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The Smart Growth Roundtable is made up of leaders from state, regional, and local organizations across the country focused on pioneering smart growth strategies.
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About the Smart Growth Roundtable

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The Smart Growth Roundtable brings together leaders from state, regional, and local smart growth organizations to advance the movement toward more healthy, prosperous, and resilient communities. At our monthly meetings, members exchange insights on their current initiatives, share strategies for overcoming challenges, and collaborate to advance smart growth principles nationwide. As the convener of the group, Smart Growth America shares federal insights pertinent to the participating organizations.

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	<li>Develop a unified strategy to advance smart growth principles across the country.</li>
	<li>Align federal, state, and local advocacy efforts to drive policy changes and sustainable development.</li>
	<li>Share best practices and innovations to support the smart growth movement.</li>
	<li>Foster collaboration among leaders to address common challenges in advancing smart growth.</li>
	<li>Drive impactful action through coordinated initiatives that promote equitable, sustainable communities.</li>
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Even the best-planned cities have a few hidden alleys.

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DVRPC

The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC), the metropolitan planning organization serving five and a half million people residing in greater Philadelphia and southern New Jersey, has a lengthy, if sporadic, history of weaving arts and culture into its planning. Through its participation in the Culture and Community Network (CCN), DVRPC is working to shift from one-off initiatives toward a more intentional, sustained integration of arts and culture. With flexibility to focus its CCN-related work in Trenton, DVRPC has been experimenting with new ways to engage communities, test creative tools, and strengthen internal readiness.
<figure id="attachment_107395" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-107395" style="width: 1024px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-107395 size-large" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/DVRPC-1024x682.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="682" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/DVRPC-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/DVRPC-300x200.jpg 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/DVRPC-768x512.jpg 768w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/DVRPC-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/DVRPC.jpg 1600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-107395" class="wp-caption-text">DVRPC team working together on their group pitch at the Seattle convening of the Culture and Community Network in June 2025.</figcaption></figure>
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DVRPC staff view the Culture and Community Network as a timely and strategic opportunity to rethink how planning connects with people. Rather than treating arts and culture as an add-on, they wanted to explore how creative approaches could make engagement more authentic, responsive, and community-driven. From public participation to active transportation, DVRPC’s team is experimenting with new ways to move beyond business-as-usual—and bring fresh perspectives into regional planning. &#8220;If we keep doing the same thing, we’ll get the same outcome,&#8221; said Transportation Planner Jen Farris.
<h3>Early arts and culture milestones</h3>
Over the past decade, DVRPC has explored how arts and culture can strengthen planning, moving from one-off initiatives to a more integrated approach:
<ul>
<li>
Exploring ideas: Foundational reports like Demographic Trends and Forecasts in the Philadelphia Region (2008) and Spirit of Place (2023) examined how shifting demographics, culture, and creativity can reshape communities and drive economic vitality.
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Showcasing best practices: In 2012, a Regional Community and Economic Forum featured Mural Arts Philadelphia and county-level projects, elevating arts and culture as essential to community and economic development.
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<li>
Testing in the field: Creative demonstrations such as The Expo: Experimental Pop-Ups (2018) and Getting to Green: Routes to Roots (2024) piloted artistic storytelling, interactive installations, and station art to promote safety, celebrate cultural heritage, and connect residents to green spaces.
</li>
</ul>
Together, these efforts laid the groundwork for DVRPC’s current participation in the Culture and Community Network, where the agency is moving from experimental projects to a more intentional, consistent process of creativity across its planning practice.
Some of DVRPC’s current and ongoing efforts include:
<ul>
<li>Trenton Partnerships: Collaborated with Artworks Trenton and a local cycling group, letting partners lead with their expertise. Feedback revealed frustration with temporary street murals, pushing DVRPC to consider and implement more durable, meaningful strategies they’ve been exploring in CCN.</li>
<li>Creative Meeting Tools: Used scale models and matchbox cars to explain street design changes in Trenton—an approach described as joyful, silly, and effective at sparking conversation.</li>
<li>Art in Planning Workshop: A new initiative, designed by Lillian Drake, Public Participation Planner, around ideas learned through CCN, to showcase staff creativity while inviting outside artists to connect with DVRPC and planning partners.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Safe Streets for All Committee in Trenton: Jen is embedding creative engagement methods into this new body tasked with creating a public participation plan.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Critical challenges</h3>
Even with growing interest, DVRPC staff face barriers. Staff emphasized that while encouragement to pursue creative work is helpful, what they really need is clarity and organizational support to integrate arts into planning efforts. Many also noted the challenge of aligning creative practices with the defined scopes and timelines of existing projects, which can make experimentation feel risky or impractical. And even when past arts initiatives were successful, they often lacked the structures to sustain lessons learned and build momentum over time.
Despite these ongoing challenges, an internal survey recently conducted in connection with the team’s participation in CCN revealed strong potential for risk-taking and interest in trying new things, prompting an opportune moment for continued growth.
<h3>Lesson learned</h3>
Participation in the Culture and Community Network has helped DVRPC step back, reflect, and experiment with greater intention. The team has seen the value of planting seeds for future innovation, identifying both “easy wins” and longer-term shifts that can make creative approaches stick. They’ve also emphasized the importance of setting clear goals, documenting processes to build trust, and showcasing the arts and culture work already underway both to inspire internal support and to share lessons across the region.
<h3>Looking ahead</h3>
DVRPC is beginning to translate these lessons from CCN into organizational change. The team is preparing specific, fundable project ideas for inclusion in DVRPC’s FY2027 work program, ensuring arts and culture isn’t just a side project but embedded in the agency’s core activities.
Smart Growth America’s role as convener and facilitator has been essential in this journey. CCN has given DVRPC the space to reflect, connect with peer MPOs, and test new ideas. More than just inspiration, SGA’s support has helped DVRPC legitimize and boost its efforts internally, building the permission and structure needed to make creativity part of planning and engagement at every step.
[alert type=&#8221;info&#8221;] Smart Growth America’s Culture and Community Network ensures MPOs don’t have to take on this work alone. By connecting peers, offering tailored support, and amplifying local efforts, the network helps MPOs bring arts and culture into planning in ways that inspire action and strengthen communities. <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/programs-and-coalitions/arts-and-culture/culture-community-network/">Learn more about CCN &gt;&gt;</a>  [/alert]

News

How DVRPC is building momentum and sustainability for arts and culture in planning

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Smart Growth America’s Culture and Community Network (CCN) worked with Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) across the country to experiment with and integrate arts and culture into their planning and engagement work. In practice, this might mean using creative methods such as theater-based tools, partnering with social practice artists, or gathering oral histories to deepen engagement, expand on who participates in planning, and connect lived experiences to policy decisions.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-107348 size-large" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Kazoo-1024x683.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Kazoo-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Kazoo-300x200.jpg 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Kazoo-768x512.jpg 768w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Kazoo-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Kazoo-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />
MPOs and regional planning agencies, sometimes housed in the same organization, play a pivotal but often behind-the-scenes role in shaping how communities grow. They are responsible for coordinating transportation and land use planning across cities, counties, and towns within a region and serving as conduits for federal funds, ideally helping decide where investments go, which projects move forward, and how policies align across jurisdictions. Their decisions affect everything from daily commutes to climate resilience, making them a critical point of influence for advancing equity and community-centered planning. Because MPOs set priorities that shape long-term investments, they are uniquely positioned to use arts and culture not just to improve engagement, but to reimagine how planning is done at a regional scale.
Our new case studies showcase both the promise and the challenges of this emerging field and how MPOs, with support from SGA, are learning from one another, testing new approaches, and finding creative ways to connect with their communities.
[button type=&#8221;info&#8221; block=&#8221;true&#8221; size=&#8221;lg&#8221; link=&#8221;https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/programs-and-coalitions/arts-and-culture/culture-community-network/&#8221;]Read the case studies! [/button]
Each profile in this series offers a different vantage point on what it takes to bring arts and culture into regional planning. For example, PlanRVA, the MPO for the Richmond, Virginia, region, is just beginning its journey, with staff from nontraditional planning backgrounds experimenting with creative approaches to engagement. R1 Planning Council and Grand Valley Metropolitan Council also show how MPOs can begin integrating arts and culture into planning, even with limited experience or capacity. The Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG), on the other hand, has been supporting arts and culture activities consistently for over ten years but faces the challenge of institutionalizing and sustainably funding its work. The profile of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission-Association of Bay Area Governments (MTC-ABAG), which serves the San Francisco Bay Area in northern California, explores the tension between ambitious equity-focused programs and organizational capacity. Other MPOs in the network are exploring ways to use art in placemaking, rethinking youth engagement, and building partnerships with cultural organizations.
Taken together, these stories reflect the breadth of the Culture and Community Network, from MPOs that are just getting started, to those seeking to refine and sustain established programs. These case studies are part of a larger effort: later this year, Smart Growth America will publish a Blueprint that compiles the approaches, lessons learned, and big takeaways from the Culture and Community Network. This resource is designed to help agency staff transform institutional norms and practices through creative, cultural approaches to equitable community engagement. The Blueprint will provide guidance for staff navigating barriers, seeking to shift culture from within and looking for catalysts for longer-term change.
These case studies and the Blueprint show the breadth of what’s possible: how creative approaches can spark new conversations, center underrepresented communities, and shift how planning is done. They also show the value of a national network where MPO staff can share ideas, compare challenges, and receive support from Smart Growth America as they take on this work. Whether you’re at an MPO and curious about arts and culture integration, an artist or cultural worker keen to be involved in regional planning, or a funder interested in supporting more equitable, creative community building, these stories and the forthcoming Blueprint offer a practical guide for what’s possible when arts and culture become part of planning and engagement at a regional scale.

