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T H E P L A N N I N G C O M M I S S I O N AT W O R K

Where Do We Want to Go?HOW DEVELOPMENT BEST FITS IN YOUR COMMUNITY

by Jim Segedy, FAICP

and Lisa Hollingsworth-Segedy, AICP“Would you tell me, please, whichway I ought to go from here?”“That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,” said the Cat. “I don’t much care where –” said Alice.“Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,” said the Cat. (Alice in Wonderland,Chapter 6).

In our last column (PCJ #71, Summer2008), we discussed the importance ofdefining your community’s identity aspart of the planning process. The nextquestion a community must ask in devel-oping a comprehensive plan is, “Wheredo we want to go?” We’ve both beenknown to paraphrase this conversationbetween Alice and the Cheshire Catwhen working with communities: “Ifyou don’t know where you are going, anyroad will take you there.”

Your community’s plan establishes thepriorities for development patterns,mixes of land uses, areas that shouldgrow, and those that should not. Itshould provide a framework for deter-mining where and how developmentbest fits. If framed properly, your plancan even recommend limiting the quan-tity of certain types of business, some-thing Los Angeles implemented in itsrecent (and controversial) decision tonot permit any new fast food franchises.

For any number of reasons, manycities and towns are afraid to turn downdevelopment. They fear that develop-ment will go somewhere else, taking jobsand local revenue with it, if they don’taccept whatever proposal a developeradvances. As planning commissioners,you too may feel like any growth in yourcommunity would be good. However,wanting growth does not mean that youhave to accept it at any cost.

If your plan articulates your commu-nity’s identity and establishes clear-cutgoals for future growth, you can work

with developers to make sure their planswill mesh with yours. In fact, most devel-opers are interested in fitting into a com-munity – so long as they can clearlyunderstand what you are asking them to do.

There’s an old saying that goes some-thing like this: “Be careful what you askfor, because you might get it.” We’ve seenmany communities whose ordinancesput so much emphasis on separation ofuses and low-density development thatthey actually require sprawl rather thangood and efficient planning and urbandesign – and sprawl is exactly what theyget. It isn’t necessarily that the growth isbad for the community; sometimes it’sthat the growth isn’t in the best location,or at the best density, because decision-makers are hesitant to apply the stan-dards that would implement thecomprehensive plan.

We frequently hear from local govern-ments that requiring compliance withthe plan would unduly burden the devel-oper. Rarely considered is the fiscal cost

that poorly located development canplace on the community, as well as theintangible cost of incompatible or poorlydesigned development that isn’t sensitiveto the community’s character (while wesay “intangible,” damage to a communi-ty’s character can also have real, long-term negative impacts on the localeconomy; many businesses consider“quality of life” factors in location deci-sions).

The cost differential between “busi-ness as usual” and development thatmeets your standards is often negligibleto the developer, and almost always a sig-nificant savings to the community.

Let’s consider an example: theMcDonald’s restaurant in Freeport,Maine. When McDonald’s proposed arestaurant in the pedestrian-orienteddowntown, Freeport told them, “if you’regoing to be here, you’re going to look likeus.” To make a long story short, ratherthan knocking down the existing farm-house on the site to construct corporatearchitecture, McDonald’s used the exist-ing structure. After more than a decade,hamburgers are still being served in thishistoric building. We like this examplebecause it demonstrates that communi-ties don’t have to close the door tonational franchises, nor accept corporatearchitecture that would stick out like asore thumb, or make you look just likeeveryplace else.

Another example of creative develop-ment that matches community charactercan be found in the town of Manchester,Vermont. There’s a huge outlet mallthere, but it isn’t the kind of outlet mallpeople normally think of (i.e., flat-roofedconcrete block structures ringing a vastsquare sea of asphalt parking, built onthe edge of town by a state highway orinterstate). Instead, the outlets in Man-chester are in downtown storefronts.They have landscaping and sidewalks.

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Michael Menge poses with his “business icon”outside his Maine restaurant.

