Smart Growth Hall Of Fame 2001
Ten Examples Of Good Planning Decisions In Colorado

Executive Summary

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• In a time with many pressing issues, growth remains the number one concern for Coloradans.
• Colorado added over one million new residents between 1990 and 2000. More importantly, the average rate of increased land consumption was 2 to 4 times that of population increase.
• Colorado's population will continue to increase at a rapid rate. The estimated rates of population growth over the next twenty years in Front Range communities are 35% in Denver, 40% in Boulder, 50% in Colorado Springs, 60% in Fort Collins, and 70% in Greeley.

A Vision Of A Livable Colorado

With its famously scenic mountain terrain, prosperous economy, and plentiful natural resources, Colorado is an attractive destination for people around the world. Yet, these qualities that draw people to Colorado are the very same features that are most endangered by its rapid growth. However, growth itself does not necessarily harm this quality of life, only when growth is poorly managed does it harm the Colorado way of life. In fact, well-managed growth can be a powerful tool that helps to shape and better our communities. The vision of a livable Colorado entails local governments working to redirect growth into existing developed areas, focusing on revitalization of existing neighborhoods and creating new community-oriented neighborhoods, providing accessible mass-transit, protecting valuable open space and agricultural lands, and offering a variety of housing options for all income levels.

The Reality of Sprawl

Due to the rapid population growth over the last decade and a lack of growth management, low-density sprawling developments have sprung up across the state. Without well thought-out and well-followed land use plans, sprawling developments have changed the landscape and character of the state. For example, in the Denver metro area, population is projected to increase by more than 33% between 1995 and 2020. In that same time period, without enforceable measures to manage this growth, the amount of developed land is expected to grow by over 100%. This rate of land consumption is over three times the amount of population growth.

Poorly planned sprawling developments have greatly impacted our quality of life. As poorly planned and poorly designed developments are plunked down far away from a municipality's center, neighborhoods loose a sense of community; residents are forced to spend extended periods of time in the automobile, driving to and from work and urban amenities, and Colorado loses it's illustrious open spaces. Not only do poorly planned developments consume open space and agricultural land, but they also directly increase traffic congestion, impose a heavy burden on taxpayers through increased costs of infrastructure, and negatively affect the health of the community.

Bridging The Gap Between A Vision And Reality

As Colorado's population continues to increase at a staggering rate, citizens are turning to their elected officials and local planners to ensure that Colorado can accommodate this growth without negatively affecting our quality of life. The specifics of land use planning take place primarily at the local level where decisions are made regarding individual neighborhoods and parcels of land. At times the solutions for land use and planning questions can appear to be highly complex. In reality, some of the worst effects of sprawl can be prevented by the application of basic planning principles which can easily be incorporated into any communities land use plan. The Colorado Sprawl Action Center and CoPIRG endorse the following policies to fight sprawl:

1. Redirect growth into existing urban areas through a combination of stronger land-use planning and urban growth boundaries;
   
2. End taxpayer subsidies for sprawling developments, including roads and other services;
   
3. Strengthen funding for and public ownership of threatened open spaces; and
   
4. Support expanded funding for alternative transportation, including rail, bus, bicycle and pedestrian options. Fight beltways and other sprawl-inducing highway projects.

While State legislation can encourage or mandate local governments to grow responsibly, in the end it is still local elected officials who shape the way Colorado grows. These officials have the tools to turn the livable Colorado vision into reality. Local governments have the ability to:

• Develop a binding comprehensive land use plan that envisions a smart growth future for the community;
  
• Make growth pay its own way by requiring developers to pay for infrastructure costs;
  
• Encourage infill development through the use of regulatory or tax incentives;
  
• Set an urban growth boundary that prohibits development outside the boundary;
  
• Enter into intergovernmental agreements with neighboring municipalities or counties, such as tax revenue sharing or growth boundaries to better coordinate long term planning;
  
• Encourage and develop a mass transit system or improve access to existing systems;
  
• Make provisions for permanent and quality affordable housing;
  
• Develop a program to protect open space and agricultural land; and
  
• Set design standards for new developments that enhance a community's livability.

By using tools such as these to implement smart growth, Colorado can create more livable communities while accommodating its affordable housing needs and preserving agricultural lands and open space.

A variety of resources exist for both citizen groups and government agencies to use to defend their communities from poorly planned development proposals and to work toward meaningful, comprehensive plans that help ensure livable communities that do not suffer from some of the extremely costly and detrimental effects of sprawl. Many of these resources, including the Growth Management Toolkit, can either be found or are referenced on the Colorado Sprawl Action Center's web site at www.sprawlaction.org.

The Smart Growth Hall of Fame Report

The objective of the Smart Growth Hall of Fame report is to demonstrate that Colorado can indeed grow without sprawling. What follows is a list of ten projects and policies that show how communities are creatively managing growth. Nominations were submitted from local governments, developers and citizens from around Colorado. The purpose of this report was not to select the ten best smart growth projects and policies , but rather to demonstrate a variety of different tools and to show that Colorado can indeed successfully implement responsible growth management.

Nominations accepted for this year's Smart Growth Hall of Fame must utilize one or more of the smart growth tools listed above and fit the following basic criteria:

• Displays good planning techniques (as listed previously on page 3)
  
• Is not in conflict with local plans
  
• Falls within the current growth boundary (if applicable) and is contiguous to existing development
  
• Does not unnecessarily destroy open space or agricultural land

In developing the Hall of Fame, a panel of planners and specialists reviewed the selections and guided the selection and critiquing process. For a more in-depth explanation of the selection process and criteria for the Hall of Fame, see page 25 for the Report Methodology.

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