Culture and Community Network

How arts and culture are transforming regional planning and MPOs: Stories from the Culture and Community Network

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PlanRVA, the metropolitan planning organization (MPO) for the Richmond, Virginia area, joined the Culture and Community Network (CCN) as part of its effort to initiate creative approaches to community-centered engagement. PlanRVA, with a jurisdiction covering nine localities and over a million residents, represents an MPO at the early stages of integrating arts and culture into its planning processes. Through its participation in CCN, PlanRVA is exploring how creative strategies can help make infrastructure and transportation planning more accessible, culturally sensitive, and responsive to community needs.
PlanRVA’s engagement efforts are led by staff whose backgrounds are from outside the traditional transportation or planning pipelines. Their nontraditional, nonlinear routes to PlanRVA have created space and opportunity for creativity, empathy, and new modes of engagement. 
Kristin Hott, PlanRVA’s engagement coordinator, has a background in grassroots organizing and the arts. She draws on creative practices as a bridge between individual stories and collective community identity. For example, Kristin pursues quilt-making as both a personal and communal practice: after personal tragedy, quilting became a way to process grief while building connections with others. She views community quilts as a metaphor and tool for planning work, stitching together diverse experiences into a cohesive whole.
Grants specialist Emily Williams also brings a unique background to regional planning as a former higher education instructor and union organizer. She has a keen interest in embedding inclusive engagement into the structure of funded projects, ensuring that public input is not an afterthought but part of the process from the beginning. Her approach emphasizes that proposals should not just deliver infrastructure but also create opportunities for authentic community participation.
Both Kristin and Emily were drawn to CCN because of their shared desire to expand community engagement beyond conventional public meetings and comment periods. Importantly, their executive director encouraged their participation, seeing the network as an opportunity to learn from peer organizations and bring fresh approaches to the region. For Kristin and Emily, CCN offered a chance to connect their creative instincts with practical strategies for regional planning.
<h3>Arts and culture and engagement efforts</h3>
Some of the key efforts PlanRVA implemented in partnership with Smart Growth America and the Culture and Community Network include:  
1. Building internal readiness. Recognizing that staff buy-in is critical, PlanRVA conducted an internal survey to gauge comfort with integrating arts and culture into planning. Rather than rely on a conventional questionnaire, the team created a short video to encourage participation and explain the purpose of the survey, an example of how even internal processes can benefit from creativity.
2. People’s Budget forum theatre. In partnership with a local city government, PlanRVA piloted a “People’s Budget” exercise using forum theatre techniques. Residents were invited to act out scenarios and provide input into city budget priorities, transforming what could have been a technical process into a participatory and engaging experience.
3. PlanRVA Day. On March 14, the agency hosted PlanRVA Day, using creative activities such as maps and sticker-based exercises to help residents better understand infrastructure planning. The event demonstrated that even small, playful interventions can demystify complex planning processes.
4. Zero Fare Transit project. Emily played a key role in a campaign to maintain fare-free transit service after the COVID-19 pandemic. Partnering with the local transit agency, she helped frame a narrative that highlighted the benefits of zero-fare service for local businesses, workers, and the overall well-being of the community. Telling stories served as a key data point, in addition to quantitative data, in building support for maintaining the fare-free policy.
<h3>Challenges along the way</h3>
PlanRVA’s community engagement capacity has been constrained from the start. The original proposal envisioned a four-person team; in reality, Kristin was initially the sole staff member working on engagement. Limited staff capacity continues to shape how much creativity can be operationalized.
The team has wrestled with questions such as, “Are we doing this to communities, or with them?” This distinction highlights the challenge of balancing creativity with feasibility, ensuring that creative practices are participatory and co-created, not imposed.
<h3>Lessons learned</h3>
Participation in Smart Growth America’s Culture and Community Network provided valuable space for reflection and connection. Both Kristin and Emily cited the importance of imagination and creativity in reaching marginalized or underrepresented groups, as well as the need for culturally sensitive practices. Kristin emphasized the role of external artistic resources in sparking new ideas. Both also identified tribal engagement as an area of growth, underscoring their awareness of communities that have historically been overlooked in planning conversations.
Kristin and Emily emphasized that everyone is an artist in some way, and that planning organizations should not hesitate to draw on creativity across their staff and communities. Creative engagement does not require professional artists; it requires openness, experimentation, and respect for community voice.
<h3>Looking ahead</h3>
Although PlanRVA is still in the early stages of its arts and culture journey, it has already piloted innovative approaches that distinguish it from many peer MPOs. Free of some of the institutional baggage that can weigh down larger agencies, PlanRVA is experimenting with new ways of connecting planning to community life. Smart Growth America’s Culture and Community Network has provided not only practical examples but also inspiration, reinforcing that imagination has a place in planning. As the team continues to grow, PlanRVA is poised to evolve into a more creative and community-centered MPO.
[alert type=&#8221;info&#8221;] Smart Growth America’s Culture and Community Network ensures MPOs don’t have to take on this work alone. By connecting peers, offering tailored support, and amplifying local efforts, the network helps MPOs bring arts and culture into planning in ways that inspire action and strengthen communities. <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/news/meet-the-2025-culture-and-community-network/">Learn more about CCN &gt;&gt;</a>  [/alert]

How Plan RVA is building a foundation for arts and culture work

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Smart Growth America launched the Culture and Community Network (CCN) to provide MPOs with tailored support, peer exchange, and a creative container to explore how arts and culture can strengthen planning practice. Two participants in the cohort used this opportunity to begin their journey of incorporating arts and culture into their planning processes.
When it comes to regional planning, integrating arts and culture into transportation and climate work is still a relatively new practice. For many metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs), the question isn’t whether it matters, but rather where to begin, especially when staff capacity is stretched thin and prior arts and culture partnerships have been limited.
Two MPOs in this year’s CCN cohort, R1 Planning Council in Rockford, Illinois, and the Grand Valley Metropolitan Council (GVMC) in Grand Rapids, Michigan, are great examples of organizations taking their first steps with leveraging arts and culture to inspire change. With the right support and inspiration, they are finding ways to connect planning with creativity, build new partnerships, and start embedding arts and culture into their regional work.
<h3>R1 Planning Council: Building a living toolkit for public art</h3>
In Rockford, the R1 Planning Council has been exploring how to help communities across their region better connect arts and culture with public space. Through participation in the Culture and Community Network — and through office hours with Smart Growth America staff — the idea emerged to create a regional public art toolkit.
Rather than a one-time report, R1 envisions a living toolkit, a resource co-created with communities and continuously refreshed with new examples, ideas, and partnerships. It could begin with a workshop series in partnership with the local arts council and expand to include case studies, best practices, and even interactive tools like ArcGIS story maps.
The concept builds on past arts and culture documentation in the Rockford area, such as a regional architecture booklet produced nearly two decades ago. Now, with guidance and inspiration from Smart Growth America, R1 is reimagining that idea for today: a digital platform to showcase public art, architecture, and cultural spaces across the region, while encouraging new conversations about the role of arts in public life.
By participating in the Culture and Community Network, R1 has gained access to peer examples, hands-on technical support, and the encouragement to begin embedding arts and culture more intentionally in its regional planning practice.
<h3>Grand Valley Metropolitan Council: Building external relationships for community leadership in climate and art</h3>
In Grand Rapids, GVMC has been exploring the intersections of climate resilience, youth leadership, and creative expression. With support from Smart Growth America’s coaching and peer exchange, GVMC began collaborating with student groups who are eager to play a role in shaping their community’s climate future. 
Together, they’ve been brainstorming creative ways to engage the public on climate issues, from murals and transportation advertising to poetry slams connected to the region’s climate action plan. GVMC is also exploring opportunities to connect with the City of Grand Rapids’ artist-in-residence program, opening the door to collaboration between local artists, young people, and the MPO’s environmental team. 
Like many MPOs, GVMC has limited staff capacity to launch new initiatives. But their participation in the Culture and Community Network has helped build momentum and direction.
<blockquote>
“I love the case studies and the other examples from other MPOs, because I feel like it’s hard to just start. But if you use other ideas as a springboard, it helps so much to get those creative juices flowing to see what others are doing.” -Andrea Faber, Transportation Planner
</blockquote>
Even in the early stages, GVMC is demonstrating how MPOs can establish new relationships with communities and groups outside the agency and bring new voices, especially youth, into planning, using creativity as a bridge between climate policy and public engagement.
This combination of structured support and peer exchange is helping MPOs build the foundation they need to bring arts and culture into planning, even with limited time and resources.
<h3>Looking ahead</h3>
The journeys of R1 and GVMC show that when MPOs have the right space and support, they can begin to weave arts and culture into transportation and climate planning in ways that strengthen community connection and expand public trust.
For Smart Growth America, the Culture and Community Network demonstrates that with the right conditions, MPOs of any size or stage can take meaningful steps toward more creative, equitable, and resilient planning.
[alert type=&#8221;info&#8221;] Smart Growth America’s Culture and Community Network ensures MPOs don’t have to take on this work alone. By connecting peers, offering tailored support, and amplifying local efforts, the network helps MPOs bring arts and culture into planning in ways that inspire action and strengthen communities. <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/news/meet-the-2025-culture-and-community-network/">Learn more about CCN &gt;&gt;</a>  [/alert]

Small steps, big shifts: How smaller MPOs are using arts and culture to spark change

