How to improve Maryland's smart-growth initiative

Maryland planners, policy advocates, consultants, and developers recently were surveyed by the University of Maryland National Center for Smart Growth about the state’s pioneering smart growth program. Though the survey’s size was small, reaching only 47 individuals, the Center drew these conclusions:

• Most of those surveyed think government-designated Priority Funding Areas (PFAs) are “only somewhat effective or not effective at all” in channeling development into central or higher-density areas. “In theory, PFAs can provide the opportunity to reduce uncertainty and development costs by coordinating state and local infrastructure investments,” conclude the study’s authors, Casey Dawkins, Jason Sartori, and Gerrit-Jan Knaap. Local governments have, in some instances, reduced impact fees and expedited the review process within their PFAs, but those actions are “more the exception than the rule,” the three say.

• Most interviewees believe it’s more difficult to develop land inside a PFA than outside it. One reason is citizen opposition, which tends to be stronger inside PFAs, because there are more constituencies to be satisfied. Another is the difficulty of assembling multiple parcels of land. Also, “parking must often be built as structured parking below-grade, increasing construction costs.” In addition, environmental regulations may be more difficult to comply with, “due to the higher probability of soil contamination combined with additional requirements to achieve LEED certification.”

• High-rise apartments and mixed-use developments are viewed as the most difficult products to develop within PFAs. Citizen opposition, land availability, economic return, and infrastructure capacity were cited as obstacles.

The most influential public policy tools for making the smart growth initiative more successful are zoning and adequate infrastructure, the authors conclude. They recommend targeting state infrastructure spending to sections of PFAs where a lack of adequate public facilities has resulted in development moratoriums.

They also suggest requiring local governments to allow high-density and mixed-use developments as part of their comprehensive plans. They do not call for mandating such development, however. Governor Parris Glendening launched the smart growth program in 1997.