to consider different perspectives to improve the hard work they do every day. Local leaders such as those that participated in the Champions Institute are critical to creating and maintaining communities that support all members now and in the future, and we look forward to seeing how their creative and tenacious efforts translate into creating safer, healthier communities for all.
The 2025 Champions Institute was made possible by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (Cooperative Agreement CDC-RFA-PW-24-0080). Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of CDC. These efforts are part of the CDC’s Active People, Healthy NationSM Initiative that is working to help 27 million Americans become more physically active by 2027.

2025 Champions Institute

Champions Institute

Complete Streets

Celebrating the 2025 Complete Streets Champions Institute cohort

Technical assistance

Transportation

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Massachusetts is advancing bold housing reform—but real progress depends on local action. Our <a href="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/MATA-Comms-Report_2025_July2025.pdf">new report</a> highlights how community-based advocacy, supported through Smart Growth America’s equitable development technical assistance program, is helping turn state policy into on-the-ground housing solutions.
Massachusetts is facing a critical housing shortage, with a need for over 200,000 new homes to meet demand. The state has taken bold steps to address this challenge through landmark legislation such as the <a href="https://www.mass.gov/info-details/multi-family-zoning-requirement-for-mbta-communities">MBTA Communities Law</a> and the <a href="https://www.mass.gov/info-details/the-affordable-homes-act-smart-housing-livable-communities">Affordable Homes Act.</a> Because Massachusetts is a <a href="https://www.mass.gov/doc/home-rule/download">Home Rule</a> state, the effectiveness of state housing reforms hinges in part on local governments adopting compliant policies. Therefore, turning these ambitious reforms into real, equitable housing opportunities depends on action at the local level.
By partnering with community-based organizations deeply rooted in their neighborhoods, our Massachusetts Equitable Development Technical Assistance (MA TA) helps translate statewide housing reforms into meaningful change on the ground.
<h2>Why local advocacy matters</h2>
While state leadership provides vital direction and funding, the complex work of updating zoning codes, influencing local planning, and mobilizing community support falls to local advocates. Community-based organizations (CBOs) bring essential knowledge, trust, and relationships, especially among historically excluded populations, to this challenging process.
Since 2022, SGA’s MA TA program has resulted in  four partnerships with outstanding organizations across Massachusetts, each working in unique contexts but united by a shared commitment to equitable housing. These trusted local groups bring deep community knowledge, especially in neighborhoods historically excluded from planning processes, and are essential in building support for zoning reform, influencing local decisions, and educating residents.
<a href="https://culturehouse.cc/">CultureHouse</a>: Based in a dense, transit-rich city near Boston, CultureHouse transforms vacant spaces into vibrant neighborhood hubs through creative, community-centered design. With Smart Growth America’s support, CultureHouse enhanced its engagement approach by integrating zoning and land use education, developing accessible materials on housing topics, and refining its community feedback process. These efforts help connect their placemaking work with affordable housing and equitable development goals, empowering residents to participate in shaping their neighborhoods’ futures.
<a href="https://www.westsidelegends.org/">Westside Legends</a>: Founded by two lifelong residents, Westside Legends began as a grassroots initiative focused on homeownership education, community gardens, and local connection in a neighborhood long impacted by systemic disinvestment. Over time, and with technical assistance from SGA, the organization has grown into an emerging affordable housing developer, advancing sustainable, community-driven investment. Their work includes building trust with city officials, developing strategic plans, and exploring innovative funding and sustainable building practices, all aimed at creating lasting wealth and stability for BIPOC residents.
<a href="https://www.lowellalliance.org/">Lowell Alliance</a>: Serving a predominantly immigrant and ethnically diverse community, Lowell Alliance is a relative newcomer to housing and zoning advocacy. Just before partnering with SGA, they engaged hundreds of residents in a grassroots housing campaign that surfaced urgent local challenges such as high rents and overcrowding. With SGA’s support, Lowell Alliance has deepened its understanding of complex housing policies, developed advocacy tools and accessible communications, and built the capacity to influence local housing reforms. This growing platform ensures that the voices of Lowell’s most vulnerable residents help shape the city’s housing future.
<a href="https://www.ywcanewburyport.org/housing-choice-coalition/">Greater Newburyport Housing Choice Coalition</a>: Operating across multiple municipalities near the New Hampshire border, the Greater Newburyport Housing Choice Coalition (GNHCC) coordinates regional efforts to promote inclusive housing policies in a generally higher-income area. Leveraging its broad perspective, GNHCC works to align local zoning with statewide housing mandates and expand multifamily housing opportunities. With SGA’s help identifying zoning barriers and tailoring recommendations, the coalition maintains a sustained and focused push for housing reform, balancing top-down leadership with grassroots engagement.
<h2>Lessons learned and looking ahead</h2>
Through this work, four key lessons have emerged:
<ul>
<li>Strong state leadership sets a foundation, but local engagement drives implementation.</li>
<li>Smart growth principles can and should be embedded across systems and sectors.</li>
<li>Creative, accessible communications are essential to connect complex housing issues to everyday residents.</li>
<li>Supporting trusted community leaders is key to ensuring that ambitious policies translate into equitable, on-the-ground change.</li>
</ul>
Together, Smart Growth America and its partners in Massachusetts are building a future where housing is accessible, inclusive, and connected to the places people call home. As the state continues to lead with bold housing policy, it is these local advocates, empowered with knowledge, tools, and trusted relationships, who will bring that vision to life.
[button type=&#8221;info&#8221; block=&#8221;true&#8221; size=&#8221;lg&#8221; link=&#8221;https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/MATA-Comms-Report_2025_July2025.pdf&#8221;]Read the full report for more on our work together! [/button]

Massachusetts

SGA technical assistance

Bridging policy and community: How Smart Growth America’s Massachusetts Technical Assistance Program is empowering local housing advocacy

