Smart Growth and Economic
Prosperity: A Sourcebook
Part I
Created by Smart Growth America
with generous support from the William Penn Foundation
August, 2010
Suggestions for Using the Sourcebook
1.
Skim the Table of Contents.
Familiarize yourself with the
framework and different topics
included.
Slide
Index
2.
If you are preparing a Powerpoint,
create and format it before pulling
in slides from the Sourcebook.
Notes
The slides have very minimal
formatting so that you can easily
import them to your format.
3.
Use the Slide Index or Table of Contents to determine which slides might
contain information you need.
4.
Review individual slides and the accompanying notes page to learn more.
5.
Drag and drop or copy and paste to pull images, charts or entire slides into
your presentation.
1
Suggestions for Using the Sourcebook
(cont’d)
6. 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.
2
Suggestions for Using the Sourcebook
(cont’d)
7. 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.
3
Two Basic Economic Arguments
for Smart Growth
1. Smart growth saves money.
2. Smart growth makes money.
4
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.
5
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.
6
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
7
Sprawl: Higher Costs for the
Same Population
1950: 1,389,582
2002: 1,393,978
Cuyahoga Co Land Use Maps – Cuyahoga Co Planning Commission
8
Smart Growth Saves
Infrastructure Costs
• Lowers per capita infrastructure costs;
• Puts existing capacity to work; and
• Maintains infrastructure before repair
gets expensive.
9
Smart Growth Saves
Billions of dollars, nationally
Water &
Water & Sewer
Sewer Laterals Costs (billions)
Required
Road Lane
Miles Required
Road Land
Miles Costs
(billions)
Sprawl Growth
Scenario
45,866,594
$189.8
2,044,179
$927.0
Compact
Growth Scenario
41,245,294
$177.2
1,855,874
$817.3
4,621,303
$12.6
(10.1%)
188,305
$109.7
(6.6%)
Savings
Sprawl Costs: Economic Impacts of Unchecked Development, Robert W. Burchell, Anthony Downs, Barbara McCann and Sahan
Mukherji, Island Press, 2005
10
Smart Growth Saves
Billions 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)
11
Smart Growth Saves
Other Infrastructure Costs
• Fire and Police Stations
• Schools
• Libraries
• Parks
• Hospitals
12
Smart Growth Saves Money
on 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).
13
Smart Growth Saves More Money
Through Redevelopment and Infill
Smart Growth Saves
Other 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.
15
Smart Growth Saves Money On
II. Costs of Services
16
Smart Growth Reduces
Costs of Services
Higher Density
Medium
Density
Rural Cluster
Rural Low
Density
4.5 Units/Acre
2.67 Units/Acre
1 Unit/Acre
0.2 Units/Acre
Schools
$3,204
$3,252
$4,478
$4,526
Roads
$36
$53
$77
$154
Utilities
$336
$364
$497
$992
Total
$3,576
$3,669
$5,052
$5,672
Increased Cost
N/A
3%
41%
59%
Type of Cost
Apples-to-apples comparison of a prototypical community of 1,000 units housing
3,260 people, including 1,200 students.
17
Smart Growth Saves
Water And Sewer Service Costs
Estimated costs of water and sewer services based on
identical water consumption
Lot Size
Proximity
Annual Water and Sewer
Service Costs
.25 acre
Near Service Center
$143
1 acre
Near Service Center
$272
1 acre
Distant from Service
Center
$388
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.
18
Smart Growth Saves
Water 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.
19
Smart Growth Saves Money
On Busing Kids To School
20
Smart Growth Saves Money By
III. 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.
21
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
22
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.
23
Fixing It First Saves
Costs 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
24
Fixing It First Saves
Costs 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.
25
Fixing It First
Creates More Jobs
Repair work on roads and bridges produces
16% more jobs than the same dollars in new
bridge and road construction.
26
Fixing It First
Is 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.
27
Smart Growth Saves Money By
IV. Keeping Taxes Lower
Smart Growth
• Creates less public debt
• Generates more public revenue per acre of
land
28
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.
29
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.
30
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.
31
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.
32
The Real-world Impact of Smart Growth:
Higher Revenues
Asheville, NC: Average County Tax Yield per Acre – Land & Buildings
33
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.
34
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.
35
Town of Orange, VA:
Banking on Sprawl Results in Crippling Debt
36
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
37
Smart Growth Saves Money By
Reducing 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
38
Smart Growth Saves
VI. Costs of Abandoned and Vacant
Properties
• See separate power point
39
Smart Growth Saves
VII. Combined Costs of Transportation
and Housing
• See separate power point
40
Smart Growth Saves
VIII. By Reducing Healthcare Costs
• See separate power point
41