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As the largest metropolitan planning organization (MPO) in the nation, serving a region of over 19 million residents, the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) covers an enormous area. That scale could make arts and culture integration feel daunting, but SCAG has found a way to start small: through temporary safety demonstration projects, creative partnerships, and the <a href="https://scag.ca.gov/go-human">Go Human</a> program. These efforts have revealed that art is much more than decoration in the service of regional planning and community building: arts and culture can save lives, shift policy, and strengthen communities.
While SCAG has been a national leader in testing creative placemaking strategies, staff saw the need to move from isolated projects to more systemic integration. Joining Smart Growth America’s Culture and Community Network has helped SCAG take that next step. Through peer learning SCAG has been able to compare notes with other MPOs, spend time exploring and connecting with others on issues such as artist procurement and intellectual property, and bring back new approaches to their own agency. These exchanges have also given SCAG staff confidence to push innovative ideas through bureaucratic barriers.
<h3>From tactical experiments to systemic change</h3>
SCAG didn’t launch arts and culture work through a dedicated program or personnel. Instead, their efforts emerged organically through tactical demonstrations that made safety improvements visible and tangible, such as painted bulb-outs, sculptures, and artistic crosswalks.
One early milestone was a <a href="https://scag.ca.gov/go-human">Go Human</a> artistic crosswalk in Redlands. On paper, it was a simple asphalt project. In practice, it sparked debates about engineering standards, pushed conversations with elected officials, and invited the public into the planning process in new ways. Something that began with skepticism soon won champions on the city council, paving the way for more artistic crosswalks across the region.
These projects showed that creative engagement could open doors. Engineers and planners began to see improvements in safety data, and they also heard community stories as data too, stories that made the case for art as both a tool for civic dialogue and more-informed planning decisions.
<h3>Building partnerships beyond planning</h3>
A key factor in SCAG’s success has been who they work with. Go Human projects aren’t only built with transportation advocates. They’ve involved museums, parent groups, mental health organizations, LGBTQ+ artists, and cultural institutions. By expanding the table, SCAG has reached people who might never attend a conventional planning meeting but who care deeply about how the built environment and streets as public space shape their daily lives. 
The Redlands Pride-inspired crosswalk is one example. Designed by queer and trans artists, it functioned as both a traffic-calming measure and a public affirmation of belonging. As one community member told SCAG: “This art is saving my kid’s life.” That moment underscores how design decisions carry cultural and emotional weight far beyond the physical project.
<h3>Challenges along the way</h3>
Integrating arts and culture hasn’t been without challenges. SCAG staff navigate a governance structure with dozens of elected officials, not all of whom see the value of artistic interventions. Contracting artists as consultants often runs into procurement hurdles, while questions of intellectual property and long-term maintenance can slow momentum.
But participation in the CCN has reinforced that these challenges are common and surmountable. By leaning on peer examples, SCAG is gradually shifting its own internal policies and carving out structural support.
<h3>Embedding arts and culture in SCAG’s DNA</h3>
A recent reorganization created a Capacity Building and Placemaking Unit, giving arts and culture work a more permanent home inside the agency. This unit is charged with exploring partnerships, embedding creative engagement practices, and identifying process improvements to make it easier for SCAG to work with artists and communities.
With the 2028 Olympics approaching, SCAG sees an opportunity to expand this work at scale—showing the world how arts and culture can shape transportation, safety, and belonging in a region as complex and diverse as Southern California.
<h3>Lessons for other MPOs</h3>
SCAG’s journey offers practical takeaways for peers:
<ul>
<li>
Start with pilots, aim for permanence. Temporary installations can build political will and lead to lasting change.
</li>
<li>
Expand partnerships. Artists, cultural organizations, and unexpected allies can help MPOs reach communities outside their usual networks.
</li>
<li>
Gather both data and stories. Safety metrics and personal testimonies together make a compelling case.
</li>
<li>
Address bureaucracy head-on. Clear procurement and IP policies are essential for sustaining artist partnerships.
</li>
<li>Think of art as infrastructure. Creative projects improve safety, foster belonging, and, in some cases, save lives.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Looking ahead</h3>
SCAG’s work shows that integrating arts and culture into planning is not an “extra.” Arts and culture are a powerful way to meet core goals of safety, equity, and engagement. With Smart Growth America’s support through the CCN, SCAG is building on lessons from tactical experiments to embed creativity into the agency’s DNA.
For other MPOs, the message is clear: you don’t need to start big. But with the right partnerships, support, and imagination, arts and culture can become central to how regions plan, connect, and thrive.
[alert type=&#8221;info&#8221;] Smart Growth America’s Culture and Community Network ensures MPOs don’t have to take on this work alone. By connecting peers, offering tailored support, and amplifying local efforts, the network helps MPOs bring arts and culture into planning in ways that inspire action and strengthen communities. <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/news/meet-the-2025-culture-and-community-network/">Learn more about CCN &gt;&gt;</a>  [/alert]

SCAG: Turning streets into stories and art into civic power

paul-hanaoka-housing-california-redondo beach-unsplash

The ‘abundance’ movement is gaining momentum: it’s a big idea that calls for building more housing, more energy, and more infrastructure by getting rid of outdated and unnecessary red tape. Abundance is a great idea, and Smart Growth America is ready to offer our decades of experience and expertise, not only in seeking those same outcomes, but in demonstrating what it looks like when those big ideas are put into action.
Abundance is the idea this moment demands. For the first time in decades, bipartisan leaders are lining up behind the notion that we should allow growth and development that’s been stymied by over-regulation for generations. The momentum is real, and it’s long overdue. As experts in housing and the built environment, we share the abundance movement’s core belief: it’s time we tear down the outdated rules that make it nearly impossible to build in most neighborhoods— especially in the connected, opportunity-rich places where people actually want to live.
Addressing the <a href="https://mediaroom.realtor.com/2025-03-10-U-S-Housing-Market-Faces-4-Million-Home-Shortage-Realtor-com-R-Calls-on-Lawmakers-to-Let-America-Build?utm_source=chatgpt.com">urgent housing supply crisis</a> is extremely important, but we also know that focusing on supply alone isn’t enough. If we only chase ‘more,’ without asking where, what, and for who, we risk repeating the same mistakes without addressing the root cause of the current crisis. This approach could lead us to build large, expensive houses on the fringe where regulation is looser, but opportunity is farther away. At best, this will slightly lower the cost of housing for people of more modest means, but it will do little to build housing to the walkable, transit-served places near jobs, retail, and services that people want to live. And it will do nothing to address the regulatory barriers that have stymied efforts for decades to build the housing people need.
Abundance done well means putting in the hard work of removing barriers in the highest-impact places: thriving, well-connected communities where high prices keep everyone out but the select few. It means variety—duplexes, triplexes, mixed-use—so people at every stage of life can find a home that makes sense for them. By building the housing people want in the places they want them, we will also align housing with transportation, energy, and economic development, meaning people can spend less money and time on transportation and pollute less while doing so. This is the smart growth approach we’ve championed for more than 20 years.
<a href="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Abundance-smart-growth_Opportunitiest-and-alignment.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-107286 size-full" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Abundance-smart-growth_Opportunitiest-and-alignment.png" alt="" width="940" height="788" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Abundance-smart-growth_Opportunitiest-and-alignment.png 940w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Abundance-smart-growth_Opportunitiest-and-alignment-300x251.png 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Abundance-smart-growth_Opportunitiest-and-alignment-768x644.png 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 940px) 100vw, 940px" /></a>
<h1>Here are three ways abundance + smart growth can meet the moment</h1>
<h3>Abundance doesn’t dictate a direction—but up is better than out.</h3>
The housing crisis is hitting hardest in established, high-demand places. And that’s exactly where we need to add the types of homes people can no longer find or afford. That will mean building inside existing communities, filling empty or underutilized parcels, and sometimes building taller. Those places tend to have more amenities (transit, walkability, retail) and more opportunities (from jobs to education); but they also are the places with the greatest regulatory barriers, which means building there will involve a fight.
Right now, less than three percent of the land area in our nation’s 35 largest cities is walkable, but those are the areas that generate the most GDP and have the highest prices for potential residents, indicating that the housing market is far from meeting demand for walkable, vibrant places. The market will direct developers to build in places where people want to live, only if decision-makers can focus on reducing the barriers that stop it from happening.
Building where land is cheapest on the fringe of metro areas might look affordable on paper, but when families are forced to own multiple cars just to get to work, school, and basic services, the actual costs skyrocket. The cost of gas, insurance, and maintenance can wipe out any savings from cheaper rent or mortgages. In contrast, building housing in well-connected communities lets families choose whether they even need a car, decreasing travel times, reducing costs, and bringing <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Health/moving-walkable-city-add-1000-steps-day-study/story?id=124549709">health benefits</a>.
It is also <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/resources/rationale-model-fiscal-ordinance/">more expensive</a> to the government and the taxpayer. Building low-density requires the same investment in roads, water, sewer, trash, fire, schools, and police as denser development does. <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/resources/the-fiscal-implications-of-development-patterns-overview/">It just costs more per person</a>. This leads to higher taxes or unmaintained infrastructure and services, usually the latter. 
Development on the fringes is also more likely to be in areas that are vulnerable to extreme weather or necessitate high-cost infrastructure investments, and <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/resources/rationale-model-fiscal-ordinance/">the added tax revenue often can’t cover the long-term costs of infrastructure maintenance and services</a>. True affordability means looking at housing, transportation, and energy costs together—and dense, multifamily housing in connected areas almost always comes out ahead.
<h3>Abundance calls for changing the rules, but that matters most in the places where opportunity already exists.</h3>
<a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/programs-and-coalitions/center-for-zoning-solutions/">Reforming zoning, construction, and environmental review processes is a goal we share.</a> That means taking on the fight to ensure we can add housing where it is most needed, which is not in the places where it is already easy to develop. People hear “build more housing,” but in most existing communities, the current laws and regulations are too hard to overcome. Still, we need to build more housing, right? Well, that mindset leads to more housing being built on the fringes. We need to do the hard work now to dismantle zoning barriers in the communities where demand is the highest, and not simply leave it to each local jurisdiction to do the work itself. Moreover, when we do build in new places, we need to make sure they do not simply adopt the standard land use and zoning approaches that have gotten us here.
And beyond just cutting the red tape, policymakers should find ways to “regulate for what you want,” proactively creating policies that allow for and incentivize housing in well-connected existing communities. Beyond zoning reform, communities often also require support in identifying and incentivizing the development of underutilized sites and building up infrastructure to support small-scale developers ready to create more dense and innovative types of housing. 
(Check out Jerusalem Demsas’s 2025 Smart Growth America Equity Summit Keynote, where she talks about this very goal.)
<h3>Abundance must actually build everything, not just single-family homes.</h3>
If all we do is churn out more single-family homes on big lots, we’re not solving the housing crisis—we’re cementing it. The real housing shortage is in “missing middle” housing: duplexes, triplexes, small apartments, and other modest-scale homes that outdated zoning has effectively banned in many communities across the country.
When these smaller options aren’t available, the math is simple: people who would live in them either get priced out of the housing market or get pushed into larger, more expensive homes, driving up prices for everyone else. One- and two-person households, low- and moderate-income families, young professionals, and older homeowners who want to downsize all lose out, and the small supply of smaller homes that does exist just gets more expensive due to scarcity. Meanwhile, some households, especially older Americans, remain stuck in larger homes that they may struggle to maintain.
This mismatch is stark: <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/183648/average-size-of-households-in-the-us/">since 1960, the average household size in the U.S. has shrunk dramatically</a>, while the <a href="https://www.thezebra.com/resources/home/median-home-size-in-us/">houses we build have gotten bigger</a>.
<h2>Last word</h2>
Housing abundance without housing variety isn’t abundance at all. It’s just supply growth on paper that leaves the core mismatch in place and keeps affordability out of reach.
If abundance does the hard work of dismantling regulations in ways that allow more housing of all types in denser, well-connected, existing communities, we can meet housing demand where that demand is highest, lower household costs, and build vibrant communities that last. Outward growth will only lock in decades of traffic and higher costs. Abundant smart growth would deliver what Americans want.