Zoning

Clyde-OH

Clyde, Ohio is proof that communities of all sizes can have a strong Complete Streets Policy. Starting with just a few champions focused on public health improvements and increased mobility for Clyde’s large population of individuals with developmental and physical disabilities, Clyde passed a strong policy backed by a dedicated coalition.
[alert type=&#8221;info&#8221;] This story is one of three features pulled from the Best Complete Streets Policies Report 2025. Profiling three communities with some of the strongest policies, each story goes into detail about how that specific policy was developed, why it scored so highly, and how everyone involved navigated the barriers on the way to adoption. 
[button type=&#8221;info&#8221; block=&#8221;true&#8221; size=&#8221;lg&#8221; link=&#8221;https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/signature-reports/best-complete-streets/&#8221;]Read the full report here. [/button] 
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<a href="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Clydes-CS-Policy-Score_2025.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-104078" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Clydes-CS-Policy-Score_2025.png" alt="" width="800" height="548" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Clydes-CS-Policy-Score_2025.png 1662w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Clydes-CS-Policy-Score_2025-300x205.png 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></a>
<h2>Part I: Background</h2>
A rural city in northwest Ohio of just over 6,000, Clyde’s a small place with a big identity. With an official <a href="https://www.arborday.org/our-work/tree-city-usa">“Tree City USA” designation</a> from the National Arbor Day Foundation, Clyde has long been committed to green infrastructure. The city has a large population of individuals with developmental and physical disabilities, thanks to local company <a href="https://www.sandcoind.com/">Sandco</a>, who helps with job training and placement. This makes it even more critical that the city’s infrastructure finds ways to support every community member. When Justin LaBenne, city manager, was approached about individual concerns regarding mobility, he realized that the problem was much larger than a single story. He knew it was time to revamp Clyde’s streets and the policies that support them so that all residents could access sidewalks, parks, grocery stores, or water fountains. The result? A Complete Streets policy that is anything but small.
<h2>Part II: Road to adoption</h2>
Complete Streets came on Clyde’s radar when Laura Bogard, Creating Healthy Communities Program Coordinator at Sandusky County Public Health, approached Justin LaBenne with the idea of creating a Complete Streets Policy. LaBenne quickly realized that such a policy could be a solution for the safety and access concerns he was hearing from residents. Armed with Sandusky County’s Creating Healthy Communities grant funded by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the two put together a team to draft and pass the policy.
Clyde’s motto throughout this process was finding creative solutions for a small city. That started with forming a coalition representing multiple interests across the community, including the economic development director, residents, and representatives from the Great Lakes Community Action Partnership, Mobility Management, Habitat for Humanity, the Health Department, and the Sandusky County Regional Commission. Bogard led the charge, using her public health background to show the importance of green space and walkable streets. LaBenne believes that the key to action is “having people on the steering committee that are willing to guide the policy and take action.” The committee wasn’t looking for glory in passing this policy – they just knew it was the right thing to do. A policy would make sure these changes supported a long-term vision and were sustained for years to come.
The coalition formed in December 2022 and met throughout 2023, culminating in the passage of the Complete Streets Resolution in December 2023. With such a small community, the policymakers had to find ways to develop language that was appropriate for Clyde. They had a lot of back-and-forth with residents and the city council, making sure that all voices were heard and reflected in the policy. The coalition worked hard to balance addressing concerns around new ideas with finding ways for the policy to support a vision for a brighter future. It was this can-do attitude and willingness to fight for what would work that pushed Clyde’s policy to approval both by the city council and community members.
Support from Sandco on identifying residents’ mobility struggles and offering solutions within the Complete Streets framework made the engagement and approval process smoother. They were eager for their clients to be able to access more of downtown Clyde through streetscape updates. The coalition was also eager to use this as an opportunity to capture the lived experience of all community members and have it inform the eventual policy. Throughout 2023, the Complete Streets Steering Committee conducted walk audits across Clyde, ensuring that community members recognized how the policy could support the potential changes they needed.
<h2>Part III: What makes this policy great </h2>
Clyde’s policy opens with a <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/complete-streets-element-1/">clear vision</a> to implement a Complete Streets policy. They go above and beyond in naming street users they intend to benefit, listing “pedestrians, motorists, cyclists, transit and school bus riders, delivery and service personnel, freight haulers, and emergency responders…”
While Clyde is a small city, they made no excuses in their dedication to prioritizing <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/complete-streets-element-2/">underinvested and underserved</a> users throughout their policy. They list a number of users to prioritize, including cyclists, youth, older adults, and those with limited mobility, physical challenges, or limited access to a personal vehicle. They even define design features they hope to implement in the future, including reachable buttons, wheelchair-friendly sidewalks, and more median crossings.
Their policy specifies the need to <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/complete-streets-element-7/">mitigate unintended consequences</a> for certain users, which they will track through extensive community involvement. This includes a long list of strategies, such as public comment opportunities at Complete Streets Steering Committee meetings, walk audits, community surveys, and educational opportunities for the public, like bicycle rodeos and youth traffic safety events. Coupled with their extensive short- and long-term performance measures that cover items such as infrastructure improvements, public health, connectivity, and community engagement, Clyde’s policy never falters in their commitment to turning “roads into people-oriented spaces and increasing mobility options for all.”
<h2>Part IV: Putting the policy into practice</h2>
Though Clyde’s resolution only passed recently, Bogard and LaBenne are already seeing wins. They’ve been able to use more Creating Healthy Communities funding for three upcoming projects, all of which will paint crosswalks, add curb cuts and streetlights, and improve the Clyde pedestrian experience. These improvements are all in line with the new <a href="https://issuu.com/designing_local/docs/2024.04.17_clyde_downtown_plan_book">Downtown Clyde Revitalization Plan</a>. Sandco has also been identifying projects across Clyde that may help improve mobility and access, including new bike racks, more ramps, increased bus stops, and accessible parking. With the new community engagement strategies outlined in the Complete Streets policy, Bogard and LaBenne can hear what community members need most.
While rallying community members to volunteer their time has been difficult, Bogard and LaBenne continually reach out to Clyde locals and invite those with lived experiences to give their input. This has meant recruiting from all spaces—when a resident complains that their jogging path is impeded by bumpy sidewalks, tree branches, or a lack of curb cuts, LaBenne invites them to work on Complete Streets implementation.
With limited funds, larger-scale projects have been difficult to implement. Big streetscape projects are currently cost-prohibitive, but LaBenne hopes for these larger projects down the line. They also have plans for speed ramps near the Whirlpool Corporation facility and concrete barriers downtown along streets with wide turns. LaBenne knows that even small wins can make big differences for Clyde residents. With or without a policy, they were going to make a more liveable, and safer community, but the strong Complete Streets policy has certainly contributed to the changes that have been made.
“Success is when I can finally see people that I know have had struggles actually get to where they’re trying to go.” — Justin LaBenne, Clyde City Manager
<h2>Part V: Lessons learned</h2>
It can start with one. With Bogard as a champion for Complete Streets across Sandusky County, Clyde had the spark they needed. Once LaBenne was on board, the Complete Streets Coalition could navigate the policymaking process with confidence. Sometimes, it just takes one person to spearhead the process and believe in the mission to see success in the end.
Listen to community members. With stakeholders from various backgrounds, Clyde was able to learn about what issues were important to local residents. By taking their time, hosting walk audits, and educating community members about what Complete Streets are, Clyde was able to pass a policy that accurately represented the community’s vision. This also built support for the implementation of future street design changes, building momentum for these issues across Clyde.
One size does not fit all. Every community has its own personality, and a good Complete Streets policy must reflect that. With a large elderly and disabled population, Clyde knew their focus needed to be slow-moving traffic, accessible sidewalks, and a policy that could be implemented by a city of their size. They had to pave the way to their own policy, not copy what larger, urban cities have done.
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Thank you to Justin LaBenne, Clyde City Manager, and Laura Bogard, Creating Healthy Communities Program Coordinator at Sandusky County Public Health, for their time and expertise in producing this case study.

Case Study

Best Complete Streets Policies

Best Complete Streets Policies of 2025

Clyde, OH: The small city championing big ideas (Best Complete Streets Policies 2025)

