One major misconception we encounter in our work is that smart growth principles like Complete Streets, public transit, and mixed-use development are just for big cities and don’t apply to small towns. But over the years, we’ve seen countless examples of rural places that used these strategies to great benefit. I recently traveled to such a place–Brattleboro, Vermont.
A coffee shop in Pineville, MO is offering high school students an opportunity to gain firsthand knowledge about running a business and pocket scholarship money at the same time. Smart Growth America partnered with T-Mobile to help this learning lab grow, boosting the local and regional economy in the process.
The Carson Valley Arts Council works to provide creative outlets and community gathering places in Minden, NV, and one of their most recent projects is the Copeland Community Arts Center, a site that could help host youth arts education programs, concerts, and festivals. Smart Growth America partnered with T-Mobile to help make this plan a reality.
Erwin, Tennesee’s Unaka Bike Park helps capitalize on one of the town’s best assets: its outdoor recreation options. Smart Growth America partnered with T-Mobile to support the development of the new park, helping to attract new residents and businesses while creating a new recreation space for the town’s current residents.
Smart Growth America partnered with T-Mobile to support Bowling Green’s Parklet Project, converting would-be parking space into appealing dining and retail space.
Clarksville’s Levee Park Beautification Project, supported by T-Mobile funding and Smart Growth America technical assistance, activated underutilized space in the rural community’s downtown, attracting new development and creating a gathering space for locals and visitors alike.
Smart Growth America partnered with T-Mobile to support Atmore, Alabama’s efforts to complete a Water Conservation and Butterfly Pollination Park. These efforts revitalized Atmore’s downtown, supported compact residential development, and helped preserve open land and green spaces.
At the 2022 Nuclear Communities Economic Resilience Conference, host communities from nine nuclear plants in the Midwest-the region that hosts more than half of the nation’s nuclear fleet-gathered to share experiences, best practices, and plan for the future. The Nuclear Communities Team– a technical assistance group led by Smart Growth America in collaboration with … Continued
Absent major changes, the majority of the nuclear power plants in the U.S. may close in the next few decades. This presents an enormous economic development challenge in what are mostly fairly small or rural communities where these plants are located.
Millinocket, Maine epitomizes the plight of many rural communities across the country that struggle as legacy industries or major employers that once helped sustain a place slow down or close altogether. Millinocket has found new hope in part by pairing improved broadband internet access with a new focus on downtown revitalization, giving the community the chance to take hold of their future and “actually build something” new.