Curbing Sprawl through Smart Growth
Phil Angelides will put in place a comprehensive smart growth plan for California to curb sprawl, clean up the air, and allow Californians to drive less. Click here to learn more.
To give Californians more transportation options and the choice to use and pay for fewer gallons of gasoline and diesel, we must choose to grow smarter. “Smart Growth” is a renewed commitment to our existing communities - where water and power infrastructure already exist, where public school and public safety networks are established, where parks and libraries are already waiting, and where jobs and businesses are ready to thrive. We need to create transit-oriented, walkable, well-designed, vibrant urban communities in order to ensure sustainable growth for our future. A recent study in the Sacramento region showed that smart growth principles can reduce vehicle miles traveled by 25 percent versus what would occur if current development patterns continue.
The comprehensive Angelides smart growth plan will build on the Treasurer’s groundbreaking Double Bottom Line and Smart Investments initiatives that have directed $26 billion in capital to revitalize urban neighborhoods and curb sprawl. The plan will:
- Rebuild and improve existing neighborhoods by directing state transportation, community development, and infrastructure grants, loans, and bonds to deter sprawl, and to reduce the number of vehicle miles traveled. Smart investments in urban housing, mass transit, urban parks and open space, and financial incentives for smart growth will give Californians more transportation and housing options and protect our air and natural resources.
- Adopt smart growth regional and local plans through strong state laws and policies to achieve smart growth targets: identification and protection of open space and farmland; a specified reduction of vehicle miles driven; a range of housing opportunities; and walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods that can be served effectively by transit. These plans should make infill the first priority for meeting new housing needs.
- Provide incentives to communities that meet or exceed their smart growth targets and give them new tools to do so. Communities that meet their targets should receive priority funding from the state for transportation and other infrastructure grants. Fee programs, like those recently adopted by the San Joaquin Air Quality District, should be utilized to reward projects that reduce residents' need to drive long distances for work and shopping.
- Reform the local government finance system so that communities can fund needed public services without resorting to sprawl.
»To read more about Phil Angelides’ Clean California and smart growth plans please click here | 