Abundance

Housing

smart growth

Smart growth: The abundance we need

Land Use and Development

Transit-oriented-development-768x576

The federal government has two strong transit-oriented development financing programs, RRIF &amp; TIFIA, but both have been plagued by administrative burden for a decade. Smart Growth America’s LOCUS coalition believes that now is a key opportunity to improve government efficiency, strengthen public-private partnerships, and unlock economic growth through transit-oriented development.
Transit-oriented development (TOD) is a boon for transit systems and communities because it spurs economic growth, fosters walkable, connected neighborhoods, and shortens commute times for everyone by providing alternatives to personal vehicles. Critically, as transit systems across the country seek paths to financial stability, TOD offers a proven path to increased ridership. In addition, selling or leasing land to developers can generate additional revenue streams for local agencies. By concentrating economic activity, promoting efficient land use, improving access to transit, and expanding housing options, TOD can strengthen communities and the systems that serve them.
Despite the numerous benefits, the federal government has generally been an inconsistent partner for TOD, often bogged down in administrative burdens related to the fact that it can involve multiple federal agencies. By definition—and to great benefit—TOD is at the intersection of transportation and land use, which puts it at a crossroads of interdepartmental and intergovernmental collaboration. This overlap can also create process challenges and raise jurisdictional questions that lead to delays. Uncertainty over which entity should be doing which policy task, and whether they have the authority or funding to do so, has plagued TOD-related efforts due to the cross-agency, collaborative nature of the work.
Rather than supporting transit-oriented development broadly across programs and integrating TOD into transit programs, the approach pursued by Congress and various administrations has to date been much more limited. The Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) efforts to support joint development and value capture, as well as implement the Pilot Program for Transit-Oriented Development Planning, have all been meaningful. As are recent congressional efforts, like the <a href="https://blakemoore.house.gov/media/press-releases/reps-moore-peters-reintroduce-legislation-to-help-tackle-americas-housing-crisis-boost-public-transit-use">Build More Housing Near Transit Act,</a> which would provide a boost to a competitive transit grant application’s score if it incorporated pro-housing policy. However, Congress and the Administration must do more. Specifically, they must make clear that transit-oriented development is a priority, and they must unlock TOD financing through the Railroad Rehabilitation and Financing (RRIF) and the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) programs.
The RRIF and TIFIA programs are two federal financing programs that offer very low-interest direct loans and loan guarantees to finance the development of infrastructure and transit-oriented development projects. Eligible TOD projects must be within a half-mile walking distance of a qualifying station/facility. Between the two programs, eligible projects can include commercial development, residential development, public infrastructure projects, economic development projects that involve public infrastructure, and joint development. While the specific project requirements vary between RRIF and TIFIA, the general goal of TOD eligibility is to offer attractive loan terms for projects that support increased transit ridership. For more information on project eligibility and the program as it stands, visit the <a href="https://www.transportation.gov/buildamerica/TOD">Build America Bureau’s TOD-specific website.</a>
During the lead-up to the FAST Act in 2015, Smart Growth America’s <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/programs-and-coalitions/locus/">LOCUS</a> coalition took a leadership role in championing language that included transit-oriented development project eligibility. This language was incorporated into the FAST Act, passed by Congress, and signed into law. While securing TOD project eligibility was a significant win, implementing the provision has been challenging. Both the RRIF and TIFIA programs were not initially designed to finance TOD projects, but were instead originally authorized to provide financing for traditional infrastructure. This has posed a host of challenges as requirements that made sense for one type of project fail to map easily onto the other (like bond rating requirements and NEPA specifics). In fact, only <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/news/tifias-first-transit-oriented-development-loan-approval/">one TOD project has been successfully financed</a> using these programs to date, with a few more in the pipeline—not nearly enough to address the pressing need for more housing near transit across the country. With high interest rates hampering new housing development, this tool has enormous potential to unlock more well-located housing.
Over the past several years, LOCUS developers have continued to share their perspectives in conversations with the Department of Transportation and Congress in efforts to reform RRIF and TIFIA to allow both programs to better serve as financing tools for transit-oriented development. While there have been a number of improvements, including clarifying language around specific requirements for the financing and process adjustments that have streamlined the program, both RRIF and TIFIA still have issues that make them burdensome and less functional than intended for private sector developers.
To address these challenges, LOCUS recently provided input on draft legislation being considered in Congress and submitted a <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/177VcOXJB_yaddKpNjPJUaopP03T3JqQjZ8pmwllAeXo/edit?usp=sharing">comment letter</a> to USDOT on how RRIF and TIFIA might be reformed in the upcoming surface reauthorization bill. Specific recommendations include:
<ul>
<li>Extend the period that the programs can be used for TOD projects</li>
<li>Harmonize the definitions of what a transit-oriented development project is between programs for clarity</li>
<li>Consider exemptions in statute from NEPA, Davis-Bacon, and Buy America requirements for TOD projects, and clarify that TOD projects should not be required to appear on State Transportation Improvement Programs (STIPs)</li>
<li>Streamline the internal deliberation process within the federal government to shorten the overall loan processing timeline</li>
<li>Create a new, targeted, and more streamlined loan program for smaller TOD projects, which could be especially helpful in smaller communities and rural areas with existing downtowns or activity centers with demand for transit-oriented development</li>
</ul>
<div class="wp-block-spacer" style="height: 20px;" aria-hidden="true">In the upcoming surface transportation reauthorization bill, Congress and the Administration have a chance to provide clarity on TOD and present a vision that states clearly: the Department of Transportation can and should pursue transit-oriented development, not only because it supports transit systems, but because it facilitates economic growth and makes good fiscal sense. A critical way to achieve this is to pursue long-overdue legislative reforms to the RRIF and TIFIA programs. 
 </div>
&nbsp;

RRIF

TIFIA

Transit-oriented development

Reforming transit-oriented development financing at the federal level to unlock housing and economic growth 

Advocacy

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Earlier this month, the Gulf Coast celebrated a long-awaited milestone nearly 20 years in the making: the return of passenger rail service between New Orleans and Mobile, AL. With brass bands, second lines, and Mardi Gras regalia, communities across Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama welcomed the launch of Amtrak’s new Mardi Gras route—marking the first time passenger trains have run this corridor since Hurricane Katrina.
Smart Growth America’s transportation program, Transportation for America (T4America), has played a leading role in bringing passenger rail back to the Gulf Coast and creating programs to expand passenger rail across the country. What began as a regional vision grew into a national movement, with T4America lending policy expertise, navigating regulatory hurdles, convening stakeholders, and helping build a strong coalition of local leaders and residents committed to bringing trains back to the Gulf Coast.
Along the way, our team helped build new federal programs to fund the service, coordinated test rides to show feasibility, and built the public and political will to make passenger rail a reality. These efforts didn’t just lead to the restoration of Gulf Coast rail. They also helped pave the way for the creation of a federal rail program with the potential to expand passenger rail nationwide.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-107210 size-large" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/MardiGras13-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/MardiGras13-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/MardiGras13-300x169.jpg 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/MardiGras13-768x432.jpg 768w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/MardiGras13-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/MardiGras13.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />
[button type=&#8221;info&#8221; block=&#8221;true&#8221; size=&#8221;lg&#8221; link=&#8221;https://t4america.org/gulf-coast-rail/&#8221;]See our timeline that breaks down how this decade-long effort came together! [/button] 
T4America Senior Policy Advisor John Robert Smith, along with other staff, was part of the inaugural train ride, joining local leaders, community members, and long-time advocates at every stop along the new route. From the second line sendoff in New Orleans to the joyful welcome in Mobile, members of the T4America team witnessed firsthand how much this service means to the people of the Gulf Coast—and just how powerful it is when federal policy and local voices come together to deliver real change.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-107211" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/IMG_7286-1024x768.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="768" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/IMG_7286-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/IMG_7286-300x225.jpg 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/IMG_7286-768x576.jpg 768w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/IMG_7286-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/IMG_7286-2048x1536.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />
The Mardi Gras line is proof of what’s possible when communities organize, elected officials lead, and federal policy supports progress. The same programs and policies that made Gulf Coast rail restoration possible can, and should, be leveraged to expand passenger rail across the country.
To truly build a national passenger rail network, federal policy needs to go beyond one-off projects. That means sustained investment in rail infrastructure, a clearly coordinated national vision, and the authority to deliver service faster and more equitably. Transportation for America’s <a href="https://t4america.org/reauthorization/#policies">new policy proposal</a> lays out a path to make that vision real in the next federal transportation reauthorization. The Mardi Gras line is just the beginning. The future of American passenger rail is ready to leave the station.

Amtrak

Gulf Coast

Mardi Gras

Passenger rail

Two decades in the making: Passenger rail returns to the Gulf Coast

Transportation

Screenshot 2025-08-22 at 12.51.08 PM

On Thursday, July 24th, LOCUS and Smart Growth America hosted the third webinar in the “Building the Stack” series. This series of conversations with real estate developers and community partners focuses on demystifying how to finance and build high-interest projects. This recent webinar focused on innovative approaches to financing housing development and featured three speakers from across the country.
<iframe loading="lazy" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/4TT92PPEMww" width="560" height="314" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Alternative approaches in financing or project development can be slow to move from one community to another. The Building the Stack series is designed to help lift up good ideas and demystify the development of key project types of interest by allowing attendees to explore real case studies with a variety of stakeholders who are developing the projects, providing the financing, or steering development in their communities. This webinar featured leaders championing new models for funding and constructing smart growth-aligned housing types such as co-ops and affordable housing.
The first speaker was Sherry Taylor, the Executive Director of Durham Community Land Trustees, who spoke about the community land trust (CLT) model and two projects in the Durham area. Dave Foster of BDP Impact Real Estate then presented on Community Solutions’ social impact equity fund and its efforts to help nine communities house veterans exiting homelessness by acquiring existing multifamily buildings. Josh Morrison, COO and Co-founder at Frolic Community, then discussed Frolic Community’s work redeveloping rezoned single family lots into multi-family housing co-operatives in partnership with the previous single family homeowner.
<h2>Key takeaways</h2>
Throughout the webinar, a number of key takeaways emerged:
1. Non-conventional financing methods can and have been templated from one place to another. Sherry Taylor discussed the beginnings of the land trust movement and the proliferation of the model across the country since 1969. Dave Foster discussed how Community Solutions is currently in process on Fund II of their Large Cities fund aimed at ending veteran homelessness after Fund I, their initial round, successfully raised capital to support projects in several communities across the country.
2. Non-conventional financing methods offer innovative frameworks for development, but require flexibility and patience from developers and funders to bring projects into reality. Sherry Taylor explained that land trusts provide an overall model for development and perpetual affordability, with several different collaboration options that shape how development occurs. She also discussed the way that taking out the land from a capital stack complicates the financing for a project, requiring creativity from all partners involved to complete the stack. Josh Morrison discussed the complexities of working with a homeowner to convert a single family home and financing through a co-op structure.
3. Non-conventional financing methods can help bring homeownership within reach for a broader range of community members. Both the Frolic model and the community land trust model both deliver affordable homeownership options for community members. While they are not operating at the scale of traditional financing methods, they are helping to fill a critical gap for households traditionally unable to own homes.
4. Constraints of the development ecosystem as it stands are real–but that’s where innovative approaches can help fill the gap. Dave Foster highlighted the way social impact capital was able to deliver affordable units at a fraction of the cost on a much faster timeline than a traditional Low Income Housing Tax Credit project. Sherry Taylor highlighted how the Guthrie Village ADU project took advantage of the ability to add ADUs in her community to create a pocket neighborhood to create affordable, supportive housing for veterans.
Are you a purpose-driven developer or investor? Consider joining Smart Growth America’s <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/programs-and-coalitions/locus/">LOCUS coalition</a>. LOCUS, latin for ‘place’, is a national coalition of real estate developers and investors who advocate for smart growth at the federal level, with occasional work at the state and local levels. LOCUS brings together real estate developers and investors from across the country to change policy and to build neighborhoods that are more economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable for America’s future. LOCUS is driven by the vision of a country in which every person lives in a vibrant and healthy community. Membership provides access to monthly briefings, policy development conversations, and curated newsletters to keep you and your organization informed. Learn more about joining <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/programs-and-coalitions/locus/join-locus/">LOCUS</a>!