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Nashville has passed multiple Complete Streets policies over the past fifteen years, improving them with each iteration. The Complete Streets policy passed by the city in 2024 is a testament to their efforts and could bolster the city’s progress in the years to come. Nashville shows how cities already making strides on Complete Streets can take their efforts further by refining and updating their policies.
[alert type=&#8221;info&#8221;] This story is one of three features pulled from the Best Complete Streets Policies Report 2025. Profiling three communities with some of the strongest policies, each story goes into detail about how that specific policy was developed, why it scored so highly, and how everyone involved navigated the barriers on the way to adoption. 
[button type=&#8221;info&#8221; block=&#8221;true&#8221; size=&#8221;lg&#8221; link=&#8221;https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/signature-reports/best-complete-streets/&#8221;]Read the full report here. [/button] 
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<a href="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nashvilles-CS-Policy-Score_2025.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-104073" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nashvilles-CS-Policy-Score_2025.png" alt="" width="800" height="609" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nashvilles-CS-Policy-Score_2025.png 1646w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nashvilles-CS-Policy-Score_2025-300x229.png 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></a>
<h2>Part 1: Background</h2>
Nashville has had the goal of creating safer streets for years, but their case shows the importance of persistence and continual improvement. Nashville’s first Complete Streets policy <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/nashville-mayor-signs-executive-order/">was adopted in 2010</a>, which was then <a href="https://www.nashville.gov/departments/metro-clerk/legal-resources/executive-orders/mayor-megan-barry/mb031">amended in 2016</a>. While these earlier policies had room for improvement, Nashville used them to demonstrate its commitment and vision to changing the status quo. In addition to creating foundational documents that support safe streets, Nashville has worked to create tangible improvements. For example, in 2022-2023 <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/nashville-tn-csla/">Nashville participated</a> in Smart Growth America’s <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/news/complete-streets-leadership-academies-report/">Complete Streets Leadership Academy</a>, where they implemented safety interventions on state-owned routes. They have also recently passed a new transit referendum to fund continued street design changes.
When the new mayor came into office in January 2024, he wanted to put his own stamp on the city’s transportation future. Nashville’s New Complete Streets policy passed relatively quickly and built on the policies, design changes, and efforts that took place before it took effect on January 17, 2024. This new policy embodies a strong commitment to Complete Streets and addresses some areas that previous policies lacked.
<h2>Part 2: Road to adoption</h2>
Nashville’s current Mayor, Freddie O’Connell is a champion for Complete Streets and has supported improved transportation throughout his career, including serving on the board for Nashville’s Metropolitan Transit Authority. It was not a surprise when he confirmed this commitment with an updated Complete Streets policy just a few months after taking office.
Since it came in the form of an Executive Order, the Complete Streets policy did not require significant political negotiations or a council vote. However, passing the policy so quickly presented challenges since the administration had to review previous policies and other materials to make sure the new policy aligned with the city’s master plan. This was especially demanding since it took place during the early days of the new administration, a time when there are numerous competing priorities. The administration also had to balance the need for including precise and strong policy language with the goal of moving quickly and beginning working on Complete Streets as fast as possible.
[alert type=&#8221;info&#8221;] The pros and cons of executive orders: The fact that a mayor can create a Complete Streets policy via executive order means that they can do it quickly and use whatever language they choose. However, it also means that these policies are relatively easy to overturn when a new administration takes over. It is important that Complete Streets policies and actions last beyond political timelines so jurisdictions should adopt the strongest and most binding policies and language possible.[/alert]
By the time the 2024 Complete Streets policy was created, Nashville had some implementation experience under its belt in the form of both permanent and quick-build projects. This helped identify what types of tools would be helpful for improving the implementation process, which were embedded in the Complete Streets policy and the subsequent <a href="https://www.nashville.gov/sites/default/files/2024-04/NDOT-Complete_Streets_Implementation_Guide.pdf?ct=1713458758">Complete Streets Implementation Guide</a> adopted later that year.
<h2>Part 3: What makes this policy great</h2>
Nashville’s new policy effectively lays out project selection criteria and incorporates community data within that process—prioritizing underinvested communities and areas that have high rates of fatalities and injuries.
In recent years, Nashville has seen a significant increase in the rate of pedestrian fatalities. And evidence suggests that fatalities and injuries disproportionately affect underinvested communities in Nashville. For example, African Americans make up about 25% of the population of Nashville, but account for over 35% of pedestrian deaths and serious injuries in the last 5 years. Incorporating community data into project selection will help ensure that Nashville’s efforts reach the areas of highest need.
“To facilitate this, NDOT shall develop a project prioritization tool based on a point system to prioritize projects that improve safety and increase multimodal level of service for the most vulnerable communities.” Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell Executive Order 045: Green and Complete Streets Policy
Using strong, binding language regarding vulnerable and underserved communities rather than vague and suggestive language also makes Nashville’s policy stand out. And laying out specific steps for how that prioritization will happen, including using data to develop an informed community engagement plan, makes the policy much more likely to have an impact.
Nashville’s policy provides guidance for effective implementation. This characteristic makes it a valuable tool for making tangible changes within the community. In particular, their commitment to providing training for transportation staff and addressing barriers to community engagement set this policy apart. The accompanying implementation guide provides additional support and guidance.
“We really wanted to make sure that there was practical and direct language, so it would be a tool for us to craft policies around successful implementation.” — Justin Cole, Transportation Planner Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure
<h2>Part 4: Putting the policy into practice</h2>
Nashville’s new and improved policy is another important step on its path to safer streets and healthier communities. It reaffirms some of the practices and procedures the city was following and adds some essential new elements.
For example, the new project selection criteria means that projects that feature the Complete Streets approach are more likely to receive funding and support. Additionally, the “project life cycle” tool in <a href="https://www.nashville.gov/sites/default/files/2024-04/NDOT-Complete_Streets_Implementation_Guide.pdf?ct=1713458758">Nashville’s Complete Streets Implementation Guide</a>, which was developed to support the policy, has allowed them to ensure Complete Streets considerations and principles are implemented from the start of a project rather than added as an afterthought.
The city has also identified some obstacles and is working to address them, such as updating engineering standards to reflect its commitment to Complete Streets. They’ve also recognized that the same approach does not work on every street, and are working to develop specific street typologies so that the characteristics of the existing infrastructure are considered within the Complete Streets approach. The city also partnered with Smart Growth America to host <a href="https://www.nashville.gov/departments/transportation/projects/complete-streets">a webinar series about Complete Streets implementation</a> for city staff, other relevant stakeholders, and the general public.
Nashville’s Complete Streets efforts will receive a major boost from its <a href="https://transit.nashville.gov/">Choose How You Move program</a>. Funded by a new sales tax approved by voters in November 2024, this will support the installation of over 80 miles of sidewalks, over 50 miles of <a href="https://transit.nashville.gov/pages/service">all-access corridors</a>, updated signals at nearly 600 intersections, and the implementation of Complete Streets projects along approximately 40 miles of roadway.
“We wanted to get away from the idea of a complete street as a thing, but as an approach, so that every decision that we make, no matter how small or large, is consistent with that approach.” — Justin Cole, Transportation Planner, Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure
<h2>Part 5: Lessons learned</h2>
Build on your foundations and continually improve. Nashville’s new Complete Streets policy did not emerge from a vacuum. Instead, it was based on the previous policies and aligned with other complementary efforts such as Vision Zero. However, the new policy addressed important gaps that were missing or weak in earlier policies. Complete Streets policies are not a one-time action. Instead, jurisdictions should constantly seek to refine and improve them based on progress and impacts.
Action-oriented words speak louder. Nashville recognized the need to use their policy not only as a proclamation of a commitment to Complete Streets policy but as a tool for implementation. Focusing on practical language that requires practitioners to create processes and standards leads to policies that move from the page into practice.
Give yourself tangible tools for success. Nashville realized that they needed standards, procedures, and guidelines so that Complete Streets are implemented as a process rather than an attribute of a single project. As a crucial first step, they created their Complete Streets Implementation Guide in tandem with their Complete Streets policy.
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Thank you to Justin Cole, Transportation Planner at the Nashville Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure, for his time and expertise in producing this case study.
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Nashville, TN: Building on the foundation (Best Complete Streets Policies 2025)

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San Antonio’s Complete Streets Policy is the result of a year of deep collaboration among partners, including a coalition of dedicated Complete Streets champions. By working closely together to build consensus among community members and partners, the city updated its previous policy to better address the community’s needs with the necessary structure that can lead to improvements in how streets are built and maintained. The shared purpose of improving safety and comfort for all helped to maintain the momentum this robust team needed to pass a strong policy that scored very high according to our framework.
[alert type=&#8221;info&#8221;] This story is one of three features pulled from the Best Complete Streets Policies Report 2025. Profiling three communities with some of the strongest policies, each story goes into detail about how that specific policy was developed, why it scored so highly, and how everyone involved navigated the barriers on the way to adoption. 
[button type=&#8221;info&#8221; block=&#8221;true&#8221; size=&#8221;lg&#8221; link=&#8221;https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/signature-reports/best-complete-streets/&#8221;]Read the full report here. [/button] 
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<a href="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/San-Antonios-CS-Policy-Score_2025-1.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-104069" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/San-Antonios-CS-Policy-Score_2025-1.png" alt="" width="800" height="575" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/San-Antonios-CS-Policy-Score_2025-1.png 1700w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/San-Antonios-CS-Policy-Score_2025-1-300x216.png 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></a>
<h2>Part 1: Background</h2>
San Antonio first passed a Complete Streets policy in 2011, but there was frustration that the policy did not easily or consistently lead to the outcomes it promised, especially as pedestrian and cyclist crashes and fatalities increased (<a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/signature-reports/dangerous-by-design/rankings/">San Antonio is the 25th most dangerous metro area for pedestrians</a>).
Inspired by peer cities like <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/el-paso-from-good-intentions-to-great-policy/">El Paso</a> and <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/tucson-complete-streets-is-about-more-than-pavement/">Tucson</a> that had recently passed high-scoring policies, San Antonio decided to revise its Complete Streets policy. The revised policy included an updated system for <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/complete-streets-element-9/">prioritizing proposed infrastructure projects</a>, which now assigns points (or priority) to proposed projects that increase safety for all road users and multimodal transportation options.
[alert type=&#8221;info&#8221;]Since San Antonio’s 2011 policy, new standards have been developed, including the National Complete Streets Coalition’s updated Policy Framework and CityHealth Complete Streets Policy Framework. The San Antonio Complete Streets Coalition pointed to these new standards as a reason for the city to upgrade its policy and the frameworks helped guide the city in its update.[/alert]
“It was too long since we had first adopted our Complete Streets policy, and all of us were hungry for some clear direction on how we’re creating safer, healthier, more equitable, resilient streets in our city,” said Joey Pawlik, Executive Director of ActivateSA. “There’s unprotected, disconnected bike lanes, and San Antonio is heating up, it’s extremely hot in the summers. We need a clear direction on how we’re remaking our largest public spaces in our city.” &#8211; Joey Pawlik, Executive Director of ActivateSA
<h2>Part 2: Road to adoption</h2>
In 2023, <a href="https://activatesa.org/">ActivateSA</a>, a local tactical planning initiative and think-tank, assembled the San Antonio Complete Streets Coalition: a group of local, regional, and national champions whose missions would all be advanced by the city improving its policy. This multi-sector coalition included representation from disability rights groups, active transportation organizations, public health agencies, and environmental organizations, as well as support from the American Heart Association staff who had previously supported the creation of <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/el-paso-from-good-intentions-to-great-policy/">El Paso’s Complete Streets policy</a>. ActivateSA, leading the San Antonio Complete Streets Coalition, approached the city about updating the policy. The city was already working on its <a href="https://sabikenetwork.com/">Bike Network Plan</a> and <a href="https://www.sa.gov/Directory/Departments/Transportation/Initiatives/Vision-Zero/News/Revolutionizing-Road-Safety">Vision Zero updates</a>, and with the spark from the coalition, began to update the Complete Streets policy as well.
In early 2024, the city transportation department rewrote the policy based on current best practices and lessons learned from peer cities. Throughout this process, the city transportation team convened a recurring partner group that included the San Antonio Complete Streets Coalition and fourteen city departments. The partner group’s detailed review of the updated policy (at times discussing the draft line by line) ensured the policy met the needs of all road users, including those at greatest risk for injury or death. Partners also worked to ensure that the city departments responsible for construction and maintenance of the new infrastructure, such as the City Attorney’s office and Public Works, were involved in the policy revision process. The partner group worked to build support for the updated policy, including hosting town halls to spread awareness on the policy updates to the public, and coalition leaders meeting individually with community groups to address any concerns. The coalition educated city council members on the updated policy before the policy came to their desks for their signature, allowing them to highlight the benefits of the updated policy to decision makers.
<h2>Part 3: What makes this policy great</h2>
One of the strengths of San Antonio’s Complete Streets policy is the commitment to serving all San Antonians, including those who have been historically excluded from transportation discussions in the past. This is apparent <a href="https://www.saspeakup.com/Customer/File/Full/9920bf4d-e27d-45eb-bc2e-0dec179654f5">throughout the policy</a>. However, San Antonio’s policy goes beyond a mere vision statement by using localized community data to prioritize projects based on road user data. The policy also calls for the creation of a Technical Review Task Force, which is responsible for reviewing future policy changes, policy updates, and determining if the city is meeting its stated performance measures.
As part of its commitment to ensure meaningful improvements and outcomes, the city’s policy also includes actions to mitigate the potential unintended effects of Complete Streets infrastructure on rising living costs. The policy calls on departments from across the city to work together to “thoroughly consider measures to preserve housing affordability and increase new affordable housing options,” tying land use and transportation planning together.
[alert type=&#8221;info&#8221;]Safety is a central part of Complete Streets, but to really support people walking, biking, and using transit, the streets need to be comfortable as well. San Antonio’s policy goes above and beyond by also including comfort, particularly in a subtropical climate, as a central goal of the policy which reads: “To meet Complete Streets goals, the city must make different modes of transportation possible and safe in multiple types of weather including the extreme heatwaves, flash floods and torrential downpours, and hailstorms that occur throughout the year. While striving to make all modes of travel safe and comfortable, the city strives to address the ways the natural and built environment can coexist and serve San Antonians.”[/alert]
<h2>Part 4: Putting the policy into practice</h2>
Early signs suggest that the city is already translating the policy into action. In May 2025, the San Antonio City Council approved the creation of a <a href="https://www.sa.gov/Directory/News-Releases/City-Council-Approves-Creation-of-Multimodal-Transportation-Commission-to-Support-Safer-Streets">multimodal transportation commission</a> as required by the Complete Streets policy. The city is currently updating its Design Guide Manual to set standards for designing Complete Streets based on current best practices. The city is currently updating its Design Guide Manual to set standards for designing Complete Streets based on current best practices. The city is also developing a project prioritization tool, integrating existing community-based data. New projects will also include performance measures to track progress, including tracking any changes in the number and rate of road injuries or fatalities, improvements in comfort for all road users, and the number of infrastructure improvements constructed as a result of this policy.
<h2>Part 5: Lessons learned</h2>
Build a multi-sector, robust, engaged coalition, including decision makers and elected officials who will implement the policy as well as the broader community. The strength of this policy comes from people and groups with varying perspectives and needs working together to ensure the policy meets everyone’s goals. By including community stakeholders as well as representatives from relevant government departments, the policy has broad support and can be more easily and effectively implemented.
Get to a large consensus through small conversations. Building and maintaining a coalition is not easy, and including everyone’s input in a policy update takes a lot of work. In addition to monthly meetings, ActivateSA and other coalition organizers made sure to have smaller, more personal conversations with partners and coalition members to understand the why behind different perspectives. Reaching out to individuals who may not have been able to speak up in larger meetings made sure their voices were not just heard but that they were included.
Use existing momentum, pointing to peers and standards along the way. This policy update started with the coalition pushing the city to revisit their old work. With peer cities such as El Paso passing Complete Streets policies and getting recognition (<a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/resources/the-best-complete-streets-policies-2023/">including in the 2023 Best Complete Streets Policies Report</a>), San Antonio was sparked to meet and even exceed their progress. With the support of the San Antonio Complete Streets Coalition, dedicated city transportation staff, and American Heart Association support, they had the tools to do so.
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Thank you to Zan Marshall and Isaac Levy, Senior Transportation Planners at the City of San Antonio and Joey Pawlik, Executive Director of ActivateSA, for their time and expertise in producing this case study.

