Field Guide to Smart Growth & Growth Management
(Updated July 2006)
Across the country, one of the hottest debates taking place in political and social arenas is that of smart growth and urban sprawl. Federal, state and local governments are initiating more effective land use planning techniques that affect location decision and site designs in ways that will minimize the negative impacts that urban development has on the social, economic and environmental health of communities - both large and small. REALTORS® are often involved in the smart growth debate, finding the need to articulate positions that balance the needs of maintaining the quality of communities through preservation of space and control of congestion, yet allowing the market forces to generate local growth. The resources in this Field Guide offer background information and specifics on smart growth and urban sprawl. You'll also uncover a wealth of resources available from the REALTOR® organization, including the newly-released 150-page resource, "Smart Growth - A Toolkit for REALTORS®" (K. Bartlett Walsh, Marketing & Communication Coordinator)
Contents:
What Is Smart Growth? | REALTORS® & Smart Growth | Smart Growth & Housing | What is Sprawl? | Books, eBooks & Other Resources
Visit Smart Growth Home Page for news, position statements, reports, case studies, surveys, & other resources on smart growth and land use issues from the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® -- including current and previous issues of On Common Ground magazine.
What Is Smart Growth?
Smart Growth - A Toolkit for REALTORS®, (NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, Dec. 2006).
Smart growth, (Wikipedia, 2006).
Foundation for progress: smart growth means more housing, more choices, (The Boston Herald.com, July 5, 2006).
Smart Growth Talking Points, (NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, Apr. 21, 2006).
Smart growth overview, (Smart Growth Online, 2006).
A smart growth reader, (American Planning Association, 2006).
What is smart growth, (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2006).
Beyond gentrification - strategies for managing community change, (Flag Wars, June 17, 2003).
Smart growth, smart choices, (National Association of Homebuilders, 2002).
REALTORS® & Smart Growth
REALTORS® training on smart growth, (NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, 2006).
Transportation - a toolkit for REALTORS®, (NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, 2006).
NAR housing opportunity homepage, (NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, 2006).
Micropolitians - the best of both worlds, (On Common Ground, Winter 2006).
BB&T takes the moral high ground, (Realty Times, January 31, 2006).
Of sprawl, schools and small schools, (On Common Ground, Winter 2005).
Smart growth, social justice key to rebuilding gulf coast, (REALTOR® Magazine Online, Oct. 29, 2005).
Retailers return to once-shunned urban neighborhoods and older suburbs, (On Common Ground, Summer 2005).
There's a right way and a wrong way to approach land use, (Michigan REALTOR®, May 2004).
Smart growth fuels vibrant urban villages, (On Common Ground, Summer 2004).
Creating great neighborhoods - density in your community, (Local Government Commission/US Environmental Protection Agency/NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, 2003).
Smart Growth & Housing
Confronting a pattern of warped growth, (The New York Times, July 16, 2006).
Massachusetts boots incentives for smart growth planning, (Planning, Feb. 2006). Q
New towns in rural areas, (On Common Ground, Winter 2006).
Transit planning as a vehicle for successful development, (Journal of Housing and Community Development, Jan./Feb. 2006). Q
The war against suburbia, (The Wall Street Journal, Jan. 14, 2006). Q
A model worth considering for affordable home ownership and strengthened communities: cooperative housing, (Journal of Housing and Community Development, Nov./Dec. 2005). Q
The benefits of high density development, (The Brookings Institution, Nov. 17, 2005).
Leading the parade, (Planning, June 2005). Q
New downtown housing, (On Common Ground, Summer 2005).
Smart codes smart places, (On Common Ground, Summer 2004).
What is Sprawl?
Urban sprawl, (Wikipedia, 2006).
In contrast: smart growth versus sprawl, (National Resources Defense Council, 2006).
Virtual world - the new suburb?, (Nationalgeographic.com, 2006).
Smart growth and sprawl, (Great Lakes Commission, 2006).
Compact is cheaper, (Builder, Feb. 2006). Q
In fast-growing county, sprawl teaches hard lessons, (REALTOR® Magazine Online, Jan. 26, 2006).
