As 2025 comes to a close, we’re taking a moment to reflect on some of our favorite blog posts from the year. From highlighting how federal actions impact pedestrian safety, to explaining how new federal policies can help advance more affordable housing, and diving in deep to show why smart growth is the right choice to improve your community, these five articles highlight some of our favorite and most illustrative posts from the year.

January: Understanding the fiscal impact of zoning

Just one year in, the Center for Zoning Solutions has become a trusted resource, helping our partners understand how unlocking zoning can lead to more prosperous, healthy, and vibrant communities. At the start of the year, our Director of Research, Michael Rodriguez, helped translate the often complex relationship between zoning and fiscal health into clear takeaways for policymakers and advocates. His post set the tone for how we showed up in zoning conversations throughout the year, and demonstrates how smart growth strategies can lead to stronger local economies.

February: Federal actions that threaten roadway safety efforts

Federal policies can go a long way in supporting local road safety efforts. Unfortunately, earlier this year, the Trump administration made a concerted effort to remove information about Complete Streets and Road to Zero, and even went so far as to rescind funding for projects that support these goals. So we spoke out to remind lawmakers of the importance of implementing smart growth policies and to keep advocates informed about what’s at stake and how to take action. Regardless of what decisions are being made at the federal level, we will continue to exercise our unique position as national thought leaders and advocates on the importance of addressing the pedestrian safety crisis.

April: The economic and health costs of cutting funding for family-friendly communities

Complete Streets is an approach to planning, designing, building, operating, and maintaining streets that enables safe access for transit riders of all ages and abilities. We care deeply about this work, not only because of the safety benefits that active transportation policies and projects provide, but also because it can improve people’s health and overall quality of life..

In this post by Heidi Simon, our Director of Thriving Communities, we highlighted the benefits of CDC’s Active People, Healthy Nation, a national initiative that supports states and local communities to create healthier, more prosperous places. This year, SGA took a closer look at what would be lost if programs like this were defunded by highlighting the measurable benefits of Complete Streets and other active transportation programs.

July: The road to housing

A huge moment for SGA and the housing community this year came with the introduction of the ROAD to Housing Act of 2025 (and the subsequent Housing for the 21st Century Act), sweeping bipartisan housing bills that include smart growth provisions like best practices for zoning and land use, streamlining of local housing production through the adoption of pre-approved housing designs, and incentives for pro-housing policies along transit routes.

Our team has been quick to frame policy changes like this in the larger context of community impact—demonstrating how federal attention, paired with local action, can create meaningful progress in the housing and land use space.

September: More homes in the right places, at the right price

This year, we launched our updated housing platform. Informed by decades of work in this space and the current housing access and affordability crises, the smart growth approach calls for building the right kinds of homes in the places that need them most at an affordable price. Our focus on type, place, and price means using tools like zoning and financing to build homes for people of different incomes, household sizes, and stages in life in the places they want to live.

While this platform serves as a handy framework and messaging tool, our experts have dug in deeper to explore key opportunities like using underutilized land, financing innovations, and the important role of zoning reform to build more connected, affordable housing

Through our articles, SGA’s team provides the details and data to inform policy decisions and empower advocates nationwide. Thank you for being part of this work and for reading along throughout 2025. The progress we make on housing, transportation, climate, and community health only happens because people like you are pushing for better outcomes in real places. We’re proud of what we’ve accomplished so far, and energized to keep going in 2026 and beyond. We look forward to continuing to share the research, lessons, and practical tools that help turn good ideas into lasting change.

More highlights from 2025:

• Smart growth: The abundance we need
• Reinvigorating Opportunity Zones to deliver housing and smart growth
• Bridging the gap: How the U.S. is starting to address wildlife-vehicle collisions
• Bad leadership from DDOT will result in more dangerous streets
• Where America is sprawling and what it means