The biggest threat to the achievement of sustainable communities is sprawl. Sprawl drains the economic life blood out of existing downtowns, while eliminating open space and agricultural land. Sprawl heightens our dependency on the automobile, causes congestion, and contributes mightily to air pollution.
Communities characterized by poorly planned, auto-oriented sprawl lose their sense of place.
In my own city of Burlington, Vermont, we are strengthening our downtown with the construction of a major anchor department store, the revitalization of our urban waterfront, and the attraction of jobs and new housing. We also have been part of a defensive strategy that succeeded in keeping Wal Mart and the big box regional shopping centers out of our state for decades. Federal Policy I applaud the Clinton Administration's recent articulation of a livability agenda focusing on the preservation of open space, as well as the resurgence of HUD and the EPA's brownfield initiatives, which offer an alternative to the development of green fields. But more needs to be done at the federal level to establish sensible investment and tax policies that encourage healthy downtowns and discourage sprawl. Bonuses should be offered for projects which include traffic calming, access management, streetscape improvement, and pedestrian and bicycle facilities.