Smart Growth and Economic Prosperity: A Sourcebook Part I

1. Smart Growth and Economic Prosperity: A SourcebookPart I Created by Smart Growth America with generous support from the William Penn Foundation August, 2010

2. Slide Index Notes Suggestions for Using the Sourcebook • Skim the Table of Contents. Familiarize yourself with the framework and different topics included. • If you are preparing a Powerpoint, create and format it before pulling in slides from the Sourcebook. The slides have very minimal formatting so that you can easily import them to your format. Use the Slide Index or Table of Contents to determine which slides might contain information you need. Review individual slides and the accompanying notes page to learn more. Drag and drop or copy and paste to pull images, charts or entire slides into your presentation.

3. Suggestions for Using the Sourcebook (cont’d) • Go easy on the amount of information on each slide. We make this Sourcebook available as Powerpoint slides because you requested support in developing Powerpoints on the subject. A primary challenge in developing this Sourcebook in Powerpoint is that a good description of an economics study usually requires far more words than belong on a persuasive slide. A primary challenge in giving a Powerpoint on the subject is that such presentations are often expected to double-function as both visual (projected) and written (left behind in a hand-out). A well-written piece makes for a bad presentation and vice-versa. We’ve tried to handle this by putting lots of information in the Notes. The Notes are both sources for you, and can be adapted and printed as leave-behinds.

4. Suggestions for Using the Sourcebook (cont’d) • Add local illustrations and examples A visual presentation (like a Powerpoint) should be primarily visual, even on a subject like this. We have been sparing with pictures because pictures from elsewhere need to be chosen so carefully.

5. Two Basic Economic Argumentsfor Smart Growth • Smart growth saves money. • Smart growth makes money.

6. What is Smart Growth? • Development and redevelopment in or adjacent to existing cities, towns and villages. • A mix of uses in one neighborhood and a more compact pattern overall to support more economic and social activity. • Roads and public spaces designed to support convenient transportation choices.

7. Smart Growth Saves Money Compared to the status quo, smart growth • Costs less to build and maintain; • Provides services at a lower cost; • Reduces maintenance costs by directing spending to existing infrastructure; • Reduces tax burden by maximizing return on public Investment; • Preserves existing communities; • Reduces household transportation costs; • Reduces health costs.

8. Smart Growth Saves I. Infrastructure Costs “A fundamental characteristic of sprawl is that two sets of infrastructure are being created that are both underused: the one that Americans have been running away from (cities and older developed suburbs) and the one they never catch up with (the new sprawling development).” Source: Sprawl Costs: Economic Impacts of Unchecked Development, Robert W. Burchell, Anthony Downs, Barbara McCann, and Sahan Mukherji, Island Press, 2005

9. Sprawl: Higher Costs for the Same Population 1950: 1,389,582 2002: 1,393,978 Cuyahoga Co Land Use Maps – Cuyahoga Co Planning Commission

10. Smart Growth Saves Infrastructure Costs • Lowers per capita infrastructure costs; • Puts existing capacity to work; and • Maintains infrastructure before repair gets expensive.

11. Smart Growth SavesBillions of dollars, nationally Sprawl Costs: Economic Impacts of Unchecked Development, Robert W. Burchell, Anthony Downs, Barbara McCann and Sahan Mukherji, Island Press, 2005

12. Smart Growth SavesBillions of dollars nationally Shifting roughly 25% of projected low density growth to more compact development would result in a national savings of $4.2 billion, or 3.7%, for roads, water and sewer operations, and maintenance over a 25 year period. • Source: “The Costs of Sprawl—2000,” Robert Burchell, et. al., Transportation Research Board (2002)

13. Smart Growth SavesOther Infrastructure Costs • Fire and Police Stations • Schools • Libraries • Parks • Hospitals

14. Smart Growth Saves Moneyon Infrastructure in Every Region Source: “The Best Stimulus for the Money, Briefing Papers on the Economics of Transportation Spending, Briefing Paper IX, Compact Development, Sprawl, and Infrastructure Costs,” Bartholomew, Keith, et. al., Smart Growth America and the University of Utah (2009).

15. Smart Growth Saves More MoneyThrough Redevelopment and Infill

16. Smart Growth SavesOther Infrastructure Costs See the “Part 1 Case Studies” 1-6 for specific city and state case studies showing the infrastructure savings of sprawl vs. more compact development.

17. Smart Growth Saves Money OnII. Costs of Services

18. Smart Growth ReducesCosts of Services Apples-to-apples comparison of a prototypical community of 1,000 units housing 3,260 people, including 1,200 students.

19. Smart Growth Saves Water And Sewer Service Costs Estimated costs of water and sewer services based on identical water consumption Speir, Cameron, and Kurt Stephenson. 2002. “Does Sprawl Cost Us All? Isolating the Effects of Housing Patterns on Public Water and Sewer Costs.” Journal of the American Planning Association 68(1): 56-70.

