Partner with communities to conduct build-out analyses of their current development patterns
Action
States should help local governments conduct build-out analyses, since many communities are unsure of how current development regulations (such as zoning codes, subdivision codes, and infrastructure and capital improvement policies) will affect their development. Many local governments also are unsure of the potential impact of current development patterns on the amount and quality of open space; the cost of providing sewer, water, and other infrastructure; housing and transportation choices; and the cost of providing community services. But local planning departments often have the land-use and zoning information required to conduct basic build-out analyses, which can help communities envision how they will look and function if build-out occurs according to their current development regulations.
Process
There are several ways to help cities and counties conduct build-out analyses. One option is for the State to provide grants to local planning departments. The State can also require build-out analyses as part of its comprehensive planning statute, or can give priority for grants to local governments that have recently conducted build-out analyses.
Another option is for the State to conduct build-out analyses in-house or in partnership with either regional planning organizations or a university's planning department. The state planning department or a comparable agency typically has land-use and land-cover data for jurisdictions across the State, or can acquire the information from regional or metropolitan planning organizations. The results of the build-out analyses can then be provided to local governments.
Example
- Massachusetts’ Community Preservation Initiative
In 1999, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs launched an effort to envision how each of the state’s 351 municipalities and towns would grow under current zoning regulations and what the impact of that growth would be on the state's natural resources. The state then worked in partnership with 13 regional planning agencies across the Commonwealth to develop a build-out map that identified the amount of developable land in the state. State officials held summits with communities to present the results of their build-out analyses and to discuss with citizens how they would like to see their communities grow.
— Massachusetts’ Build-Out Maps and Analyses