affordable housing

Webinars

Building the stack: Innovative approaches to financing housing development webinar recap

Zoning

red bank 3

Complete Streets is not just a term to be slapped onto a policy or resolution. Complete Streets is an approach to road design that not only improves the safety for those walking, biking, or rolling, but also boosts local economies, and helps create resilient and vibrant communities. Strong policies are the first and critical step in the larger process of creating roads that are designed for all users, regardless of their mode, age, or ability.
In 2023 and 2024, <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/signature-reports/best-complete-streets/">43 Complete Streets policies</a> were adopted across the nation as state and local governments try to enable safe road access for a larger variety of users. Many of these policies were from <a href="https://www.nj.gov/transportation/eng/completestreets/pdf/CS_Policy_703_Signed_and_dated.pdf">New Jersey,</a> likely influenced by a new <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/signature-reports/best-complete-streets-state-policies/#:~:text=Policy%20scores%20averaged%20around%2050%20points%20for%20New%20Jersey%20and%20around%2025%20for%20Washington.%20These%20patterns%20may%20be%20driven%20by%20statewide%20incentives%2C%20guidance%2C%20and%20model%20policy%20language%20aimed%20at%20encouraging%20policy%20adoption.">statewide policy</a> that gives special consideration to municipalities that have adopted Complete Streets policies when allocating state and federal transportation funds. Though this sparked many local governments in NJ to create and pass their own Complete Streets policies, the policies that came out of towns varied in quality; the average score of NJ municipalities was only 50. Two, however, stood out amongst the rest. Red Bank and Asbury Park in Monmouth County had some of the best policies from 2023-24, scoring 69 and 70, respectively. Both areas have relatively small populations (less than 15,500) but are known amongst Monmouth county residents to have vibrant downtown areas.
When grading Complete Streets Policies, our criteria specifically looks at the content of the policy and not the projects and changes that result. Although we don’t officially evaluate changes on the ground, we know that strong policies help get the ball rolling for such changes. To see how policies are helping enact change, let’s take a look at the policies and the work being done in two NJ locales: Red Bank and Asbury Park.
<h3>Policies</h3>
Red Bank and Asbury Park stand out especially because of their distinctness from the other NJ policies and NJDOT’s policy, which only scores a 45. Though the statewide policy does a good job of establishing commitment and vision and applying the policy to all projects and phases, it does a much poorer job of prioritizing underinvested and underserved communities, setting criteria for choosing projects, and creating a plan for implementation. In contrast, Red Bank and Asbury Park’s policies scored higher than the state’s policy in many of our <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/resources/elements-complete-streets-policy/">Complete Streets Policy Framework criteria,</a> going beyond the state’s policy.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-107114 size-medium" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Screenshot-2025-08-14-at-12.48.45-PM-300x169.png" alt="" width="300" height="169" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Screenshot-2025-08-14-at-12.48.45-PM-300x169.png 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Screenshot-2025-08-14-at-12.48.45-PM-1024x578.png 1024w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Screenshot-2025-08-14-at-12.48.45-PM-768x434.png 768w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Screenshot-2025-08-14-at-12.48.45-PM.png 1250w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
Red Bank and Asbury Park scored near equal or higher in almost every framework principle; they both do a good job of laying the groundwork for measuring progress of projects—something the statewide policy lacked in. They also both do a better job creating an implementation plan.
<h3>Red Bank</h3>
Red Bank is a small borough with just under 13,000 people and a land area of 1.7 square miles. Though a small area, the downtown district attracts many people from towns all around the county. Due to the commercial shops and restaurants downtown, there’s a high amount of foot traffic. There’s also lots of vehicular pass-through traffic that’s associated with the NJ State Route 35 and Garden State Parkway exit just outside of the borough.
Red Bank’s proximity to the highway and to the train station, as well as its historic character and charm, have made it an enticing borough to live in and commute from; the <a href="https://www.app.com/story/money/2025/01/29/monmouth-county-home-prices-rise-to-second-highest-in-new-jersey/77886186007/#:~:text=13.%20Red%20Bank%3A%20%24671%2C500%2C%20%2B23%25">housing demand in the borough has been increasing steadily.</a> With all the different kinds of traffic already going through the area, Red Bank has a large incentive to ensure walkability and pedestrian safety, not just downtown, but throughout the entire community. A Complete Streets policy has helped Red Bank develop safer multimodal transportation options as the borough continues to grow.
<figure id="attachment_107119" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-107119" style="width: 1024px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-107119 size-large" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/red-bank-1-1024x682.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="682" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/red-bank-1-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/red-bank-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/red-bank-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/red-bank-1-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/red-bank-1.jpg 1600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-107119" class="wp-caption-text">Crosswalk with a drive smart sign at the corner of Canal and Broad Street in Red Bank.</figcaption></figure>
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Red Bank began making meaningful progress under its <a href="https://njbikeped.org/wp-content/uploads/Red-Bank-Resolution-and-Policy-2018.pdf">2018 Complete Streets resolution,</a> using it as a springboard for several community-driven projects. In 2023, the town tested temporary bike lanes through a safety demonstration project aimed at gathering feedback and evaluating permanent changes—explicitly citing the 2018 policy as a guiding framework. That same year, Red Bank announced plans for pedestrian safety upgrades like bump-outs along heavily-trafficked Shrewsbury Avenue. They also added a <a href="https://tworivertimes.com/red-bank-officials-address-growth-change-with-community/">new bike lane</a> on Harrison Street, a residential corridor.
While the 2018 resolution helped establish a vision and support tactical urbanism efforts, it lacked enforceability. The newly-adopted Complete and Green Streets ordinance changes that. It requires all new development projects to implement Complete Streets practices and establishes an advisory committee to investigate pedestrian and bike safety, while also promoting green infrastructure like shade trees and bioswales to make streets cooler and more resilient.
Under their new 2023 Complete Streets policy, Red Bank has started to see new plans and development for projects. Monmouth Street, a road that connects downtown to the train station, is undergoing updates to its pedestrian infrastructure, and the city is developing a transit-oriented, mixed-use space near the station. Additionally, Red Bank received a <a href="https://www.redbanknj.org/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=345">$10,000 grant for a quick build</a> to improve pedestrian safety at the intersection of Leighton Avenue and River Street, a quieter part of the town.
<h3>Asbury Park</h3>
Asbury Park is a bit denser than Red Bank, with just under 15,200 residents and a land area 1.4 square miles. Asbury Park is well known for its boardwalk, which houses the city’s Convention Hall and Carousel, along the shore. As a town that becomes packed in the summer time with lots of foot traffic, providing multiple modes of transportation for people to get from downtown to the shore is imperative.
Asbury Park has long used one-way streets and stop signs to manage downtown traffic, but the city is now shifting toward new safety improvements like adding traffic signals and reconfiguring intersections at Third and Fourth Avenues. These changes build on a foundation laid by the city’s <a href="https://njbikeped.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Asbury-Park-Policy.pdf">2015 Complete Streets policy.</a> In the years since, Asbury Park has updated its <a href="https://asburyparkartscouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/City-of-Asbury-Park-2017-Master-Plan-and-Master-Plan-Re-Examination-Report.pdf">Master Plan</a> (2017), created a Plan for Walking and Biking (2018), and launched several safety projects, including a traffic signal with pedestrian bump-outs at Prospect and Bangs Avenues, currently underway. While the 2015 policy supported these efforts, it lacked requirements for private development and long-term oversight. The new 2024 ordinance addresses those gaps—applying to both public and private projects, formalizing the role of advisory boards, and including a planned policy audit in 2026 to ensure continued accountability.
<figure id="attachment_107116" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-107116" style="width: 1024px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-107116 size-large" src="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/ashbury-1-1024x643.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="643" srcset="https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/ashbury-1-1024x643.jpg 1024w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/ashbury-1-300x188.jpg 300w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/ashbury-1-768x482.jpg 768w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/ashbury-1-1536x965.jpg 1536w, https://wordpress.smartgrowthamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/ashbury-1.jpg 1600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-107116" class="wp-caption-text">The Paramount Theatre and Asbury Park Convention Hall.</figcaption></figure>
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As a result, Asbury Park has <a href="https://www.cityofasburypark.com/369/Ongoing-Construction">a number of ongoing projects</a> that ensure their streets accommodate multiple modes of transportation. On Asbury Avenue, the city is narrowing the roadway as a traffic calming measure and adding additional protected bike lanes. In a similar project, the city is reconstructing Memorial Drive and will add a protected bike lane to that road as well. Through these projects, the city hopes to encourage residents to choose more active modes of transportation.
Both Asbury Park and Red Bank demonstrate that while a policy alone isn’t a silver bullet, it can be a powerful tool for shaping long-term, people-centered change. Their progress shows how clear, enforceable policies—paired with reflection and updates over time—can turn good intentions into tangible improvements for residents, businesses, and the broader community.

