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THE COSTS OF SUBURBAN SPRAWL AND URBAN DECAY

THE COSTS OF SUBURBAN SPRAWL AND URBAN DECAY. What is Suburban Sprawl?. Sprawl is unsustainable development that wastes tax dollars, destroys farmland and open space, and neglects existing infrastructure and community resources. Everything is a Drive Away.

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THE COSTS OF SUBURBAN SPRAWL AND URBAN DECAY

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  1. THE COSTS OF SUBURBAN SPRAWL AND URBAN DECAY

  2. What is Suburban Sprawl? Sprawl is unsustainable development that wastes tax dollars, destroys farmland and open space, and neglects existing infrastructure and community resources.

  3. Everything is a Drive Away Suburban parents spend17 full days a yearbehind the wheel, more than the average parent spends dressing, bathing and feeding a child. Source: Surface Transportation Policy Project Schools Shops Home Recreation Workplace

  4. About Grow Smart RI • Statewide non-profit organization • Diverse coalition of interests

  5. Mission Promote patterns of development that…… - Revitalize city & town centers - Preserve historic, cultural and natural resources - Expand economic opportunity for all Rhode Islanders

  6. How We Get it Done • Research / Education • Policy Reform / Advocacy • Building municipal capacity

  7. The Costs of Sprawl and Urban Decay in Rhode Island Published December, 1999

  8. Rhode Island Growth Trends1980-2000 • Population growth = 6.9% • Housing growth = 17.2% • Motor vehicle growth = 16.4%

  9. Increase in developed land1961-1995 • Core: 54% increase • Ring: 122% increase • Suburb 169% increase • Rural 205% increase

  10. Costs of Sprawl • Loss of farms and forestland • 1964-1997: farmland reduced by half • Potential additional loss by 2020: 3,100 acres farmland 24,000 acres forestland • Infrastructure Costs • Roads • School facilities • Utility lines

  11. Social Costs Poverty in Core Cities

  12. Loss of jobs from core cities

  13. Fiscal Impacts on Urban Centers • Lost Tax Revenue • Estimated loss in assessed valuations: $1.3 billion • 1998: 934 acres of vacant lots in Providence 8% of citywide acreage • 1999: 560 vacant buildings in Providence

  14. Urban Fiscal Impacts • Reduced property values • Increasing tax rates

  15. Fiscal Impact on suburban and rural towns • Increased taxes due to: • Increased cost of community services due to amount of growth • Increased cost of community services due to pattern of growth

  16. Other Impacts • Increased motor vehicle usage = negative environmental impacts • Increased storm water runoff from roads and parking lots • Increased auto emissions

  17. Calculating the Costs • Current pattern = net gain of 25,000 new housing units from 2000-2020 34,000 units -- ring/suburban/rural - 9,000 units – urban 25,000 (RI Statewide Planning Projections)

  18. Alternative Core Development pattern 8,750 new units in Urban Core and Ring 6,250 new units in Suburban 10,000 new units in Rural 25,000 new units

  19. How can communities “grow smart”? • Encourage growth & development in existing city and town centers • Mix land uses • Create a range of housing opportunities and choices • Foster “walkable” close-knit neighborhoods • Preserve & protect open space, farmland, & critical environmental areas • Provide a variety of transportation choices

  20. Promote a “distinctive sense of place” through preservation • Take advantage of existing community assets • Make development decisions predictable, fair and cost-effective • Encourage citizen participation in development decisions

  21. What Smart Growth “Is” And “Is Not” More transportation choices and less traffic Not against cars and roads Vibrant cities, suburbs and towns Not anti-suburban Wider variety of housing choices Not about telling people where or how to live Not against growth Well-planned growth that improves quality of life

  22. www.growsmartri.com 345 South Main Street Providence, RI 02903 273-5711 Jflaherty@growsmartri.com

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