San Antonio, Texas: A coalition that leads to change (Best Complete Streets Policies 2025)

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Previous editions of the Best Complete Streets Policies report have spotlighted the nation’s leading policies, recognizing community achievements, and providing positive examples for other places. Outcomes from some of these former, top-ranked policies, several years after adoption, reveal compelling evidence of the impacts of Complete Streets policies.
[alert type=&#8221;info&#8221;] 
This case study, highlighting some of the top-ranked policies from previous years, is part of the Best Complete Streets Policies Report 2025, which ranks the top Complete Streets policies passed in 2023 and 2024. 
[button type=&#8221;info&#8221; block=&#8221;true&#8221; size=&#8221;lg&#8221; link=&#8221;https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/signature-reports/best-complete-streets/&#8221;]Read the full report here.[/button] 
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<h1>Howard County, Maryland</h1>
In 2023, the highest scoring Complete Streets policy and first to receive a perfect score (100/100) was <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/howard-county-md-a-collaborative-effort-to-create-complete-streets/">Howard County, Maryland</a>. Howard County’s policy was adopted in 2019 after community organizations, county staff, and elected officials joined forces through their shared vision to make safe transportation for all people a reality. That collaborative spirit has persisted through partnerships with Maryland DOT and local jurisdictions, particularly demonstrated through their participation in <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/making-maryland-safer-protecting-all-road-users-with-complete-streets/">Smart Growth America’s 2024 Complete Streets Leadership Academy</a>. This initiative resulted in the installation of a quick-build demonstration project that replaced the rightmost lane on a wide four-lane highway with a multi-use path for pedestrians and bikers. The quick-build joins Howard County’s impressive list of implemented <a href="https://www.howardcountymd.gov/transportation/complete-streets-infrastructure-improvement-projects">Complete Streets Infrastructure Improvement Projects</a> that have been given life thanks to their strong policy.
<h1>El Paso, Texas</h1>
Another city with a high-scoring policy (96/100) from our 2023 report, <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/el-paso-from-good-intentions-to-great-policy/">El Paso, Texas</a>, has made significant strides toward its Complete Streets goals through numerous partner programs. The city’s residents and officials were motivated to create the El Paso Complete Streets Coalition by rising concerns, which were in part due to street designs that limited community members’ ability to reach important destinations such as grocery stores, and medical care without a car or get regular physical activity. The city also created complementary policies, such as their <a href="https://www.elpasotexas.gov/assets/Documents/CoEP/Capital-Improvement/Safe-Routes-to-School/COEP-Safe-Routes-to-Schools-Action-Plan-August-2024-compressed.pdf">2024 Safe Routes to School Action Plan</a>, which utilizes Complete Streets Design guidance to improve pedestrian crossings for areas around school zones through <a href="https://kfoxtv.com/news/instagram/el-paso-community-unites-for-art-project-to-promote-safety-around-local-schools">community painting days</a>. The El Paso Complete Streets policy stood out for its emphasis on prioritizing underinvested communities by “going to the people,” an emphasis that has guided and shaped the success of the city’s implementation process.
<h1>Des Moines, Iowa</h1>
Looking a bit further back to the <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/resources/the-best-complete-streets-policies-of-2018/">2018 Best Complete Streets Policies</a> report, Des Moines, Iowa came in second place for their policy (87/100). Similar to El Paso, Des Moines stood out for its emphasis on historically underserved communities. Since the policy was passed, local leaders focused on areas identified by the city’s metropolitan planning organization, specifically working through schools to expand Complete Streets projects. In 2024, <a href="https://www.dsm.city/departments/engineering_-_division/projects.php">numerous construction projects broke ground</a>, including a bridge replacement that features bike lanes and sidewalks, riverside trail improvements, and many new sidewalk constructions. Initial project emphasis on highest need areas allowed for Des Moines to get the ball rolling on widespread Complete Streets projects. This strategy may have played a role in the city ranking as the 5th safest city for pedestrians according to Smart Growth America’s 2024 release of <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/dangerous-by-design/">Dangerous by Design</a>, a significant improvement from their ranking in the <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/resources/dangerous-by-design-2021-report/">2021</a> report as the 24th safest metropolitan area.
<h1>Takeaways</h1>
The examples of these three cities offer different lessons about following through and implementing Complete Streets. One important commonality is that they all continued the expansion of their road safety efforts by applying for funding. In the past two years, they all received a <a href="https://www.transportation.gov/grants/SS4A">Safe Streets and Roads 4 All (SS4A) grant</a>, securing federal support for the continuation of Complete Streets programming and implementation. And success can breed success. A strong Complete Streets policy that results in more action through implemented projects and programs can have more success attracting attention and funding support for future endeavours. When policy meets action, communities can build better, safer, and more complete streets.

