5.10. SR 06-03-1996 - Laserfiche WebLink

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CONSULTANTS IN PLANNING, ZONING, DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS AND LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE DEFINING GROWTH MANAGEMENT Growth Management is a term that we,all use, but rarely define. Webster says that manage is 'to handle, direct, or control in action or use." Growth is "development from a simpler to a more complex stage." Hence, ,growth man- agement can be defined as directing or controlling urban devel- opment from simpler to more complex stages. Sounds simple, doesn't it? But whose values determine the direction? In the end, perhaps growth management is best understood as direct- ing the location, timing, and nature of development desired by a community's citizens in a manner which protects valuable natural, built, social, and financial assets. Growth management is not a new idea. For example, suburban Brooklyn Park, MN developed a growth management system back in thc late 1960's that became a model for other commu- nities in the region. The system divides thc community into blocks about one mile square in size. Each block is assigned a target development release date. Thc "tri,~,,cr" for releasing each block is a decline in thc number of vacant residential lots to a two-year supply. This time lag allows the city to provide water and sewer service and to upgrade roads. The planned construction of a new major highway has precipi- tated a reevaluation of the Brooklyn Park system and how it should apply rtl the new development the highway will gener- ate. After reviewing several alternatives, including elimination of the block release system, Camiros has recommended con- tinuing the timed release of blocks of land for housing, but shift- ing scheduling priorities and designating the highway corridor as a single block to be reteased upon highway completion. "This allows us to pretty much keep the current system which has a high level of credibility," says Deputy Community Development Director Scott Clark. It is within the context of growth suburbs like Brooklyn Park that growth management is most frequently mentioned. How- ever, growth management can be applied to inner cities and other fully developed communities. Camiros Principal Ioyce Levine IN THIS ISSUE... Protecting the Future 2 On the Drawing Board 3 Planning for Transit Oriented Development 4 Staff News 5 TI~e BrookJyn Park, MN growth management program has served as a ~odei since the Jare 1900's. 411 S. Wells St., Chicago, IL 1,O{~07 (312! 9'2'2-t 211 22 E. Washington St.. Indianaoolis, IN 46204 (31D 263-6967 217 S. Hamilton St.. Madison. WI 53703 ~0,'~1 25'~-53f~0 5547 Grand Ave. South. Minneapolis. MN 55419 1612) 827-7501