Smart Growth (10/27/00)

1. What do you consider to be the main differences between Smart Growth and Growth Management?
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2. Is Smart Growth being actively developed in Washington State?
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3. Does Smart Growth pose any challenge to previous Growth Management principles?
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J. Hill
Pierce County
If anything other than a catch phrase, smart growth may be seen as the implementation phase of Growth Management.

H. Korve
City of Covington
I am not sure how to answer the question. Would you like to know how I feel or would you like to know how things are in the real world?

In the real world I don't know if many communities have the ability to implement Smart Growth or the desire. Many small communities and many new communities are not sophisticated enough to understand let alone implement Smart Growth. The State can set limits and standards but it can not legislate understanding or desire. Smart Growth takes effort. Growth Management is a set of mindless rules to follow. Large scale education is the only answer I see for the problems being faced.

S. Croft
Spokane County
The extent of the difference seems to depend on the states you're comparing. For example, Maryland's approach controls growth by limiting public spending for infrastructure, but growth can occur just about anywhere if the developer is willing to bear the infrastructure costs. Washington's GMA specifies where growth will occur, and prohibits the extension of urban services outside of those areas, no matter who's willing to pay for them. Then, we have the ballot issues coming before the Colorado and Arizona voters this fall, which woud allow growth to go pretty much anywhere as long as the voters say it's ok. I haven't seen any of them refer to explicit requirements of WA's GMA such as protection of resource lands and critical areas, or consideration of carrying capacity (implicit in our GMA/SEPA integrated process for developing comprehensive plans under GMA).

R. Hough
City of Lynnwood
"Growth Management" is the formal, accepted, adopted and mandated term that we all know and love. Managing growth is the rational and logical alternative to allowing growth to sprawl out-of-control. "Smart growth" is probably not so much a different approach as a different way of packaging good ideas. There's really no conflict or competition between these terms, other than "Smart Growth" is a popular buzz word intended to make certain ideas and proposals more acceptable if they are labeled "smart". In fact, there's an organization in the North Kitsap County that calls itself Grow-Smart. It's primary objective over the past few years was to stop a major development in the Poulsbo area that it considered to be non-smart. The term Smart Growth sounds more direct and less bureaucratic than "Growth Management" but smart growth concepts are integral to the successful management of growth.

M. Pywell
City of Issaquah
I do not believe at this time there is one accepted definition of Smart Growth or Growth Management Nation wide and I believe that is part of the reason for the confusion at this time. In the State of Washington the line separating Growth Management from Smart Growth is very blurred.

J. Hayes
Thurston County
I see growth management as a process to organize and balance the multiple priorities of growing areas-- affordable housing, environmental protection, economic opportunity, transportation, etc. I believe growth management's central theme is ordered, compact growth that makes fiscal, environmental, and community sense. And growth management is done with public participation and community decision-making.

"Smart Growth" is a political agenda that has been co-opted now by a number of advocacy groups and professional organizations, including the American Planning Association and the National Association of Homebuilders. Smart Growth takes the logic of growth management and forwards it as an anti-sprawl and pro-open space agenda (APA's new Smart Growth America coalition) or an agenda to find more streamlined ways to satisfy housing demand, especially single-family home demand (National Association of Homebuilders "Smart Growth Policy"). Although different "Smart Growth" agendas do converge on some issues, I don't believe we can point to a single characterization of this "movement."

Something to consider is that Smart Growth and growth management are founded on a shared presumption-- that growth is not only coming, but it must be accommodated. In a way, they share a self-fulfilling prophecy about the certainty of growth-- a prophecy that is beginning to be fundamentally questioned in some communities. Growth control and no growth policies are popping up around the country (voting on subdivisions, population caps, etc.). I suspect that we'll be hearing more from these movements, as well as "sustainability," in the future.

R. Hendricksen
City of Sequim
There is logic in Smart Growth. I do not believe true grwith management is adverse to so call smart growth whihc we used to call "good planning". I am sorry to see that the Ahwanie Principals have been pick up by national poloitions for political gain and hung with theis catchy phrase and will tend to drag these planing principals into federal legislation whihc will mean a lose of local control and turn off many people of the opposite political persuation if this becomes identifed as a partisan political issue.

G. Fewins
City of Federal Way
I'm not sure "smart growth" is well enough defined to clearly say how growth under GMA might be different than growth under a smart growth strategy. To a certain degree, the two areas may be complementary with GMA providing the larger conceptual growth building blocks and smart growth representing a more refined type or style of growth- particularly in the urban context.