Past top Complete Streets policies: Where are they now? (Best Complete Streets Policies 2025)

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Earlier this month, Smart Growth America convened its <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/news/meet-the-2025-culture-and-community-network/">Culture and Community Network</a> in Seattle, bringing together teams from metropolitan planning organizations across the country. These teams are part of a seven-month, cohort-based learning program, funded through the generous commitment of the Kresge Foundation. This program supports regional governments exploring arts, culture, and creativity for deeper engagement and improved community outcomes.
The Seattle gathering, held in conjunction with the National Association of Regional Councils’ Annual Conference, was a key milestone in the cohort’s journey. Over two days of immersive learning and exchange, participants built relationships, explored creativity and culture as a means of connection, and examined what is possible when planning processes are designed with intention and imagination.
<a href="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/group-photo-3-1-scaled.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-104091" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/group-photo-3-1-1024x683.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/group-photo-3-1-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/group-photo-3-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/group-photo-3-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/group-photo-3-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/group-photo-3-1-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a>
<h2>Grounding in community resilience</h2>
The convening opened with a site visit to Seattle’s Chinatown–International District, where arts and culture have long served as tools of resistance, resilience, and organizing. Through community-led storytelling, public art, and cultural preservation, residents have influenced development, pushed back against displacement, and built long-term vision and power.
This visit—led by artist and activist Scott Oshima and featuring An Huynh and Naomi Saito from the Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority (SCIDpda), Vivian Chan and Wren Wheeler from the Wing Luke Museum, and Tiernan Martin from the City of Seattle—highlighted how government agencies show up not just as decision-makers, but as collaborators. In response to community frustration over past top-down planning efforts—particularly around Sound Transit’s proposed light rail expansion—the city has taken steps toward a more collaborative, trust-building approach. This shift includes elevating community-rooted leadership within city government, such as a former SCIDpda board member now working in a city role, and prioritizing long-standing community visions over new planning processes.
<h2>Embodiment, risk, and reflection</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-104090 alignright" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/applied-theatre-2-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="378" height="252" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/applied-theatre-2-300x200.jpg 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/applied-theatre-2-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/applied-theatre-2-768x512.jpg 768w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/applied-theatre-2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/applied-theatre-2-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 378px) 100vw, 378px" />In one session, participants were introduced to embodied techniques—creative, movement-based practices that use the body as a tool for reflection and expression. Marc Weinblatt of the Mandala Center for Change introduced methods including applied sociometry, image theatre (sculptor/clay exercises), and forum theatre, which help participants visualize power dynamics, practice empathy, and explore multiple perspectives in real time. These techniques aimed to illuminate how to bring a more human-centered approach to planning and engagement work, allowing participants to process complex challenges not just intellectually, but physically and emotionally—building trust, insight, and connection in ways traditional processes often overlook.
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<h2>Cultivating leadership commitment</h2>
In small teams, participants began designing experiments and proposals—scalable actions and ideas to test back home in their agencies. These ranged from developing external partnerships to communications strategies, all grounded in creativity and cultural responsiveness. Teams received direct feedback from Lizzi Weyant and Samyukth Shenbaga, leaders at Boston’s Metropolitan Area Planning Council and the Atlanta Regional Commission, respectively, both of which have been advancing innovative, equity-driven arts and culture strategies in their regions for around a decade.
<h2>Building leadership and capacity for risk</h2>
The second day began with a session, led by Roshani Thakore of the Atlanta Regional Commission, focused on developing internal relationships and champions through transparency, trust, and a shared vision. Participants identified professional risks that each has taken, from incremental changes to bold actions, an exercise that spurred self-reflection around individual and institutional capacity for experimentation and change.  They also engaged in a group exercise of “making the impossible possible,” challenging standard processes while reinforcing the mindset that innovation and problem-solving often begin with seemingly impossible ideas and is built through iteration.
<h2>Creativity beyond the visual</h2>
<a href="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/oregon-metro-scaled.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignright size-medium wp-image-104093" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/oregon-metro-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/oregon-metro-300x200.jpg 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/oregon-metro-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/oregon-metro-768x512.jpg 768w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/oregon-metro-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/oregon-metro-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>The convening’s closing session was led by Gülgün Kayim, Director of Arts &amp; Culture for the City of Seattle, a theater artist, and a long-time leader in integrating artists into public sector work. Kayim challenged the group to move beyond viewing art as “decoration or entertainment,” and to instead embrace it as a means of shifting institutional culture—through deep listening, trust-building, and care-centered engagement.
She emphasized that creative strategies are not superficial add-ons to planning—they are essential tools for cultivating belonging, shifting power, and developing new avenues for repairing relationships between government and communities. Her message was clear: “If you’re going to do the work, do it properly—or not at all.”
<h2>Moving forward: Transforming planning through creativity</h2>
Across the country, regional planning agencies are beginning to explore new ways of working. Visual storytelling, participatory installations, artist residencies, and culturally relevant engagement strategies are making complex planning concepts more accessible and inviting new voices to the table.
Yet, without deeper structural change, such efforts risk remaining surface-level or symbolic. Integrating arts and culture into planning is not about isolated projects—it is about shifting practices, power, and priorities. It requires rethinking how success is defined: from outputs to relationships, from transactions to trust, from efficiency to empathy.
This convening was not just about new tools or strategies; it was about building the courage to imagine differently, the relationships that sustain transformation, and the care needed to make planning more human and just. As the Culture and Community Network continues, these seeds of creativity, trust, and shared purpose will flourish into more responsive and imaginative planning and engagement practices nationwide.

Creativity as strategy, trust as infrastructure: Reflections from the Culture and Community Network convening in Seattle

