"Better Building: A Guide to America's Best New Development Projects"

Sierra Club report highlights ways to build healthy, livable communities

The Sierra Club in November issued a report highlighting America's best new development projects - based on their ability to offer transportation choices, revitalize neighborhoods, and preserve local values. It also spotlights some of the movers and shakers - developers, architects, local officials, activists - responsible for making these innovative projects a reality.

Too often local governments accept poorly planned development because they are simply unaware of better options. Much of the development in the United States today consists of sprawling, low-density subdivisions and car-dependent "big box" or "strip mall" construction, which produces more and more traffic and harms our land, air, and water.

In many communities it is now nearly impossible to walk, bike, or take transit to meet most daily needs. For the average American the result is more pollution, more stress and less exercise.

The good news is that there are projects to fit almost every circumstance - from a small rural town, to suburbs and urban centers. The most appropriate solution for each circumstance varies, but there are common themes.

We used several criteria for selecting America's best new development projects. Top candidates had to:

• offer a range of transportation choices, including walking, biking, and public transportation;
• redevelop existing areas, rather than developing natural areas, working farmland, or wetlands;
• locate homes, retail shops, and offices close to each other;
• preserve existing community assets, by re-using older buildings and protecting rivers, woodlands, and farms;
• minimize stormwater pollution and handle runoff in an environmentally responsible manner; and
• incorporate meaningful input by local citizens and reflect a broad set of local values.

We also considered the use of "green building" design and housing affordability.

Building large and small

We arrived at a diverse list of successful projects, from cities large and small as well as suburbs and small towns, in each corner of the nation, from economically challenged areas as well as well-off areas.

These model development projects include all manner of housing: single-family homes, condominiums, apartments, and live-work units. They supply low- and moderate-income housing, public housing, and high-end market-rate housing. Retail offerings include large, established department stores, restaurants, and shops, as well as local, independent boutiques and eateries.

Bay Area projects range from the extensive Bay Meadows in San Mateo to the small-town "Old Downtown" in Windsor. In both these cases the Sierra Club played a significant role in making sure that the projects included higher densities, a key factor in making a community walkable. Getting sufficient density near bus and train lines is essential to making these systems work.

With good design, density can be a tremendous asset, improving not only the environmental bottom line (more efficient use of timber, asphalt, steel, energy, water, and other resources), but quality of life too. We hope these projects and their champions will inspire other communities, developers, private individuals, and public officials across the country.

These models could inform the massive rebuilding effort in the Gulf following Hurricane Katrina. "The point for state and community leaders is not just to rebuild, but to rebuild smarter and better," said Sierra Club executive director Carl Pope. "We think there is a lot to learn from these successful projects." The Club has applauded both Mississippi and Louisiana for recruiting the nation's top architects, designers, and planners to explore with local officials and citizens options for rebuilding ravaged towns.\

The full report is available on the Sierra Club's web site