Land-Use Planning (and its Relationship to Public Health)

1. Land-Use Planning (and its Relationship to Public Health) Marya Morris, AICP American Planning Association NACCHO Environmental Health Advisory Committee Albuquerque, October 22, 2003

2. Goals & objectives Land use Community facilities Transportation Housing Parks and recreation Historic preservation Elements of a Comprehensive Plan • Urban design • Economic development • Environment • Natural hazards • Implementation • Health ???

3. Land-Use Element • Purposes • Provide pattern for the location and characteristics of future development • Principal plan element upon which others are based • Supporting Analyses • Inventories, trend analysis, environmental scan, infrastructure capacity, population and economic projections • Contents • Existing land use map • Statement of goals and policies • Future land use map • Narrative that explains how the future land-use pattern relates to the goals, policies, and guidelines

4. Complete land use survey and other supporting analysis Establish proposed locational goals, policies, and guidelines Account for state and federal land use goals, policies, and guidelines Establish guideline densities and intensities Project land uses by category Identify on a map factors influencing or limiting developability Develop alternatives; allocate future land uses on map; account for constraints Evaluate alternatives Select optimal alternative Steps in Land-Use Element (Plan) Preparation

5. The Zoning Ordinance • Lists Land-Use Districts • Contains Development Regulations for Each District • Yards • Height • Bulk or Floor Area Ratio • Maximum lot coverage • Maximum impervious surface ratio

6. Other Zoning Regulations • Conditional uses • Accessory structures and uses • Landscaping • Off-street parking and loading • Home occupations • Signs

7. Subdivision Regulation • Purposes • Legal authority • Contents • Submission requirements • Standards for: • Streets • Sidewalks • Stormwater • Open space • Lot sizes • Erosion • Utilities

8. Subdivision Review Procedure • Pre-application conference • Preliminary plat review • Final plat review • Public improvement guarantees • Time limits • Exactions & fees in lieu • Parks & school sites • Storm drainage

9. Adequate public facility ordinances Impact fees Exclusive farmland districts Traditional neighborhood development zones Overlay districts Transfer of development rights Planned unit development Density bonuses and incentives Urban growth boundaries Other Terms and Techniques

10. “The built environment in post-industrial culture represents a tremendous unexamined resource • for improving human and • environmental health.” • Laura E. Jackson • National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory (2002)

11. A Convergence of Priorities Public Health Community Planning and Design Physically Active Communities

12. 1850 - 1920s: The public health roots of planning 1920 – 1930s: Zoning and subdivision regulations emerge to deal with nuisance issues, property values, quality of life 1945 – present: Urban decentralization, vast changes in jobs/housing proximity, consumer preferences, wealth; (now) conventional development patterns become norm 1970 – 1985: Environmental movement; State growth management movement 1990 – present: Major change in Federal transportation priorities ISTEA (1990); TEA-21 (1997); TEA 3 (2003 reauthorization) 1990 – present: Smart growth movement 1997 – present: Public health and planning renew their marriage vows Planning/Public Health Chronology(from a planner’s perspective)

13. What is Urban Sprawl? Sprawl is a fiscally and environmentally unsustainable development pattern that consumes farmland and open space and can have numerous negative effects on quality of life in a community.

14. Ten Principles of Smart Growth 1. Mix land uses 2. Take advantage of compact building design 3. Create a range of housing opportunities and choices 4. Create walkable neighborhoods 5. Foster distinctive, attractive communities with a strong sense of place 6. Preserve open space, farmland, natural beauty, and critical environmental areas 7. Strengthen and direct development towards existing communities 8. Provide a variety of transportation choices 9. Make development decisions predictable, fair, and cost effective 10. Encourage community and stakeholder collaboration in development decisions

15. Health implications of sprawl, part I ­air pollution ­ greenhouse gas emissions ­heat island effect ¯physical activity ­vehicle crashes ¯ Social capital Source: Richard Jackson, Howard Frumkin PowerPoint presentation, October 4, 2001.

16. Health implications of sprawl, part II ­ Pedestrian death and injury ¯ Water quantity and quality ? Mental health consequences ¯ Social equity Source: Richard Jackson, Howard Frumkin PowerPoint presentation, October 4, 2001.

17. The barriers we’ve built to physical activity: Planning as part of the problem • Separated land uses • Auto-dominated community design • Large lots • Ignoring human scale • Prohibited connections between origins and destinations

18. Sprawl ▲ trip distances ▲ vehicle trips ▼ walking ▼ physical activity ­ overweight ­ obesity Physical Activity and Sprawl

19. Emerging Policy and Implementation Framework Agents of Change Menu of Policies Desired Outcomes City planners, parks officials Availability and Access Public health officials • Conducive • environments for • routine activity • Increased • physical activity Support for bicycling and walking Transportation and transit Support for incidental outdoor activity Park districts, school districts, Law enforcement Incentives for physical activity Building code officials Safety Education NGOs, private sector, community groups, media

20. APA Survey of Planners on the Physical Activity Issue • Purpose: Explore the extent to which planners are addressing the physical activity issue • 10,000 planners emailed the survey in March 2003 • 1,000 responses tallied • Respondents represent wide range of jurisdiction size and type

21. For your jurisdiction’s elected and appointed officials, the physical activity of residents is . . .

22. For your jurisdiction’s elected and appointed officials, the relationship between community planning and design and the ability of residents to be physically active is . . .

23. Barriers to incorporating physical activity goals and objectives into plans, projects, and regulations

24. Planning and Designing the Physically Active CommunityAPA Project Overview • Literature Review (available now) • Web resources (available now) • National survey of planners (available now) • Planning Advisory Service Report (in progress, forthcoming 2004) • Case Studies (2004) • Community Institutes (2003-04)

25. Five Strategic Points of Intervention 1. Visioning and goal setting 2. Rethinking planning in all contexts 3. Local implementation tools 4. Site Design and Development 5. Siting Public Facilities and Capital Spending

26. 1. Visioning and Goal Setting • Begins with a discussion of shared values • Results in a shared image of a community imagines most desired future • Provides a broad context within which goals are set and plans are developed • Majority of planning efforts now launched with a visioning exercise (reflective of more citizen participation)

27. 2. Rethinking State and Local Planning • Comprehensive plans • Neighborhood plans • Redevelopment plans

28. …2. Functional Plans • Functional Plans • Health services • Bicycle and pedestrian • Transit • Streets and circulation • Trails • Parks • Housing • Economic development • Schools and campuses

29. Cambridge, MassachusettsPedestrian Plan (2000) • Why Cambridge, Mass. promotes walking • Fed, state, local rules • Local growth policy • Health(!) • Vertical & horizontal policy integration • Attention to the public realm • Technical specifications • Pedestrian advisory committee

30. …3. More Implementation Tools • Capital improvement programs • Streetscape improvements • Traffic calming in neighborhoods • Transportation enhancements • Financial set asides for parks and trails

31. Improve the pedestrian environment Security, lighting, visibility Protection from traffic Adequate accommodation Building orientation, setback requirements Public art Architecture and appearance Street trees, landscaping, open spaces Well connected routes 4. Site Design and Development

32. …4. Site Design and Development • Bicycle facilities • Sidewalk requirements • Parking lot layout and design • Amenities/conveniences for active people • Encouraging signage • Usable parks, open space • Accessible stairways

33. 5. Siting and Use of Public Facilities and Capital Spending • Public Spaces • Schools • Post offices • Libraries • Museums • Parks • City Hall • Campuses • Community Centers

34. Thank You! Marya Morris, AICP American Planning Association Mmorris@planning.org