Arts and Culture

capitol

Last week, the Senate released its version of a comprehensive tax package. In a potentially huge win for community development stakeholders, the bill proposes making several key federal community development tax incentives permanent. While this would be an important win, the bill does not provide new tools to further support key priorities like affordable housing and economic development in the areas that need it most.
Over the past several weeks, the Republican-controlled Congress has continued its work on drafting a sweeping set of changes to the tax code that will shape the future of development and impact smart growth efforts nationwide. The federal tax code serves as a critical vehicle for steering development through incentives such as the <a href="https://taxpolicycenter.org/briefing-book/what-low-income-housing-tax-credit-and-how-does-it-work">Low-Income Housing Tax Credit</a> (LIHTC), the <a href="https://taxpolicycenter.org/briefing-book/what-new-markets-tax-credit-and-how-does-it-work">New Markets Tax Credit</a> (NMTC), and the <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/news/opportunity-zones-for-impact-tell-congress-to-pass-reforms-to-the-federal-opportunity-zone-tax-incentive/">Opportunity Zones program</a>. The near-term fate of these incentives is tied to the passage or failure of the package.
In contrast to the <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/news/red-light-green-light-what-smart-growth-provisions-are-passing-go-in-the-pending-house-tax-legislation/">previously released House version</a>, the Senate bill makes significant strides for community development by making several successful long-standing programs, including LIHTC and NMTC, permanent. However, the bill stops short of expanding the community development toolbox to provide much-needed tools for revitalization and affordable housing development. The Senate draft is not the final product–the differences between the House and Senate versions must be resolved–but it appears unlikely that entirely new provisions will be added to the draft whole cloth. While refinements to the Senate text are likely to continue, it offers the most up-to-date glimpse at what tools will be on the table to finance local development projects, from affordable housing to brownfields remediation, and what types of projects the Republican majority is prioritizing.
[button type=&#8221;info&#8221; block=&#8221;true&#8221; size=&#8221;lg&#8221; link=&#8221;https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/news/red-light-green-light-what-smart-growth-provisions-are-passing-go-in-the-pending-house-tax-legislation/&#8221;]Need a refresher on the House tax bill? Check out our previous blog. [/button]
<h1>Key credits made permanent</h1>
In the Senate tax bill, the popular and bipartisan LIHTC and NMTC are made permanent, rather than extended for a set number of years. The House bill, by contrast, would have only expanded LIHTC for a few years and did not include any extension of the NMTC. Each of these incentives attracts capital to lower-income communities, either by providing a tax credit to investors who provide funding for the construction of affordable housing or providing a tax credit to investors who make equity investments in community-based development entities, which in turn provide loans and investments to local businesses. Permanence is a major win for the community development community because it provides stability and makes the continued existence of both programs the status quo by eliminating looming sunset dates. Both bills also <a href="https://www.bondbuyer.com/news/senate-finance-bill-shields-tax-exempt-bonds-leaves-salt-debate-for-later">protect tax exemptions for municipal bonds</a>, which are a critical tool <a href="https://www.cdfa.net/cdfa/cdfaweb.nsf/48fc5ad035ef5f7b882578e7005f7d66/cc45420ef12f69798825793d005e79bc/$FILE/CDFA-Built-by-Bonds.pdf">communities use to finance essential infrastructure</a> like schools, libraries, hospitals, bridges, water management systems, and certain housing projects.
<h1>Mixed bag on Opportunity Zones</h1>
Both the Senate and the House bills doubled down on the Trump-era policy of Opportunity Zones, a tax incentive for certain investments in specific distressed census tracts, by extending the period of time the incentive can be utilized into the future. However, while the House bill provided a short-term extension, the Senate bill seeks to make the program permanent with a cyclical refreshing of the eligible zones for investment. Both bills allow the universe of census tracts designated as Opportunity Zones to be refreshed through a redesignation process, provide enhanced support for OZ investment in rural areas, and add reporting requirements, a longstanding issue many in the OZ and community development space have been eager to see resolved. A House bill provision that would have expanded the OZ incentive to ordinary income up to $10,000 per taxpayer was not included in the Senate version.
While reporting requirements and an extension of the program are compelling, neither bill includes any further incentives for the development of affordable homes through the OZ program, nor includes a LOCUS-proposed provision that would provide a targeted incentive for Opportunity Zone projects located in downtowns in urban and suburban areas or rural mainstreets. While the Senate bill makes critically needed adjustments to rules around the amount of money that must be invested in rehabilitation projects that have previously limited the tool’s use for rehabilitation projects, it only does so for projects in rural places, a significant loss for projects in urban or suburban geographies where the OZ tool’s use for rehab projects will remain limited. By failing to make these adjustments, Congress is missing the opportunity to facilitate more OZ projects that are location-efficient, mixed-income, or primarily rehabilitation.
Smart Growth America believes affordability provisions may still be under discussion. That’s why it’s essential that you <a href="https://smartgrowthamerica.salsalabs.org/ozs/index.html">take this action</a> and tell Congress to include affordability provisions and ensure reporting requirements remain in the final bill.
<h1>Missed opportunities</h1>
Like the House version of the text, the Senate bill also failed to include language creating the new homebuilding incentive proposed by the <a href="https://www.neighborhoodhomesinvestmentact.org">Neighborhood Homes Investment Act</a> and a slew of tax provisions that would incentivize, either implicitly or explicitly, growth in downtowns, main streets, or growth in areas well-connected to essential destinations. Among the provisions left on the cutting room floor was the brownfields tax deduction, which would allow taxpayers to fully deduct the cleanup costs of contaminated property in the year the costs were incurred, and a tax incentive for converting existing vacant and underutilized commercial properties into new housing proposed in the <a href="https://gomez.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=3346">Revitalizing Downtowns and Main Streets Act of 2025</a>.
<h1>What’s shaping the rest of the process, and where do things go now?</h1>
The passage of the recently released bill is not guaranteed in the Senate, let alone in the narrowly Republican-controlled House. Senators Hawley, Johnson, and Paul are all early obstacles for Republican Majority Leader Thune, who can only lose 3 Republicans on the Senate vote. That narrow margin empowers other members of the Republican caucus in the Senate, who may demand changes that the House Republicans find unacceptable. In addition, Senate Republican leadership is pursuing an unusual accounting mechanism to determine the total cost of the bill that individuals on both sides of the aisle view as a budget gimmick. For now, Republican leaders remain committed to making serious advancements on the bill before July 4th.
As the process continues, there is limited opportunity for entirely new provisions not included in either bill to be added to the text, but there is significant risk of provisions falling out, as well as continued opportunity to engage in pushing for refinements in the text. Ensuring the inclusion of LIHTC expansion and permanence, NMTC permanence, and advocating for adjustments within the OZ program to add an affordability mechanism are all important advocacy points for smart growth champions in the coming weeks.
While the Senate bill does not fully take advantage of the opportunity to expand the community development toolbox and additional advocacy is required, the Senate tax bill would be a significant win for the smart growth community. If passed with the community development provisions as is, the legislation would make an enduring contribution to community development by making the New Markets Tax Credit, the expanded Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, and the Opportunity Zones tax incentive permanent.
<hr />
<h1>Take action</h1>
As the legislation continues to move forward, it will be critical for stakeholders to advocate for smart growth-aligned tax programs directly to their members, both to protect those already included and to advocate for the addition of programs left on the cutting room floor. Take action in support of the brownfields deduction <a href="https://smartgrowthamerica.salsalabs.org/brownfields-tax-incentive2025/index.html">by clicking here</a>, take action to support the inclusion of reporting requirements and an affordability mechanism in the <a href="https://smartgrowthamerica.salsalabs.org/ozs/index.html">OZ program here</a>, or find contact information for your Members of Congress and reach out to them to advocate directly for <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/the-developers-perspective-tax-priorities-for-smart-growth/">smart growth provisions</a> in the tax bill by using <a href="https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members">this link</a>.

Housing and Development

The play for permanence: The fate of community development tax provisions in the Senate’s draft tax legislation

Advocacy

burlington

As extreme weather events like floods, wildfires, and rising temperatures continue to impact more and more Americans, climate havens—where there’s relatively lower climate risk—may see an influx of new residents. To help guide policymakers, advocates, and community members, our new report, <a href="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Climate-Havens-Report_Final.pdf">Housing for Havens: Smart growth strategies for climate resilience</a>, provides a blueprint for inclusive and resilient growth.
<h1>About the report</h1>
Climate hazards, including extreme weather and changing conditions like sea level rise or drought, can cause long-lasting damage to homes, businesses, infrastructure, and communities as a whole. Ripple effects on regional economies, including on housing prices and insurance costs, can further destabilize communities. As these hazards become more frequent and more intense, many may choose or be forced to relocate.
Some communities have embraced reputations as climate havens to try to attract these climate-displaced people, highlighting their relatively lower climate risk. But nowhere is truly safe from climate hazards, and high housing costs and a lack of opportunities for social connections can present challenges for both existing residents and incoming climate-displaced people.
Our new report, Housing for Havens: Smart growth strategies for climate resilience, helps equip decision makers and community leaders with the tools they need to prepare for inclusive and resilient growth. The report includes three recommendations for planning for smarter growth and recognizing the vulnerabilities communities may face along the way:
<ol>
<li>Prioritize pro-housing initiatives that connect housing, transportation, and amenities</li>
<li>Strengthen social infrastructure to support new and long-time community members</li>
<li>Recognize &amp; prepare for climate hazards</li>
</ol>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-103740" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Climate-havens-1024x707.png" alt="" width="1024" height="707" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Climate-havens-1024x707.png 1024w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Climate-havens-300x207.png 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Climate-havens-768x530.png 768w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Climate-havens-1536x1060.png 1536w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Climate-havens.png 1600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />
<h1>Read the report</h1>
<a href="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Climate-Havens-Report_Final.pdf"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignright wp-image-103741 size-medium" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Screenshot-2025-06-17-at-10.07.57 AM-300x232.png" alt="" width="300" height="232" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Screenshot-2025-06-17-at-10.07.57 AM-300x232.png 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Screenshot-2025-06-17-at-10.07.57 AM-1024x791.png 1024w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Screenshot-2025-06-17-at-10.07.57 AM-768x594.png 768w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Screenshot-2025-06-17-at-10.07.57 AM-1536x1187.png 1536w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Screenshot-2025-06-17-at-10.07.57 AM.png 1796w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a>This report draws on real-world case studies and practical policy examples from around the U.S. to equip policymakers, advocates, and community members with the tools they need to create places where all residents can thrive in the face of climate change.
[button type=&#8221;info&#8221; block=&#8221;true&#8221; size=&#8221;lg&#8221; link=&#8221;https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Climate-Havens-Report_Final.pdf&#8221;]Download the report! [/button]

Climate Resilience

Housing for Havens: A new report on inclusive and resilient growth for climate havens

