Affordable housing is desperately needed throughout the country, in places that adhere to smart growth policies and in places that do not. Holding up sprawl as the answer to this country's housing woes makes about as much sense as claiming that weapons proliferation lowers crime. On the other hand, encouraging those who can afford it to head for the suburbs only perpetuates existing patterns of residential segregation. Smart growth alone won't fix the nation's housing crunch, but it ought to be part of any solution. Finally, from Washington, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in late June that the owner of 18 miles of salt marsh in Rhode Island has the right to challenge environmental regulations that prohibit him from developing the property for commercial use, despite knowing about the restrictions when he bought the land.
Environmentalists say the decision sets back environmental protection efforts.