20. Smart Growth SavesWater And Sewer Service Costs • For compact, small-lot development, each additional mile from city center adds roughly $50,000 to 30 year cost of providing water and sewer services. • For low density, large-lot development, each mile adds roughly $122,000 to 30 year cost.

21. Smart Growth Saves MoneyOn Busing Kids To School

22. Smart Growth Saves Money ByIII. Fixing It First • Expanding regions pay for new infrastructure by diverting money from existing communities. • Keeping money in existing communities: • Avoids spiraling costs of deferred maintenance; • Strengthens existing communities and improves quality of life; and • Provides the foundation for sustainable economic growth.

23. Fixing It First Is the Smart and Conservative Investment “Deferred maintenance [of roads] drives up long term cost; it shortens the cycle for rehabilitation, which is four times as costly.  Deferred rehabilitation compounds the problem, often leading to pavement failure and the need to reconstruct the whole roadbed, at ten times the cost.” Sacramento Area Council of Governments

24. Not Fixing It First: Not Smart, Not Conservative “It’s like when your neighbor’s house needs painting and your neighbor doesn’t paint it for 10 years, so instead of it needing painting now, the siding has rotted out.’’ Frank Tramontozzi, Chief Engineer for MassHighway, describing incidents where huge sections of I-93 caved in due to rotting concrete and rusting steel.

25. Fixing It First SavesCosts of Replacement “Every $1 spent in keeping a good road good precludes spending $6-$14 to rebuild one that has deteriorated.”  The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials

26. Fixing It First SavesCosts of Deteriorating Infrastructure • Rough roads add $335 to the annual cost of owning a car.  • Aging pipes result in between 6% and 25% of drinking water being lost through leaks and breaks. • In 1995, an estimated 25.4 billion gallons of water leaked per day across the country.

27. Fixing It FirstCreates More Jobs Repair work on roads and bridges produces 16% more jobs than the same dollars in new bridge and road construction.

28. Fixing It FirstIs the Public’s Priority 80% of Americans say it is more important to use federal stimulus money to repair existing highways and build transit than to build new highways.  45% said construction of new highways should “definitely” or “probably” not be included in the stimulus. 

29. Smart Growth Saves Money ByIV. Keeping Taxes Lower Smart Growth • Creates less public debt • Generates more public revenue per acre of land

30. The Real-world Impact of Dispersed Development:Service Costs Exceed Revenue • Dispersed rural development in Colorado costs county governments and schools $1.65 for every $1.00 of tax revenue generated, while farms and forestland cost only 38 cents per $1.00 generated. • Suburban communities in Rhode Island spent on average $1.17 for every $1.00 collected from residential properties.

31. Prince William County, VA:Cost of Services Exceed Revenue for Homes Far from Existing Infrastructure Prince William County, Virginia, found that providing municipal services to a house on a large lot far from existing infrastructure costs the county $1,600 more than is returned in taxes and other revenues.

32. The Real-world Impact of Dispersed Development:Higher Taxes • During the 10 years of most dramatic outward expansion and urban decline in Rhode Island (1988-98), taxes increased 44% in core cities, 31% in ring communities, 19% in suburban towns and 15% in rural communities. • For each new 1000 residents added, the cost of services and taxes increased faster in sprawling jurisdictions in Kentucky than jurisdictions with a center city.

33. Loudoun County, VA:New Development Raises Taxes on All Residents In Loudoun County, Virginia, a fast growing Washington, DC, suburb, property taxes have increased by $764 per house between 2001 and 2003 just to cover infrastructure costs related to the new development, including a growing county debt.

34. The Real-world Impact of Smart Growth:Higher Revenues Asheville, NC: Average County Tax Yield per Acre – Land & Buildings

35. The Real-world Impact of Smart Growth:Higher Revenues See the “Part 1 Case Studies” 7-9 for specific city case studies showing the substantial revenue benefits of compact development vs. sprawl.

36. The Real-world Impact of Smart Growth: Lower Taxes By implementing its plan to target development around 5 Washington Metrorail stops, 8% of the land in Arlington County now generates 33% of county revenues -- allowing Arlington to have the lowest property tax in Northern VA.

37. Town of Orange, VA:Banking on Sprawl Results in Crippling Debt

38. Smart Growth Saves Money By V. Reducing the Costs of Urban Decline Sprawl produces • Vacant and abandoned properties • Concentrated poverty • Increased demand for social services • Declining property values • Declining tax base • Increases in taxes

39. Smart Growth Saves Money ByReducing Regional Costs of Sprawl • Diffuse economy = inefficiency • Moving jobs and people apart reduces labor mobility • Crumbling infrastructure in central city impacts regional operating efficiencies • Deteriorating urban public education weakens labor pool • Crime and pollution spillover into suburbs • Reputational issues make region less attractive

40. Smart Growth SavesVI. Costs of Abandoned and Vacant Properties • See separate power point

41. Smart Growth SavesVII. Combined Costs of Transportation and Housing • See separate power point

42. Smart Growth SavesVIII. By Reducing Healthcare Costs • See separate power point