Completing the streets in New Jersey: Two municipalities with the best Complete Streets policies

US Capitol Building

This July, Congress passed, and the President signed, a major reconciliation package that marks a breakthrough for affordable housing production in the U.S. By <a href="https://www.housingfinance.com/policy-legislation/house-passes-sweeping-bill-with-lihtc-provisions">expanding the federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program,</a> housing experts, SGA included, expect it to unlock the development of hundreds of thousands of new affordable rental homes nationwide.
The legislation boosts federal funding for LIHTC by 12 percent starting in 2026 for two types of tax credits: 1) so-called “9% projects” that applies a (you guessed it) a 9 percent credit to developers for typically new construction or major rehabilitation under a competitive incentive program, and 2) a set of “4% projects” that usually are used for smaller projects like preservation and some new construction. For the latter, the legislation reduces the amount of bond financing the developer needs from 50 percent to 25 percent, making it easier to finance a project and start construction.
LIHTC is an important national affordability project as it is currently an affordability component of about 210,900 active affordable units, or 4 percent of all U.S. affordable units, according to our analysis of the <a href="https://preservationdatabase.org/">National Housing Preservation Database.</a> Since its establishment in 1986, experts estimate the program has helped finance over <a href="https://taxfoundation.org/research/all/federal/low-income-housing-tax-credit-lihtc/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">3.1 million housing units.</a>
We applaud the federal government’s leadership on this, but the program is only one part of a larger federal framework and a state and local government effort to provide affordability. It advances smart growth by encouraging more building, especially in multifamily properties, but local tools are needed to ensure that these developments are in in-demand <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-center/foot-traffic-ahead-2023/">walkable urban places</a> that provide greater access and <a href="https://www.opportunityatlas.org/">opportunity to residents.</a>
<h3>Why LIHTC sparks smart housing development</h3>
At SGA, we advocate for policies that foster equitable and resilient communities—places where people can live near jobs, transit, and other essential destinations, like schools and grocery stores. LIHTC is a vital tool in advancing these goals, but it does not itself dictate where projects are built, which risks development being pushed to the edges of communities. Here, the program gives states flexibility in how credits are allocated, creating an opportunity to shape housing outcomes that reflect smart growth priorities.
For example, nothing about LIHTC guarantees walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods, housing diversity, and access to jobs and transit—no federal program really does—but it has the potential to support them strongly. This is up to state and local governments to prioritize those outcomes and to leverage LIHTC to incentivize compact development, promote infill reuse, and support transit-accessible housing.
The structure of LIHTC gives state and local governments enough flexibility to align their housing goals with sustainability and equity, especially since these credits are allocated through the states via Qualified Action Plans (QAPs), which states use to allocate the tax credits. (<a href="https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/RS22389">The Congressional Research Service summarizes</a> the specific details of the LIHTC program.) It is plausible for state QAPs to incorporate scoring for energy efficiency, green infrastructure, and access to jobs and services.
States can prioritize projects that support smart growth land-use practices, like promoting infill development, reusing underutilized sites, or developing transit-oriented development (TOD) close to public transit. This type of development could help reduce the costs for households with respect to transportation, as well as reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and expand their access to high-opportunity areas.
Local governments also play a role in maximizing LIHTC’s smart growth. Jurisdictions that streamline permitting, <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/programs-and-coalitions/center-for-zoning-solutions/">update zoning codes,</a> and reduce regulatory barriers can make it easier and more cost-effective to <a href="https://ternercenter.berkeley.edu/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/LIHTC_Construction_Costs_March_2020.pdf">deliver LIHTC-financed projects</a>. Aligning these local tools with the federal credit helps unlock the kind of housing development that smart growth demands.
<h3>LIHTC needs bolstering and leverage</h3>
While the LIHTC program has helped to build millions of affordable homes, it cannot address the nation’s affordability crisis alone, especially in markets where it is most acute. Development financing using these tax credits is often complex, requiring multiple layers of capital, often from federal, state, and local sources, to make any one project viable. In high-cost markets, per-unit costs can exceed $1 million, driven not only by land prices and construction costs but also by prevailing wage requirements, layered subsidy structures, and limited site availability. These local market realities make LIHTC a powerful but incomplete tool, underscoring the need for state and local governments to step in with targeted subsidies, policy alignment, and zoning reforms to bridge the gap between what the federal credit can deliver and what communities truly need.
Additionally, the intricacies of LIHTC financing can create barriers for smaller-scale or mission-driven developers who lack the capital reserves or specialized expertise to navigate multiple application cycles. State and local action can remedy this through certain mechanisms like predevelopment funding, technical assistance, or even set-asides under state QAPs. Without such policy action, small-scale developers risk being shut out of the process, narrowing the diversity of actors building affordable housing.
State and local governments can also use their own funding streams, like housing trust funds, infrastructure grants, and property tax abatements, to deepen affordability for households earning below 30 percent of the area median income. This is particularly important because LIHTC projects alone struggle to r<a href="https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/98758/lithc_how_it_works_and_who_it_serves_final_0.pdf">each extremely low-income renters without additional deep rental subsidies</a> like Housing Choice Vouchers. By strategically combining LIHTC with these local resources, governments can ensure that projects serve a broader range of residents and meet more urgent community needs.
Finally, regulatory alignment at the local level is critical to maximizing the impact of LIHTC. Jurisdictions that streamline permitting, modernize zoning to allow more multifamily development, and reduce excessive parking or setback requirements can lower total development costs and speed up delivery. When paired with targeted state and local funding, these policy shifts can turn LIHTC from a strong federal incentive into the backbone of a comprehensive housing affordability strategy. Such a strategy would produce more units, reach deeper levels of affordability, and locate homes in the kinds of walkable, connected neighborhoods that advance smart growth goals.
<h3>Looking ahead</h3>
Taken together, these state and local actions are not just nice add-ons but the difference between LIHTC being a financing tool and LIHTC being a full-fledged housing solution. The federal credit can open the door, but without the subsidies, policies, and regulations that only state and local governments can provide, too many of those doors will remain closed. Nothing restricts Congress from adding such place-based smart growth requirements to the LIHTC program, but for now, that will remain under the purview of the states.
As members of the ACTION Campaign, SGA fought to support these recent federal reforms and will continue to push for improvements that link LIHTC to deeper affordability, greater location efficiency, and stronger climate outcomes. But the federal win is only the starting point. If we want LIHTC to live up to its potential, we must treat it as just one piece of a coordinated affordability strategy that stacks funding streams, clears regulatory hurdles, and directs development toward places where people can thrive. That is how we turn more tax credits into more homes, in more walkable, connected neighborhoods, for the people who need them most.

Low-Income Housing Tax Credit funding is a smart growth win

Duplex_Missing Middle Housing

As U.S. cities face historic housing shortages and rising costs, one overlooked factor is making things worse: tariffs. Regardless if they stay, tariffs add additional uncertainty, which will impact housing supply for decades to come.
<h3>The hidden crisis</h3>
Tariffs create uncertainty, delay construction, and raise costs in a fragile market. Often seen as abstract, tariffs have real consequences for planners, developers, and communities. With the <a href="https://www.census.gov/housing/hvs/files/currenthvspress.pdf?utm_source=chatgpt.com">homeowner vacancy rate at just 1.1 percent,</a> far below the healthy <a href="https://www.chase.com/personal/mortgage/education/finding-a-home/vacancy-rate">five percent</a> mark, rising costs driven by tariffs are limiting what gets built and who can access it. As affordable homes disappear, renters and buyers face fewer options, shrinking mobility, and stalling community growth. The national rental vacancy rate rose to <a href="https://ycharts.com/indicators/us_rental_vacancy_rate?utm_source=chatgpt.com">7 percent in Q2 2025, from 6.6 percent in Q2 2024</a>, tightening the market. If cities hope to expand affordable, inclusive housing, they must reckon with the hidden obstacle that tariffs place on progress.
Tariffs increase costs up to <a href="https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/canadian-news/us-increases-antidumping-duties-softwood-lumber-2056-percent?utm_source=chatgpt.com">20 percent</a> on softwood lumber from <a href="http://www.nahb.org/news-and-economics/press-releases/2025/02/25-perecent-tariff-hike-on-canadian-and-mexican-goods-harms-housing-affordability">Canada and Mexico,</a> while <a href="https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/real-estate/article/immigration-ice-enforcement-construction-labor-20250188.php?utm_source=chatgpt.com">strict immigration policies</a> worsen labor shortages. Even <a href="https://www.nahb.org/advocacy/top-priorities/building-materials-trade-policy/how-tariffs-impact-home-building">standard projects</a> struggle as prices for lumber, steel, aluminum, and gypsum climb. Since December 2020, building material prices have jumped <a href="http://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/tariffs-on-lumber-appliances-set-stage-for-higher-costs-on-new-homes-and-remodeling-projects?utm_source=chatgpt.com">34 percent,</a> far outpacing inflation and further straining development budgets. Builders say tariffs add <a href="https://www.nahb.org/advocacy/top-priorities/building-materials-trade-policy/how-tariffs-impact-home-building">$10,900 per month in costs</a>. Smart growth projects, <a href="http://www.boston25news.com/news/tariff-whiplash-hud-cuts-could-cripple-affordable-housing-development/3NPPQWMM3FJQHE4LQEBY5IQI7Q/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">especially infill development in existing communities with tight budgets,</a> are hit the hardest. <a href="https://www.transit.dot.gov/TOD">Transit-Oriented Developments</a> (TODs), which depend on imported steel, <a href="https://www.superioraggregates.net/the-role-of-concrete-paving-in-transit-oriented-developments-tod/#:~:text=Asphalt:%20The%20Better%20Option%20for,transportation%20vehicles%20frequently%20pass%20through">concrete</a>, and glass, are now even more vulnerable to <a href="http://www.wsj.com/economy/housing/trump-tariffs-home-construction-prices-housing-market-6549e974">tariff-driven price swings.</a> These developments, vital for walkable, connected neighborhoods, are most vulnerable to delays or never getting off the ground due to these increased costs.
<h3>Predicted results as tariffs continue</h3>
1. Housing prices could rise: Tariffs inflate material costs, especially for “for-sale” homes where buyers face the full cost, pricing out families. <a href="https://mediaroom.realtor.com/2025-03-10-U-S-Housing-Market-Faces-4-Million-Home-Shortage-Realtor-com-R-Calls-on-Lawmakers-to-Let-America-Build?utm_source=chatgpt.com">With a nationwide shortage of 4 million homes,</a> fewer new builds will likely lead to increased competition and higher costs. Housing drives nearly 15 percent of GDP and generates about $1 million and 11 jobs per home, so slowdowns will also trickle down to <a href="https://www.nahb.org/-/media/NAHB/news-and-economics/docs/housing-economics/economic-impact/economic-impact-local-area-2015.pdf">local economies.</a>
2. Multi-family and affordable housing will slow: These projects rely on tight budgets, and their funding depends on government programs like the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC); <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2025/06/06/these-publicly-funded-homes-poor-cost-12-million-each-develop/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">even small cost increases threaten project viability.</a> Tariffs and high costs make projects “pencil out,” meaning they’re financially unviable.
3. Single-family home prices will keep climbing: Fewer new homes mean rising prices for existing homes that will become more expensive, a trend evident in today’s <a href="https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2022/05/housing-vacancy-rates-near-historic-lows.html">low vacancy rates.</a> Homeowners locked into low mortgage rates will have little incentive to sell, further constraining supply. This means fewer listings, more bidding wars, and widening wealth gaps between current homeowners and those trying to enter the market.
4. Developers will be forced to adapt or leave: Unlike large firms, small and infill-focused developers can’t easily absorb cost spikes. Without support, <a href="http://www.constructionowners.com/news/developers-struggling-with-high-rates-tariffs-and-rising-costs?utm_source=chatgpt.com">many will pause development or leave altogether,</a> cutting off a piece of community-driven growth.
<h3>Future-proofing housing</h3>
Communities don’t have to wait for federal policy to act. By using these smart growth strategies, local leaders can guard against rising costs:
<ul>
<li>Zoning and regulatory reform
<ul>
<li>Make building easier: <a href="http://catalisgov.com/streamlining-building-code-enforcement-with-innovative-software-solutions/">Streamlined codes</a> and faster approvals from local governments can help make projects viable despite rising material costs.</li>
<li>Support Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) and tiny homes: These small, affordable options use fewer materials and cost less to build. By loosening zoning and parking rules, cities can more easily add these homes in existing neighborhoods</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Expand diverse housing types
<ul>
<li>Support manufactured and masonry housing: <a href="http://www.bankrate.com/real-estate/what-is-a-manufactured-home/">Manufactured homes,</a> built in factories, are cheaper and less wasteful than traditional homes. Cities can boost supply by easing zoning regulations, relaxing design requirements, and clarifying inspection procedures. <a href="http://www.wallderstucco.com/understanding-the-definition-and-characteristics-of-a-masonry-house/">Masonry homes,</a> made from brick, stone, or concrete, use fewer imported materials, providing a stable and cost-effective option for the long term.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Leverage broader planning and incentives 
<ul>
<li>Collaboration and incentives: By coordinating regional plans and offering incentives like tax breaks, <a href="https://www.planetizen.com/definition/density-bonuses">density bonuses,</a> and fee reductions, cities can support walkable, transit-connected neighborhoods that use existing infrastructure efficiently, help developers absorb tariff-driven costs, and keep projects stable.</li>
<li>Engage in regional and collaborative planning: Tariffs and supply issues are too big for one city; regional coordination is essential. By pooling and advocating together, cities can drive stronger, more lasting solutions.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Building resilience amid tariffs</h3>
Tariffs and rising costs can feel overwhelming, but communities aren’t powerless. Local governments can act now, speeding up approvals and supporting affordable housing like ADUs, manufactured homes, and masonry construction. Residents can share their stories with advocacy groups to push for smarter trade policies. This is a chance to rethink how we build. With the right local action, communities can ease tariff pressures and create stronger, more affordable housing markets.

