Smart Growth

I. Overview

Smart Growth represents a broad agenda and approach for limiting sprawl. Those agencies and organizations that have adopted Smart Growth as a goal envelop a broader agenda than that provided by the specific legal requirements Growth Management Act of Washington State. Supporters of Smart Growth welcome a new set of goals, planning procedures, and policies that will provide a wide range of mechanisms, changes in lifestyle and preference, and long-term aspirations for limiting sprawl.

Smart Growth permits perhaps a more comprehensive role for citizens and government representatives alike. A wide range of agencies within local, regional, and state governmental policies and non-profit organizations throughout the United States have declared their adherence to Smart Growth. Its appeal as an umbrella for a high diversity of different politically and socially oriented has made it more inclusive than specific legislative acts.

Smart Growth seeks to identify a means for balancing both the community, environmental, and social needs of a region with sustainable economic development. Critics of some of the specific tools of the Growth Management Act in Washington State have at the same time welcomed the priorities of Smart Growth.

II. Smart Growth in Washington

A. State-level

1. Washington State Community, Trade and Economic Development remains one of the primary state-level sources of information on both Smart Growth and the GMA.

http://www.ocd.wa.gov/info/lgd/growth/index.html

2. "What's Smart Growth?" is a highly informative brochure available at
http://smartgrowth.wa.gov/what_is.html

3. A wide range of discussion papers on Smart Growth provides different perspectives on the many issues that Smart Growth concerns.
http://smartgrowth.wa.gov/papers/index.tpl

B. County-level

1. A number of King County sources of information on Smart Growth are available from the County, including a letter of introduction by King County Executive, Ron Sims.
http://www.metrokc.gov/smartgrowth/

2. Recent news on the diverse range of Smart Growth topics in King County.
http://www.metrokc.gov/exec/smartgrowth.htm http://www.metrokc.gov/smartgrowth/livable.htm

III. Other Information Sources

A. NGO-related

1. Smart Growth Network

http://www.smartgrowth.org

2. Growing Smart

http://www.planning.org/plnginfo/GROWSMAR/gsindex.html

3. Sierra Club

http://www.sierraclub.org/sprawl/report98/solutions.html

4. Partners for Livable Communities

http://www.livable.com

B. Press

1. Seattle Times

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/news/local/html98/gore_19990301.html

2. P-I

http://seattlep-i.nwsource.com/opinion/sprawl31.shtml

Prepared by Nathaniel Trumbull and Professor Christine Bae. Last updated 10/20/2000.