S. Goett & S. Fischer
City of Redmond
The group's understanding is that smart growth is a separate movement from the growth management act. Some states use smart growth ideas and philosophies in lieu of a mandated act. Maryland has adopted an ordinance implementing smart growth techniques. The ideas of growth management varies in state and local jurisdictions.

Student Group A
GM intends to be an enforcement mechanism vs. smart growth as an inclusive movement that can be integrated into municipal and personal planning.

Student Group B
Politicians like people to think that their policies are smart. There's also the possibility that smart growth implies a trend toward a more positive idea of growth. Smart growth also is far more quality of life-oriented than GM.

Student Group C
Smart Growth seems to be a "re-packaging" of GM, a tool to market concepts of livable communities to the general public with tangible examples. Smart Growth can market sustainability & GM principles for broader acceptance.

J. Hill
Pierce County
That depends on the expectations of the area your in. In many areas the local citizens think they know best what's good for them. However, what's good for them is not necessarily good for the neighbors in the surrounding community. There's a big need to get over the idea that "I moved here because it was rurual!" Often, that was twenty years ago and urban growth passed their neighborhood five years ago and they refused to recognize it.

H. Korve
City of Covington
I am not sure how to answer the question. Would you like to know how I feel or would you like to know how things are in the real world?

In the real world I don't know if many communities have the ability to implement Smart Growth or the desire. Many small communities and many new communities are not sophisticated enough to understand let alone implement Smart Growth. The State can set limits and standards but it can not legislate understanding or desire. Smart Growth takes effort. Growth Management is a set of mindless rules to follow. Large scale education is the only answer I see for the problems being faced.

S. Croft
Spokane County
As I stated above, I believe Washington's approach is different from the Smart Growth approach.

R. Hough
City of Lynnwood
I'm not aware of any serious attempt in this state to develop Smart Growth into a major movement, nor as an alternative to growth management. However, new concepts that are marketed under the Smart Growth label may be more easily accepted, provided they can be sold as viable proposals or alternatives. However, too often, as in the Poulsbo case, the terminology falls into the wrong hands, is misused, then becomes suspect when attached to future proposals. Whether we call it that or not, I think smart growth concepts are alive and well in Washington and are an integral part of growth management and day-to-day planning and permitting.

M. Pywell
City of Issaquah
In the State of Washington Growth Management required tying the level of development to the level of services that are or will be available within six years. In many areas of the County where the term "growth management" appeared over ten years ago, this connection was not required. Smart Growth was a further development of the growth management techniques that required a connection between the level of service and development. The first growth management techniques relied on Zoning Codes to try and limit growth in some areas while fostering growth in other areas by manipulating zoning densities, etc.

J. Hayes
Thurston County
I haven't heard "smart growth" used much since I moved here in February. Since WA has such a strong and politically entrenched growth management program, we tend to talk in terms of GMA. But GMA certainly has codified many Smart Growth principles I've heard touted by various groups, and vice versa. If a movement is being hatched, it hasn't reached me yet.

Oh, please amend the answer I gave you earlier! In an e-mail response I sent to you mere hours ago, I answered your question about if Smart Growth was building a movement in Washington by saying, if it has, it hasn't reached me.

Well, two hours ago it reached me! The state Office of Community Development just did a presentation to a planner's group I'm a part of, on, you guessed it ... Smart Growth!! First time myself and most planners I know had heard about the effort, but I think it started earlier this year. It appears OCD is repackaging its existing growth management policies and programs into a "Smart Growth" initiative. I was a bit mystified-- why does Washington need to do this? Aren't we doing it already?

I asked Shane Hope, Managing Director, Growth Management Program in OCD, presented the materials (a set of "Smart Growth Discussion papers available by calling 360-725-3000) these "why" questions. She says OCD is creating a "tool box" to better implement growth management, and basically talking about the "tool box" as Smart Growth, because it is a phrase used by so many other groups. I registered my concern with some of the differences in how those other groups use the term.

R. Hendricksen
City of Sequim
No there is to long a history of top down (from Olimpia (appropriately named) legislationa and land use planning in Washington and due to the need to compromise at the legislature there are too many loopholes and too little clear direction.

G. Fewins
City of Federal Way
Smart growth is actively being discussed in Washington State and many projects are presented as smart growth types of development. This is particularly true in the area of transit oriented development opportunities surrounding Sound Transits new planned facilities. Smart growth may just be a new term describing existing planning concepts of transit oriented development, pedestrian oriented development, pedestrian pockets, etc.

