SPUR Citizen Planning Institute Series: Fourth Session
Session Four: Challenges of Placemaking
“The Bay Area’s population is growing. How do we grow sustainably? In this session, we will develop an understanding of Greenbelt Alliance’s groundbreaking Grow Smart Bay Area research, which shows that our region has plenty of room to accommodate projected new jobs and housing in climate-friendly walkable neighborhoods in our existing cities and towns while protecting the region’s greenbelt of natural lands. We will also examine the value proposition associated with “low carbon” development and the challenges associated with dense projects in soft market locations. These issues are relevant to most locations in the Bay Area where increased density would be beneficial from a carbon reduction perspective, but where the market is not yet strong enough to support the associated development costs. We will also discuss the coming demand for dense housing driven by changing demographic trends and for intensified employment centers necessary to support the region’s ongoing economic growth. With Stephanie Reyes, Greenbelt Alliance and Dena Belzer, Strategic Economcs.
About the SPUR Citizen Planning Institute Series:
“As individuals, institutions and governments struggle with the implications of global warming and climate change, we are faced with a dizzying array of possible actions. Continuing to make smart personal and political choices is essential to try and stave off the worst disasters of global warming. But something much bigger needs to happen—a change in the course of business as usual. In this first series of new informative programs at the new SPUR Urban Center, we will focus on what we can do at the community level, from the perspective of good government and good planning, to reduce CO2 emissions. Responding to the legislative context, we will focusing on greener buildings, smarter land use, more efficient transportation and market responses.
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