Tariffs and housing: Challenges and local solutions 

Capitol for Chapter Cover

In the recently passed giant tax and spending bill, key community development tax incentives were made permanent. But with everything else in the package, what does the bill really mean for smart growth?
Last month, Congress passed a sweeping tax and spending package that delivers several important wins for community development, most notably, the permanent extension of key federal tax incentives that form the backbone of local revitalization efforts. These long-standing tools will continue to support economic growth in communities across the country.
But the legislation also missed critical opportunities. Lawmakers failed to add a much-needed <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/news/reinvigorating-opportunity-zones-to-deliver-housing-and-smart-growth/">affordable housing incentive to the Opportunity Zones program</a> and left out promising new proposals like the <a href="https://www.neighborhoodhomesinvestmentact.org">Neighborhood Homes Investment Act.</a>
Beyond community development, the bill’s partisan passage and massive deficit spending have further strained Congress’s ability to govern and could destabilize communities as thousands of people stand to lose access to federal benefits.
So what does this mean for smart growth? How will this legislation shape the future of our communities? To answer those questions, we’re breaking it down: the good, the bad, and the ugly from a smart growth perspective.
<h3>The Good: Key wins on extensions of community development tax incentives</h3>
As previously noted in our <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/news/the-play-for-permanence-the-fate-of-community-development-tax-provisions-in-the-senates-draft-tax-legislation/">coverage of the tax deliberations,</a> the federal tax code serves as a critical vehicle for steering development through tax incentives such as the <a href="https://taxpolicycenter.org/briefing-book/what-low-income-housing-tax-credit-and-how-does-it-work">Low-Income Housing Tax Credit</a> (LIHTC), the <a href="https://taxpolicycenter.org/briefing-book/what-new-markets-tax-credit-and-how-does-it-work">New Markets Tax Credit</a> (NMTC), and the <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/news/opportunity-zones-for-impact-tell-congress-to-pass-reforms-to-the-federal-opportunity-zone-tax-incentive/">Opportunity Zones program</a> (OZs), and the near-term fate of these incentives was closely tied to the passage or failure of the overall package. These incentives broadly attract capital to lower income communities, either by providing a tax credit to investors who provide funding for the construction of affordable housing (LIHTC), providing a tax credit to investors who make equity investments in community based development entities who in turn provide loans and investments to local businesses (NMTC), or by providing a tax relief to investors who make investments in certain properties or businesses within certain geographic areas (OZs).
The final version of the tax bill removed any sunset date for these three incentives, functionally making them permanent. Permanence is a major win for community development. Eliminating sunset dates provides greater stability and makes the continued existence of these programs the status quo. While a significant win, it is important to note that the next major tax bill could always add sunset dates for programs that were made permanent by this bill. However, that is only a real threat for programs that do not have strong bipartisan support and of the three programs, only Opportunity Zones fall into that category. The Opportunity Zones program saw sweeping changes, including the addition of reporting requirements, changes to the universe of eligible census tracts, a cyclical redesignation process to account for changes in wellbeing in census tracts, and enhanced support for OZ investment in rural areas.
The final legislation also protects tax exemptions for municipal bonds, which are a critical tool <a href="https://www.cdfa.net/cdfa/cdfaweb.nsf/48fc5ad035ef5f7b882578e7005f7d66/cc45420ef12f69798825793d005e79bc/$FILE/CDFA-Built-by-Bonds.pdf">communities use to finance essential infrastructure</a> like schools, libraries, hospitals, bridges, water management systems, and certain housing projects. Additionally, the bill<a href="https://www.brookings.edu/articles/the-hutchins-center-explains-the-debt-limit/"> increased the debt limit</a>, allowing the federal government to continue paying its bills and avoiding the risk of a financial catastrophe.
<h3>The Bad: Cutting existing smart growth-aligned programs and missing the opportunity to add new tools to support growth</h3>
From the smart growth perspective, there are a number of key failures of the bill. First, the legislation <a href="https://t4america.org/2025/07/08/congresss-new-budget-reconciliation-bill-takes-back-billions-from-locally-led-projects-across-the-country/">gutted the Neighborhood Access and Equity grant program,</a> recapturing $2.4 billion that was already awarded to specific projects aimed at reconnecting communities and making significant and long-overdue safety improvements required after harmful transportation projects tore apart neighborhoods. The harm to community-focused grant programs was made worse by steep cuts to transportation grants aimed at reducing emissions.
Despite the positive changes to the Opportunity Zones program, the bill left out additional reforms that could have supported more location-efficient, mixed-income, and rehabilitation-focused projects. These SGA-backed provisions included targeted incentives for income-capped affordable housing, a broader fix to make the incentive more usable for rehabilitation projects, and a LOCUS-proposed measure to support OZ investments in downtowns—whether urban, suburban, or rural main streets. For a program that has faced consistent criticism, this was a missed chance to sharpen the tool and steer investment not just to areas that need it most, but toward truly high-impact projects.
The final bill also failed to include new, forward-looking tax provisions that could have leveraged the federal tax code to more intentionally drive investment in downtowns, main streets, and walkable, well-connected neighborhoods. Among the missed provisions were the brownfields tax deduction, which would allow full, upfront deductions for cleaning up contaminated sites, the <a href="https://www.neighborhoodhomesinvestmentact.org">Neighborhood Homes Investment Act’s proposed homebuilding incentive</a>, and the <a href="https://gomez.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=3346">Revitalizing Downtowns and Main Streets Act of 2025,</a> which would have supported converting vacant or underused commercial buildings into much-needed housing.
<h3>The Ugly: Contradictions in the bill will shake communities</h3>
The final bill is a little bit of everything. By its very essence then, it is inconsistent in its approach to community wellbeing and smart growth. Cuts to food assistance and Medicaid sit uneasily alongside expansions in the Child Tax Credit and a new tax deduction for seniors. Families may see more money in their pockets while facing the threat of their local hospital or food bank closing. Meanwhile, reductions to green energy incentives (often criticized as <a href="https://apnews.com/article/clean-energy-residential-solar-big-beautiful-bill-07dd482926ee2d45a019ce2b6e636c7d">industry handouts</a>) could lead to <a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/07/15/nx-s1-5461128/congress-energy-tax-credit-solar-wind">higher electricity bills over time,</a> adding financial strain to households already stretched thin. More affordable housing projects funded by the Low Income Housing Tax Credit may help house more low-income families but increasing utility costs, increasingly limited options for affordable and accessible healthcare, and a vanishing social safety net may push even more families into housing instability.
On top of this, the broader economic picture complicates matters further. A nonpartisan congressional office <a href="https://www.cbo.gov/publication/61570">estimates</a> that the legislation will add over $3 trillion to the national deficit over the next decade. While the bill includes some tax changes framed pro-business and pro-growth, independent <a href="https://budgetmodel.wharton.upenn.edu/issues/2025/7/8/president-trump-signed-reconciliation-bill-budget-economic-and-distributional-effects">analyses predic</a>t the law could actually shrink GDP by 0.3 percent over that same period. These competing forces raise serious questions about the future of municipal budgets and household finances alike.
<h3>Conclusion</h3>
As the federal government implements the tax law and continues to dance through cycles of generosity and retreat, communities will continue to face change and uncertainty. What kind of partner will the federal government be for smart growth? An inconsistent one, certainly, as cuts or shifts in key programs and initiatives always indicate, but not one without tools to share. Making the most of available incentives and funding will be essential, as will understanding and communicating both the direct and ripple effects this legislation has on communities nationwide. These impacts won’t always be obvious, but it is those quiet ways that policy shapes the world that springs up around us that smart growthers know best.