S. Goett & S. Fischer
City of Redmond
For Washington State, smart growth and GMA go hand-in-hand. Growth Management is not fully implemented in Washington, as several counties are not required to plan under the Act. In eastern Washington, many of the counties are not planning under the Act. The Act established the framework to manage growth, and smart growth provides additional techniques and tools to help implement growth management goals. Some suggest that smart growth principles are already within GMA and its goals, but we haven't paid enough attention to them. For example, smart growth proposes mixed use (not specifically mentioned in the Act) as a method to help control and prevent new sprawl. Smart growth proposes the use benchmarks to measure quality of life, livability and sustainability. King County already has quantitative benchmarks for their comprehensive plan, and Redmond is in the process of implementing quality of life benchmarks for the city's comprehensive plan. Smart growth is not seen as a challenge to growth management principles, but a way to measure our success with growth management, and perhaps do a better job with it.

Student Group A
Yes, to the degree that growth boundaries are not being extended. No, to the degree that the citizenry has not bought in to all the principles and chooses to pass initiatives that encourage sprawl and discourage efforts for compact transit-oriented development.

Student Group B
Individual planning agencies and regions may be implementing Smart Growth as a part of their comprehensive plans, but it does not seem to be implicit in GMA.

Student Group C
There is evidence of Smart Growth and more regional planning approaches, but not enough public awareness of a Smart Growth or regional vision and what the benefits are. The biggest hurdle seems to be conflicts between jurisdictions regarding tradeoffs in regional goals and people's reaction to increasing neighborhood density.

J. Hill
Pierce County
Again, that depends on the area your in. For lots of moderate sized areas, there has never been true Growth Management. The challenges are what is it? and do we need it? The rezoning issues are monumental when the process is first initiated and land use issues become extremely important to many who lose value in a downzoning. The mere logic behind the reasons for Growth Management can fade quickly if the plan is later bastardized to make up for money issues.

S. Croft
Spokane County
Covered in my response to question 1. One issue that sadly neither approach addresses is population control, or the No Growth alternative.

R. Hough
City of Lynnwood
Not that I'm aware of. Smart growth principles should be complementary to the goals and objectives of the state's growth management program.

M. Pywell
City of Issaquah
In short "Smart Growth" as I understand it is being developed within the State of Washington. I don't believe it is challenging any of the old principals of growth management but is a continuation of the process that was initiated by growth management in this state.

I would like to hear some more of the students concerns on this issue.

J. Hayes
Thurston County
I think Smart Growth is still trying to find a voice as a cohesive movement. While the concept is currently more suited to political sound byte, coalitions forming around Smart Growth could influence the direction of existing growth management programs and spark the development of new ones. However, WA is relatively so far out in front on growth management issues, I often see Smart Growth policy statements borrowing from WA's own growth management program. On the other hand, the Homebuilder's version of Smart Growth is pretty heavy on single-family homebuilding and the infrastructure to serve it, which is pretty different from the more balanced approach of growth management.

I think the challenge is to not let one group's version of Smart Growth take the place of community-based planning efforts that balance the complex priorities facing growing communities. Having said that, I also feel that Smart Growth and growth management often try to balance issues too much-- sometimes a crisis, such as decline of a threatened species, demands at least in the short term a higher priority be placed on something like habitat conservation (even, for example, if that conflicts with high density development). I'm suspect of any process that doesn't allow these types of priority shifts to be made when necessary.

R. Hendricksen
City of Sequim
Depends on who is defining smart growth, John Carlson or the Green Party.

G. Fewins
City of Federal Way
Rather than challenging the principals of GMA, smart growth provides a development framework for meeting the objectives of GMA- particularly in urban centers and areas.

S. Goett & S. Fischer
City of Redmond
Washington's state office of Community Development is actively developing a Smart Growth Strategy for the 21st Century. The idea is to recommend solutions for emerging issues in our state, while building on the progress that has been made so far. Solutions would be both sort-and long-term and would include possible legislation. Performance measures for key goals would be proposed. Right now they are seeking thoughtful dialogue. A series of discussion papers have been written and roundtable discussions are being held around the state.

Student Group A
Growth Management principles emphasize public participation and buy-in, whereas Smart Growth is a concept that does not necessarily require buy-in. Similarly, Growth Management may not necessitate higher densities as does Smart Growth principles.

Student Group B
Yes, Smart Growth seems to operate on a more micro-level.

Student Group C
i) No. Basic principles are identical. Smart Growth can help promote GM to broader audience.

ii) Maybe. Smart Growth might be pushing for more regional cooperation between city and county jurisdictions.