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| Community planner Joe Csikos enjoys Lakefront Park in Portage, Ind., an example of what can result when community planners use "smart-growth" practices to redevelop existing areas and preserve green space. |
From eyesore to eye popping
Portage, Ind. borders a beautiful section of the Lake Michigan coastline, but, until recently, residents had no public access to the lake. Porter County plan director Bob Thompson worked with Purdue’s Planning with POWER to develop a neighborhood design manual and update ordinances. From that sprouted a major project to bring new life to barren ground and create a neighborhood that implements many smart-growth principles.
Joe Csikos, Portage director of community development, relates the story as he walks along Lakefront Park, the diamond of the development. Formerly a brown field owned by U.S. Steel, the land is now a natural dune park and public beach. A canal that leads to a marina flows along one side of the park. The marina is adjacent to U.S. 12 and the South Shore train station, an example of transit-oriented development that combines multiple transportation modes in the same area. Walking trails connect the lake to a planned mixed-use residential and business development. “We took an eyesore and made it a public benefit,” Csikos says.
The city’s reuse of this formerly industrial area also preserves rural space south of town. “The infrastructure was already here,” Csikos says. “We don’t have to relocate roads and other city services to areas where they didn’t previously exist.”
The bottom line
Good land-use planning has economic as well as environmental implications. Most residential developments have a negative fiscal impact, meaning that they cost communities more to build and maintain than they provide in economic benefits. “The more sprawled out a residential area is, the more negative the numbers,” McCormick says.
Adjacent to Indianapolis, Hendricks County is the second-fastest-growing county in Indiana and knows about urban sprawl. With Purdue Extension’s help, county officials here developed a conservation subdivision provision to encourage developers to create environmentally friendly residential developments. Conservation design creates more open space in urban neighborhoods. It can also reduce solid surfaces with narrower roads, shorter driveways and fewer parking spaces.
The Hendricks County ordinance is designed to protect natural resources and limit the expense of providing additional streets and utilities. Planned public open space includes walking paths and recreational areas. Preserving neighborhood character and architectural and landscape interest are also features. “We wanted to require more than just cookie-cutter development,” says county planner Don Reitz.
In order to entice developers to adopt the provision, county officials added incentives that save developers time and money. “Developers don’t have to rezone for one of these subdivisions, and they are able to develop more lots,” Reitz says.
Separate spaces
Urban areas are not the only places where comprehensive planning is vital. “Disputes over siting concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) are partly due to a lack of agricultural planning,” says McCormick. “Farmers can no longer take for granted that rural land-use decisions will go unchallenged.”
In Elkhart County, officials adopted agriculture zones to protect farms from residential encroachment and ensure specific agriculture uses such as intensive livestock operations. In addition, urban growth areas are being designated while plans for transitional zoning to separate rural and residential neighborhoods are also considered. "The plan is not to restrict growth. The plan is to plan growth," says County Commissioner Mike Yoder.
Plan for the plan
As Porter, Hendricks and Elkhart counties demonstrate, nothing should happen without a plan. Regardless of where communities and officials are in relation to land-use planning, McCormick offers this advice: “Identify the problems. Connect with partners such as Purdue that can provide technical and educational resources. And get the public involved in taking steps toward improvement.”
Contact Beth Forbes
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