Federal legislation

The good, the bad, and the ugly: The 2025 tax bill and smart growth

REQUEST-FOR-PROPOSAL

<h3>About Smart Growth America (SGA)</h3>
Smart Growth America (SGA) is a national nonprofit organization headquartered in Washington, DC, that helps create healthy, prosperous, and resilient places to live for all people through research, advocacy, and direct community support. Our work spans housing and land use, transportation, and economic development to find solutions to communities’ most pressing needs. Through technical assistance, advocacy, and thought 
leadership, we support communities in achieving livable places, healthy people, and shared prosperity.
<h3>Goals and objectives</h3>
SGA seeks an experienced fundraising consultant (either an individual or a small firm) to build and implement a strategy to identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward a portfolio of high-capacity individual donors. The selected consultant will work closely with our leadership team to enhance SGA’s long-term fundraising capacity and impact.The primary goals for this engagement include:
<ul>
<li>Fundraising Systems Development</li>
<li>Prospect Identification and Cultivation</li>
<li>Donor Engagement and Solicitation Support</li>
</ul>
<h3 class="wp-block-spacer" style="height: 20px;" aria-hidden="true">Fixed-fee scope and deliverables</h3>
Scope includes:
<ul>
<li style="list-style-type: none;">
<ul>
<li>Assessment of current fundraising efforts and infrastructure</li>
<li>Major donor development strategy and tactical implementation plan</li>
<li>List of at least 30 potential high-capacity prospects with alignment rationale</li>
<li>Coaching and solicitation prep sessions with key staff/board members (at least 3)</li>
<li>Draft of donor cultivation and stewardship materials</li>
<li>Progress report and final strategy refinement</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="wp-block-spacer" style="height: 20px;" aria-hidden="true"> </div>
<div class="wp-block-spacer" style="height: 20px;" aria-hidden="true">
Deliverables include:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Plan for Major Donor Development</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Donor Prospecting List with Background Profiles</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Solicitation Coaching Materials</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Donor Communication Templates</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Progress Summary Report (Final)</li>
</ul>
<h3>Budget</h3>
SGA has budgeted up to $25,000-$40,000 for this job. SGA will take value and cost into account in assessing proposals.
<h3>Additional services: Hourly rate proposal</h3>
SGA may seek continued fundraising support beyond the initial scope. Additional services could include:
<ul>
<li>Event strategy and implementation (e.g., donor salons, briefings)</li>
<li>Donor communications and campaign copywriting</li>
<li>Continued prospect identification</li>
<li>Research and relationship mapping for new sectors or regions</li>
</ul>
<h3>Submission requirements</h3>
Proposals (maximum 10 pages) must include:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Background and relevant experience, particularly in developing individual major donors</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Description of approach and proposed work plan, including a fundraising goal</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Two (2) references for similar fundraising work</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Fixed-price proposal for the deliverables described above</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Hourly rates for any additional fundraising services</li>
</ul>
<h3>Application process and timeline</h3>
Please submit your proposal by August 29, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. ET via email to Ashley Heckstall, Senior Manager, Events and Development: <a href="mailto:aheckstall@smartgrowthamerica.org">aheckstall@smartgrowthamerica.org. </a>Subject line should read: Major Donor Fundraising RFP
Estimated project timeline:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">RFP Issued: August 1, 2025</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Proposal Deadline: August 29, 2025</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Finalist Interviews: Week of September 8, 2025</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Consultant Selected: September 19, 2025</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Project Kickoff: September 25, 2025</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Midpoint Check-in: Week of February 23,  2026</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Project Completion: September 24, 2026</li>
</ul>
<h3>Evaluation and selection</h3>
SGA is committed to full and open competition and encourages submissions from small, disadvantaged, minority, and women-owned businesses. Proposals will be evaluated based on:
<ul>
<li style="list-style-type: none;">
<ul>
<li>Strength of experience and qualifications of key personnel</li>
<li>Experience working with nonprofit organizations at SGA’s size</li>
<li>Cost competitiveness and value</li>
<li>Proposed approach</li>
<li>Understanding of and alignment with SGA’s mission</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="wp-block-spacer" style="height: 20px;" aria-hidden="true"> </div>
SGA will also consider other benefits associated with the procurement in the selection process including, but not limited to, the opportunity to use small, disadvantaged, and minority and/or woman-owned firms or individual consultants.
SGA would consider extending this contract into additional years, based on the success of the effort. SGA may discontinue this RFP at any time at its discretion and without explanation.
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
</div>

Fundraising

Request for Proposal

Request for proposals: Fundraising consultant for major donor development

General

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The Smart Growth Network’s latest quarterly discussion explored how communities are using infrastructure to prepare for extreme weather. Participants learned about a community-led resilience hub and a stormwater credit trading program to promote green infrastructure in Washington, DC, and a holistic flood resilience project in Kansas City, MO.
<iframe loading="lazy" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Tm19GH0p6lg" width="560" height="314" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
The <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/smart-growth-network/">Smart Growth Network (SGN)</a> is a national alliance of advocates, practitioners, policymakers, and local leaders working towards a shared vision for land use and infrastructure policies and actions that result in healthy, sustainable, and prosperous communities for all. SGN’s quarterly discussions cover a variety of topics related to smart growth, including <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/smart-growth-in-rural-communities-key-takeaways-from-the-latest-smart-growth-network-convening/">smart growth for rural places</a> and <a href="https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/march-smart-growth-roundtable-when-data-meets-community/">community data strategies</a>. Hosted by Urban Land Institute (ULI), this discussion focused on building resilience in the face of extreme weather, from blue green infrastructure to community infrastructure, and the partnerships necessary for this work.
[button type=&#8221;info&#8221; block=&#8221;true&#8221; size=&#8221;lg&#8221; link=&#8221;https://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/knowledge-hub/resources/housing-for-havens/&#8221;]Learn more about building for resilience in Smart Growth America’s new Housing for Havens report [/button]
Rachel MacClery, Executive Director of the ULI Randall Lewis Center for Sustainability in Real Estate, kicked off the discussion with a presentation of ULI resources on resilience. She uplifted the work of the <a href="https://americas.uli.org/research/centers-initiatives/uli-randall-lewis-center-for-sustainability-in-real-estate/urban-resilience-program/drought-resilience/learn-more-about-water-wise-coalition/">Water Wise Development Coalition,</a> which supports conversations between the public and private sectors to advance policies and building strategies for drought resilience. Additionally, she shared information on convenings held by the <a href="https://americas.uli.org/research/centers-initiatives/uli-randall-lewis-center-for-sustainability-in-real-estate/center-leadership-and-center-wide-programming/lewis-center-sustainability-exchange/">Lewis Center Sustainability Exchange</a>, which cover sustainability topics ranging from innovative technology to building operations, as part of ULI’s Lewis Center.
The panel at the center of this discussion looked at how communities are using infrastructure to prepare for extreme weather. Moderated by Lindsay Brugger, vice president of resilience at ULI, the panel included:
<ul>
<li>Matt Johnson, a Supervisory Environmental Protection Specialist at Washington, DC’s Department of Energy and the Environment (DOEE)</li>
<li>Dr. Estelle-Marie Montgomery, Executive Director of the FH Faunteroy Center &amp; Resilience Incubator; and</li>
<li>Andy Sauer, National Stormwater Management Practice Leader at engineering firm Burns &amp; McDonnell
<div class="wp-block-spacer" style="height: 20px;" aria-hidden="true"> </div>
</li>
</ul>
Matt Johnson presented Washington, DC’s <a href="https://doee.dc.gov/src">stormwater retention credit</a> market, a financing model that accelerates green stormwater infrastructure where it is needed the most. DC has significant challenges with stormwater, such as flooding, erosion, and pollution. To mitigate some of these impacts, DC’s stormwater rule requires redevelopment projects to manage stormwater with green infrastructure. Since not all locations are able to meet these requirements on site, while others may have the space to build more green infrastructure than is required, the city’s credit market turns this mismatch into a supply and demand solution. Landowners can voluntarily install green infrastructure to generate credits that can be sold to property owners who can’t meet their stormwater requirements on site. This innovative market structure can be a model for urban stormwater improvement elsewhere.
Andy Sauer focused on one particular effort in Kansas City, MO: the <a href="https://www.burnsmcd.com/projects/westport-stormwater-improvements">stormwater improvement project</a> in the historic Westport neighborhood. Flooding is common in this neighborhood, as <a href="https://blog.burnsmcd.com/from-flooding-to-flourishing-upgrading-westports-stormwater-management">Mill Creek</a> was buried into the sewer system and paved over as Mill Street when the area was developing. The solution to this flooding challenge is holistic systems planning and design that connects resilience and sustainability. Looking at the whole system, Sauer’s team designed infrastructure that would “capture, control, and convey” stormwater. This approach holds runoff underground during a storm and then slowly releases it, mitigating flooding and erosion. The Westport project includes green infrastructure and large underground cisterns to store stormwater beneath Dr. Jeremiah Cameron Park. When designing the system, engineers on Sauer’s team created a model of the flood events and then calibrated the model with photos of flooding from the community. This both validated the model and helped build buy-in and trust with the neighborhood.
Dr. Montgomery brought in the social component of resilience by sharing the development of Washington DC’s first community-led resilience hub: the <a href="https://faunteroycenter.org/">FH Faunteroy Center &amp; Resilience Incubator.</a> According to the <a href="https://doee.dc.gov/service/community-resilience-hubs">DOEE</a>, these hubs are “public-serving facilities that provide information and services to build resilient communities before, during and after emergency events.” In 2017, DOEE approached Ward 7, an area of the city where 87 percent of single-family homes are in the floodplain, and the community not only liked the idea, but decided the best way to build trust with DOEE was to take the process over. The community coalition identified a community-based organization to lead the planning process, which resulted in constructing 7,000 square feet of programmable space that includes maker spaces, community gathering areas, a business center, and a health &amp; wellness center—all built to withstand potential floods in this flood-vulnerable area while building community resilience.
After the panel, attendees had the opportunity to engage with the panelists and learn more about their organizations’ efforts. A key theme discussed was strategies to build coalitions around these projects that include public and private actors as well as community buy-in. Panelists noted that public initiative was crucial, as it sends a message to the private sector and to communities that threats from extreme weather are serious—and so are efforts to address them. Panelists also highlighted the need to emphasize the impacts of extreme weather on all stakeholders. For community members, that means listening to what their top concerns are and being willing to let their input guide the project vision. For the private sector, that means discussing the costs that preparing for and recovering from extreme weather may impose on their activities and the benefits of collaborating to address them.
In closing statements, panelists again emphasized a need to work holistically, looking beyond traditional approaches to resilient infrastructure by incorporating green components and advancing community social resilience. New and innovative solutions, although they may garner negative feedback, can also sometimes be the best approach to creating more resilient communities.

June Smart Growth Roundtable: Building community through climate resilience

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