Manifest destiny meets town boundry, (The Wall Street Journal, Jan. 20, 2006). Q
The war against suburbia, (The Wall Street Journal, Jan. 14, 2006). Q
Urban sprawl and public health - designing, building and planning for healthy communities, (Journal of the American Planning Association, Winter 2006). Q
Can't smart growth and sprawl just get along?, (The Planning and Development Network, Dec. 19, 2005).
Homeowners are feeling stifled by sprawl, (REALTOR® Magazine Online, Dec. 5, 2005).
Building better, a guide to america's best new development projects - fall 2005 sprawl report, (The Sierra Club, Fall 2005).
Reshaping suburbia, (Buildings, Aug. 2005). Q
When every foot counts, (The American City and County, June 2005). Q
eBooks & Other Resources
eBooks.realtor.org
The following ebooks and digital audiobooks are available to NAR members:
Community by Design: New Urbanism for Suburbs and Small Communities (Adobe eReader)
Pollution and Property (Adobe eReader)
The Dynamics of Property Location (Adobe eReader)
Books, Videos, Research Reports & More
The resources below are available for loan through Information Central. Up to three books, tapes, CDs and/or DVDs can be borrowed for 30 days from the Library for a nominal fee of $10. Call Information Central at 800.874.6500 for assistance.
20th Century Sprawl: Highways and the Reshaping of the American Landscape, (New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2004). HT 384 G86
Growth Management and Affordable Housing - Do They Conflict?, (Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press, 2004). HT 166 G74
Boom Town USA - the 7-1/2 Keys to Success in Small Towns, (Herndon, VA: National Association of Industrial and Office Properties, 2004). HD 1341 Sch1
Streets and the Shaping of Towns and Cities, (Washington, DC: Island Press, 2003). TE 279 S58
Suburban Sprawl: Culture, Theory & Politics, (Lanhan, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2003). HT 352 S83
Taking Sustainable Cities Seriously: Economic Development, The Environment and Quality of Life in American Cities, (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2003). HT 243 P67
Building Suburbia: Green Fields and Urban Growth, 1820-2000, (New York, NY: Pantheon Books, 2003). HT 352 H39
Edgeless Cities: Exploring the Elusive Metropolis, (Washington, DC: Brooking Institution, 2003). HT 334 L36
Toward the Livable City, (Minneapolis, MN: Milkweed Editions, 2003). NA 9053 T69
Making Smart Growth Work, (Washington, DC: Urban Land Institute, 2002). NAC 250 Ur1sg
The Limitless City: A Primer on the Urban Sprawl Debate, (Washington, DC: Island Press, 2002). HT G84 355
Conservation in the Internet Age: Threats and Opportunities, (Washington, DC: Island Press, 2002). QH 75 C67
Urban Sprawl: Causes, Consequences & Policy Responses, (Washington, DC: Urban Land Institute, 2002). HT 384 Ur1u
Solving Sprawl: Models of Smart Growth in Communities Across America, (Washington, DC: National Resources Defense Council, 2001). HT 167 B46s
On Common Ground: REALTORS® and Smart Growth, (Chicago, IL: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, 2001). VT063
How Cities Work: Suburbs, Sprawl & the Roads Not Taken, (Austin, TX: University of Texas Press, 2000). HT 166 M25
The Seduction of the Place: The City in the Twenty-First Century, (New York, NY: Pantheon Books, 2000). HT 151 R93
Field Guides & More
These Field Guides and other resources in the Virtual Library may also be of interest:
Field Guide to Zoning laws and Ordinances
Field Guide to The New Urbanism
Field Guide to Private Property Rights
Field Guide to Development Impact Fees
Field Guide to Smart Growth and Growth Management in Virginia
Field Guide to Transfer of Development Rights (TDRs)
Field Guide to Water Rights & Resource Issues
>> Have an idea for a new Field Guide? Click here to send us your suggestions!
The inclusion of links on this Field Guide does not imply endorsement by the National Association of REALTORS®. NAR makes no representations about whether the content of any external sites which may be linked to this Field Guide complies with state or federal laws or regulations or with applicable NAR policies. These links are provided for your convenience only and you rely on them at your own risk.