Climate Change

airway-cover

Airway Heights, WA is a city shaped by fast-moving traffic and car-centric design—but it&#8217;s also one of many communities pushing back against streets that prioritize speed over safety. With recent pedestrian fatalities underscoring the stakes, the city is taking steps to make its roads safer and more equitable for everyone who uses them.
<img decoding="async" class="wp-image-87820 size-large aligncenter" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/airway-cover-1024x735.jpg" alt=" width=" height="735" />
<h4>Background</h4>
<figure id="attachment_87821" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-87821" style="width: 300px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-87821" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/airway-1-300x224.png" alt="Photos from the Airway Heights quick-build project" width="300" height="304" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-87821" class="wp-caption-text">Photos from the Airway Heights quick-build project</figcaption></figure>
Airway Heights, WA—a young city just west of Spokane and bisected by U.S. Route 2—has long been shaped by car-centric infrastructure. With high-speed traffic, freight movement, and one of the region’s largest racetracks, the city’s design has historically prioritized speed over safety. But that’s beginning to change. In recent years, community leaders and residents have been working to make the city safer and more accessible for all. The urgency is clear: between July and December 2024 alone, three pedestrians were killed on Route 2, highlighting just how dangerous the current design can be.
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<h4>Getting started</h4>
Over the past five years, Airway Heights has made significant progress in creating family-friendly routes so that all members of the community can reach everyday destinations. In 2019 the city participated in Smart Growth America’s Washington <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/tag/complete-streets-leadership-academy/">Complete Streets Leadership Academy,</a> which allowed them to explore changes to their community through a <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/complete-streets-safety-demonstration-project-airway-heights-wa/">quick-build project.</a> Their goal was to slow traffic and encourage non-motorized travel in the area, and they succeeded. The response to the project, which included the use of artwork to create space for pedestrians and the addition of plants to a high-traffic area, was overwhelmingly positive. Over the course of a week, traffic slowed around the project site and over 100 families walked and biked into the demonstration project area in just one day.
<h4>Implementing proposed changes</h4>
Airway Heights took the momentum from this temporary project to inform permanent changes. The city is working to address the dangers presented by U.S. 2 through collaboration with the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) on improvements to a segment of the highway to make it safer for those walking, biking, and rolling.
<img decoding="async" class="wp-image-87818 alignleft" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/airway-3-300x200.jpg" alt=" width=" height="554" />
They are also currently working to <a href="https://cawh.org/6th-avenue-extension-and-redesign-project/">redesign 6th avenue</a> by integrating several Complete Streets elements like adding sidewalks, a shared use path, and transit stops. Airway Heights has several other Complete Streets projects planned, and are pursuing resources to fill any remaining gaps in funding so they can create a safe, efficient network for all road users.
Thanks to recent progress at the state level, Airway Heights is better positioned to work with WSDOT on implementing Complete Streets and building safer, healthier communities. In 2022, the Washington State Legislature passed the <a href="https://lawfilesext.leg.wa.gov/biennium/2021-22/Pdf/Bills/Session%20Laws/Senate/5974-S.SL.pdf?q=20220427105402">Move Ahead Washington</a> package, which included a Complete Streets requirement directing WSDOT to “improve the safety, mobility, and accessibility of state highways” by embedding Complete Streets principles into projects costing over $500,000.
Airway Heights has also made policy progress at the local level to move Complete Streets work forward. In November 2024, Airway Heights <a href="https://www.codepublishing.com/WA/AirwayHeights/html/AirwayHeights14/AirwayHeights1410.html">updated their Complete Streets policy</a> to support their current momentum and continue to make changes that address the needs of all community members. They are currently working to update their <a href="https://www.cawhcompplan.com/policy">Comprehensive Plan</a> to specifically prioritize development of an efficient multi-modal transportation network.
<h4>Key takeaways</h4>
A critical component of Airway Heights’ continued progress has been the collaborative approach they have taken. They engaged the community from the beginning, starting with their quick-build project. This allowed them to make sure the project reflected the wants and needs of the community. Starting with a temporary, low-budget project allowed the city to see how community members were engaging with the new facilities and gather data and lessons learned to inform a permanent solution. By updating its Complete Streets policy and Comprehensive Plan—and with efforts from state legislation—Airway Heights is building a stronger foundation for long-term success.
We look forward to seeing the results of what is currently in the works in Airway Heights, and what they will accomplish in the future!
This publication was made possible by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (Cooperative Agreement CDC-RFA-PW-24-0080). Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of CDC. These efforts are part of the CDC’s <a class="c-link" href="https://www.cdc.gov/active-people-healthy-nation/php/about/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://www.cdc.gov/active-people-healthy-nation/php/about/index.html" data-sk="tooltip_parent">Active People, Healthy NationSM</a> Initiative that is working to help 27 million Americans become more physically active by 2027.

Complete Streets Leadership Academies

CSLA

Pedestrian safety

Complete Streets progress in Airway Heights, Washington

US-capitol-dome-flickr-Shawn-Clover-e1732132509830

The comprehensive tax package passed by the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives includes a renewal and extension of the Opportunity Zone tax incentive (OZs). Don’t miss your opportunity to tell Congress to prioritize transparency and affordability in an extension of the OZ program!
<h4>What are Opportunity Zones? 
</h4>
The Opportunity Zones tax incentive is a tool designed to catalyze investment and growth in distressed communities. The tool operates by providing a set of preferential tax treatments to entities that invest capital gains into qualifying investments in underinvested or otherwise distressed communities. The OZ program was created in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and was set to sunset at the end of 2026. Generally, it has driven a new wave of investment in communities across the country, with a notable <a href="https://eig.org/opportunity-zones-housing-supply/">impact</a> on <a href="https://www.novoco.com/notes-from-novogradac/new-administration-sparks-optimism-around-opportunity-zones">housing production.</a> If extended, we are eager to see the program become more transparent and more impact-focused by further focusing the tool on much-needed affordable housing production.
<h4>Why take action now?</h4>
The version of the comprehensive tax legislation recently passed by the U.S. House of Representatives included an extension of the Opportunity Zone tax incentive (OZs). The current bill extends the period of time the incentive can be utilized to 2033, calls for a refreshed list of eligible Opportunity Zones, and adds new reporting requirements. While the inclusion of reporting requirements is a positive step, they are not guaranteed to be included in the final bill, and no additional incentives were provided that would steer investment towards the development of affordable housing.
[button type=&#8221;info&#8221; block=&#8221;true&#8221; size=&#8221;lg&#8221; link=&#8221;https://smartgrowthamerica.salsalabs.org/ozs&#8221;]Take action and advocate for transparency and affordability in the OZ program! [/button]
Smart Growth America and a coalition of impact-focused partners have <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/stakeholders-call-for-a-smarter-opportunity-zone-incentive-to-deliver-a-variety-of-housing-types-in-wider-range-of-communities/">previously urged</a> Congress to strengthen the Opportunity Zone incentive to better support the use of OZs to deliver high-impact projects such as affordable housing, and include reporting requirements in an extension. Previous assessments of residential units built with OZ capital show that the incentive has rarely been used for the creation of explicitly affordable units. To meet the urgent need for more affordable housing, OZ incentives must better align with the needs of the communities they are intended to serve. That’s why we’re calling for increased benefits for developers who build housing that is affordable to people earning less than the area median income—so that the incentives are targeted where the need is greatest.
<h4>Your voice is needed!</h4>
Help us strengthen the impact and transparency of the Opportunity Zone program! We need your help to build support for reforms to the Opportunity Zone program, reforms that will spur the creation of affordable housing and protect the currently included reporting requirements. Whether you’re an individual, business, or organization, your advocacy is crucial.
Take action today:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://smartgrowthamerica.salsalabs.org/ozs">Contact your representatives and urge them to advocate for the inclusion of an affordable housing incentive and reporting requirements in any extension of the Opportunity Zones program.</a></li>
<li>Spread the word—share this post and engage your networks in this critical effort.</li>
</ul>
Together, we can push Congress to create a more transparent, impact-focused Opportunity Zone incentive.

affordable housing

Opportunity Zones for Impact: Tell Congress to pass reforms to the federal Opportunity Zone tax incentive

