Attracting 350 citizens and groups from around the state, the conference far exceeded the expectations of conference organizers. It was testimony to the mounting concern about growth and its impacts on Montana's communities and environment. The Smart Growth Coalition aims to develop alternatives to the broken policies, uninformed decisions, and ill-conceived development plans that are eating away at Montanans' quality of life. Specifically, the APA will determine whether land-use laws are working as they were intended, whether enforcement and oversight of those laws is adequate, and whether incentives exist that encourage inappropriate development. In addition to policy work, Smart Growth Coalition members are launching public education and awareness efforts, to better inform the general public, developers, and decision-makers about smart growth.
Examples abound of developments that create net gains for communities.
Borrowing from those examples, Montana citizens can cooperate with local decision-makers to shape the future growth to support their community vision. The Montana Smart Growth Coalition members represent a broad range of interests, including environmental groups, planners, local officials, agricultural groups, downtown economic vitality interests, developers, and affordable housing advocates. While an unlikely coalition, all members of this group recognize that bad land-use decisions affect all of our interests, and that common solutions will only come from working together. For more information about MEIC's work on growth issues, call Anne Hedges in MEIC's Helena office or Graden Oehlerich in the Missoula office.