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Not only are they attractive and inviting,the stores also mesh with the overallcharacter of the town.

The outlet developer didn’t go some-where else because the community said,“if you’re going to be here, you have tolook like you belong here.” In fact, on arainy Tuesday afternoon before the“high” season, it was obvious to us thatshoppers were having no problem find-ing the outlets even without their corpo-rate image and acres of asphalt parkingspaces and gigantic brand signs frontingthe interstate.

One of the best ways to protect yourcommunity’s identity is by maintaining ahealthy local economy, providing oppor-tunities for home-grown entrepreneurs.In fact, many comprehensive plans arenow focusing on ways of encouragingthis. This reflects the fact that peopleacross the country are interested ininvesting in their own community, orproviding ways to facilitate this.

A great example we came acrossrecently is the Blue Moose Restaurant inBlue Hill, Maine. Owner Michael Mengefeatures local organic produce, meat, andcheese, as well as local-harvest fish andshellfish on his menu, which he rotatesseasonally. He checks out each fishingboat and each farm before using theirproducts. Even the coffee he serves is fairtrade. After a cup of the best clam chow-der we ever had, we asked Michael howhe competes with the national identityoffered by franchises. “Local food is safefood,” he replied. “When spinach wascontaminated, we were serving spinach.When tomatoes were contaminated, wewere eating tomatoes. My customers

come here for great local food and theconnection to the community.”

This kind of entrepreneurship is themark of a healthy local economy. It pro-vides value-added products and capital-izes on the talents of people from thearea. It keeps your financial resourcescirculating right at home. How, as a plan-ning commissioner, do you create orenhance an atmosphere in your commu-nity that supports and encourages thiskind of entrepreneurship? You can usethis checklist to get started and stay ontrack:

1. Define your community’s character.This was the focus of our column in theSummer 2008 issue.

2. Articulate the elements of that char-acter in your plan. Describe what makesyour community unique. Draw pictures,literally, and use photos to capture ideasfor clarifying your community character.We will show you how this powerfultechnique can make your local plan workfor your community in our next column.

3. Establish target areas for futuregrowth that maximize the use of your exist-ing infrastructure. Steer new growth toareas that already have roads, water,sewer, and other public services to sup-port it. Look for opportunities for infilldevelopment rather than opting forsprawl that will require costly infrastruc-ture extensions.

4. Offer incentives for development thatimplements your plan. For example, hav-ing a streamlined approval process canbe an incentive for quality developmentin your community.

5. Negotiate with developers, but keepfirm to your plan’s goals and priorities.

Don’t minimize the importance of main-taining your community character justbecause a development you think youneed is dangled before you. Certainly,work with developers to see how theycan best fit into your community, andhelp them see the benefits of belongingthere. But remember that you don’t haveto sell your community short to get thedevelopment you want.

6. Consider whether the developmentproposal would benefit your community. If you already have a good supply of aparticular kind of development, havingmore of the same isn’t necessarily a goodthing. A variety of businesses, a range ofhousing choices, local entrepreneurship,and balanced land uses creates a healthyeconomy.

7. Review your plan annually. This willhelp you make sure your prioritiesremain on target, your identity remainsstrong, and you are getting the kind ofdevelopment you were expecting in thelocations you established for it.

So here’s the bottom line: your plan isnot just a document, it is a process tohelp your community respond to thequestion “Where do we want to go?” Thisinvolves considering your community’sunique character and identity; and howand where new development will best fit. In our Winter column we’ll take anuts-and-bolts look at some creativeideas that can help you as the planningcommissioner move your communitytowards a plan that is easy to use, easy toimplement, and shows your community’spriorities at a glance. ◆

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Manchester, Vermont’s new outlet stores match the scale of the nearby main street.

Jim Segedy is Director of Community Planning forthe Pennsylvania Environmental Council and LisaHollingsworth-Segedy is the Managing Partner ofThe Community Partnership. They welcome yourquestions, comments, or “war stories” at:the_community_partnership@yahoo.com.

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