Mayor Ellis on a walk audit

Over the past three years, Smart Growth America (SGA) has worked with the City of Monroe, Louisiana to improve connectivity for pedestrians and cyclists in a previously underinvested downtown neighborhood. Monroe’s participation in SGA’s Champions Institute in 2022 led to ongoing engagements, including in-person technical assistance, access to in-person convenings, grant support, and advice on street design. As a result, Monroe has improved its street network and successfully applied for federal funding to further these efforts.
Like many other American cities, Monroe&#8217;s streets have been designed to move vehicles at high speeds. This makes travel difficult for people walking, biking, or rolling, and creates dangerous conditions for all road users, including drivers. This is especially true in certain neighborhoods that lack important amenities like sidewalks, bike lanes, and transit shelters, such as the South 2nd Street corridor in Monroe, LA. This corridor includes a wide street with two separated lanes of traffic in each direction, with few crosswalks, no bikelanes, and narrow, poorly maintained sidewalks. The city decided to improve safety and connectivity along the corridor for the residents in the area (over 90 percent are African American).
<blockquote>
“Many people don’t have cars, some of them don’t have money to get on the bus. They ought to be able to walk to get where they need to go without being hurt or harmed.”-Jeanette, Monroe resident and walk audit participant
<figure id="attachment_103596" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-103596" style="width: 1024px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monroe-1.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-103596 size-large" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monroe-1-1024x768.png" alt="Mayor Ellis joins stakeholders on a walk audit." width="1024" height="768" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monroe-1-1024x768.png 1024w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monroe-1-300x225.png 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monroe-1-768x576.png 768w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monroe-1-1536x1152.png 1536w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monroe-1.png 1600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-103596" class="wp-caption-text">Mayor Ellis joins stakeholders on a walk audit.</figcaption></figure></blockquote>
<h4>First steps to improve road safety</h4>
Smart Growth America’s engagement with the City of Monroe began in 2022 when Mayor Friday Ellis participated in <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/the-champions-institute-is-back-with-its-third-cohort-of-local-leaders/">SGA’s Champions Institute.</a> Over the course of nine months, he joined other local elected officials from across the country for expert-led virtual sessions about best practices on how to make his city safer, healthier, and more connected. During the program, he <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/the-third-champions-institute-comes-to-a-close/">developed initial ideas and plans</a> for improvements to the South 2nd Street corridor. City staff worked with SGA to <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/best-complete-streets-monroe-louisiana/">quantify some of the benefits</a> that could be realized for the community if changes were implemented. Following Mayor Ellis’ participation in the Champions Institute, SGA team members travelled to Monroe in November 2023 to lead a two-day, in-person workshop about road safety, with a focus on the South 2nd Street corridor. The workshop involved presentations from Smart Growth America staff on Complete Streets and related topics, conversations with city leadership and other key stakeholders including city staff and community members, as well as a <a href="https://www.aarp.org/livable-communities/getting-around/aarp-walk-audit-tool-kit/?cmp=RDRCT-482bcc3c-20211209">walk audit</a> of the corridor to see firsthand some of the challenges that would be addressed with the proposed changes. Mayor Ellis and the SGA team used this as an opportunity to advance some of the original plans discussed during the Champions Institute, and to engage the community about the mayor’s vision for the future of Monroe.
In addition to receiving direct, individualized support, Mayor Ellis became engaged with a peer network of local elected officials and other decision makers interested in advancing safer, healthier, and more resilient communities. In 2024, Mayor Friday Ellis attended <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/a-community-of-collaboration-the-2024-champions-alumni-convening/">SGA’s Champions Alumni Convening</a> in Washington, DC There he shared his perspectives and experiences participating in the program with other former Champions. Monroe leadership remains in touch regularly with SGA for continued support and technical assistance around the various topics originally identified by Mayor Ellis in the Champions Institute.
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<figure id="attachment_87802" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-87802" style="width: 1024px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-87802 size-large" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monroe-3-1024x682.png" alt="Mayor Ellis shares an update at the Champions Alumni Convening. " width="1024" height="682" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-87802" class="wp-caption-text">Mayor Ellis shares an update at the Champions Alumni Convening.</figcaption></figure>
<h4>Implementing proposed changes</h4>
Monroe leadership has embraced changes identified throughout the program and dedicated significant effort and resources into making positive improvements to better connect residents with safer, more connected options to the city. For example, the city implemented some of the <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/what-are-complete-streets/">Complete Streets principles</a> into a restriping project along North 6th Street. Rather than re-striping the road as it had previously been (with two lanes of traffic and a parking lane), they successfully pilot tested dedicated, protected space for walking and biking. SG
<figure id="attachment_103598" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-103598" style="width: 300px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monre-2.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-medium wp-image-103598" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monre-2-300x225.png" alt="Community members discuss different options for improving the South 2nd Street corridor.
" width="300" height="225" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monre-2-300x225.png 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monre-2-1024x768.png 1024w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monre-2-768x576.png 768w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monre-2-1536x1152.png 1536w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/monre-2.png 1600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-103598" class="wp-caption-text">Community members discuss different options for improving the South 2nd Street corridor.</figcaption></figure>
A advised the city on potential design choices and encouraged them to think how the city could make these improvements permanent.
To further its efforts, the city has been actively pursuing funds to support ongoing infrastructure changes. In 2024, the city was awarded a $90,000 grant from the <a href="https://www.transportation.gov/grants/thriving-communities">Department of Transportation&#8217;s Thriving Communities Program</a>. The city will use this funding to install vibrant murals on Main Street&#8217;s &#8220;Art Alley&#8221; as well as the South 2nd Street corridor to improve the appearances of these corridors in order to encourage more walking, biking, and rolling. The city is currently pursuing other funds to make even more improvements to their community that support physical activity, mobility, and increased social connection among residents.
Going forward, SGA will continue its partnership with Monroe. The city has taken bold steps towards its community safety and health goals and is a model on how small towns can think creatively and work across sectors to improve safety for all residents. As the city receives more funding and implements its projects and plans, we expect to see additional significant benefits that continue increasing connectivity and safety within Monroe.
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This publication was made possible by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (Cooperative Agreement CDC-RFA-PW-24-0080). Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of CDC. These efforts are part of the CDC’s <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/active-people-healthy-nation/php/about/index.html">Active People, Healthy NationSM</a> Initiative that is working to help 27 million Americans become more physically active by 2027.

Improving transportation and road safety in Monroe, LA

Brownfields-Webinar

The National Brownfields Coalition and the Center for Creative Land Recycling (CCLR) hosted a webinar last week on understanding federal brownfields policy, advocacy, and funding in 2025. Attendees heard from Kennedy O’Dell, Senior Manager of Advocacy at Smart Growth America, and Jean Hamerman, Executive Director of CCLR, who explained the history of the brownfields program and provided an insider’s perspective on what&#8217;s happening with federal funding, EPA programs, and brownfield legislation pending in Congress. Here are some of our key takeaways from the conversation.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Webinar: Understanding the federal environment for brownfields policy and advocacy in 2025" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/_yBLlbmXRJE?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
It’s a time of change and disruption in Washington, and in the midst of it all, Congress and the administration are actively considering the future of federal support for brownfields programs. Recognizing how difficult it is to track those changes in real time while still pursuing brownfields work, the National Brownfields Coalition convened a webinar to help brownfields practitioners build or expand their understanding of federal legislation and the work of the National Brownfields Coalition in advancing sustainable brownfield redevelopment. The webinar covered a wide range of issues, including brownfields tax deduction legislation, brownfields reauthorization legislation, FY26 appropriations, and other timely issues. Attendees learned about these major legislative opportunities, <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/key-priorities-for-the-federal-brownfields-program/">National Brownfield Coalition priorities</a> for each opportunity, and how they can support legislative efforts.
<h4>Here are the top takeaways from our conversation on federal brownfields policy:</h4>
1. Despite a turbulent and uncertain funding environment broadly, bipartisan support remains for federal brownfields programs in Congress. Positive signs for the program’s wellbeing continue, including bipartisan hearings on the program, continued EPA activity, the recent announcement of a new round of grant recipients, and the fact the National Brownfields Conference is still on for Chicago in August of this year.
2. There are three primary federal policy issues for brownfields work specifically: reauthorization of the EPA’s brownfields program, the potential inclusion of a federal brownfields tax incentive in pending tax legislation, and the yearly appropriations process. Each issue is an opportunity to advance brownfields work, either by pursuing funds or incentives that can support projects or by seeking legislative adjustments to improve the program overall.
3. Legislation reauthorizing the brownfields redevelopment tax incentive has been introduced by a bipartisan pair of legislators and the provision is up for consideration in the comprehensive tax package. H.R. 815, recently reintroduced by Rep. Sherrill (D-NJ) and Rep. Turner (R-OH), would allow taxpayers to fully deduct the cleanup costs of contaminated property in the year the costs were incurred. By allowing for the expensing of remediation costs, the deduction makes contaminated sites far more competitive to develop. The introduction of a bipartisan piece of legislation reauthorizing the incentive after it expired in 2012 is a positive step forward.
4. The process of reauthorizing EPA’s brownfields program is moving forward in a largely positive and bipartisan manner. Senator Capito and Senator Blunt Rochester introduced a bill to reauthorize EPA’s brownfields program, the Brownfields Reauthorization Act of 2025 (S. 347), and the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee passed it unanimously earlier this year. In the House, there have been <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/the-national-brownfields-coalition-testifies-a-second-time-on-importance-of-federal-brownfields-program/">multiple positive hearings</a> on the program. While additional steps remain before passage, the coalition applauds the forward progress and the consideration of their <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/key-priorities-for-the-federal-brownfields-program/">reauthorization priorities. </a>
<h4>Advocate for the brownfields redevelopment tax incentive</h4>
The National Brownfields Coalition needs your help to galvanize support for the <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/revitalizing-communities-support-the-brownfields-redevelopment-tax-incentive/">brownfields redevelopment tax incentive</a> (H.R. 815) and ensure Congress takes action in an upcoming tax package to restore this vital tool for spurring economic growth and improving community well-being. Whether you’re an individual, business, or organization, your advocacy is crucial.
You can take action today by contacting your representatives and <a href="https://smartgrowthamerica.salsalabs.org/brownfields-tax-incentive2025">urging them to support or cosponsor H.R. 815</a> and spreading the word by sharing this post and engaging your networks in this critical effort. For more information on the Brownfields Redevelopment Tax Incentive and how you can help, check out our <a href="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Brownfields-Fact-Sheet-2025-1.pdf">fact sheet</a> here.

National Brownfields Coalition

Four takeaways from the National Brownfields Coalition’s federal policy webinar

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