[CPEO-BIF] How neighborhoods can deal with proposed developments

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

Press Release
The Smarter Land Use Project

NEIGHBORHOODS GET NEW SOLUTION FOR DEALING WITH PROPOSED DEVELOPMENTS - 
LESS DISPUTING, MORE ACCOMPLISHED


Dateline:  January 11, 2006 ... Northampton, MA
Contact Name: Karl Kehde
Web Address:  http://www.landuse.org

When neighbors, city officials and developers meet to discuss a proposed 
project, such as a new residential or commercial project, friction among 
the three can be time consuming and aggravating, and lead to costly 
litigation as well as unappealing land development.

For the past 12 years several foundations in concert with the New Jersey 
Department of Community Affairs have funded independent research to find 
a solution.  And they discovered one.  It's a do-it-yourself, 
collaborative process that is led, surprisingly, by neighbors of the 
proposed project. A website http://www.landuse.org has been set up to 
provide, for free download, the guidebook for the new process along with 
testimonials, a history of the research, and other useful materials.

Refreshing, creative thinking in land use decision-making can happen 
when neighborhood, developer, and city planner share ideas in a friendly 
setting.  Seems unlikely. Yet, according to Karl Kehde, the principle 
researcher who participated in more than 500 meetings between neighbors, 
developers, and city officials, "When the neighbors of a proposed 
project initiate this collaborative procedure, usually everyone 
participates -- regardless of past confrontation."

"There is a lot more room for cooperation than you ever dream.  We get 
so fixated on our own interests and the potential for conflict that it 
becomes a recipe for head-butting and we miss the fact that there is 
huge common ground," said Dana Cochran, a neighbor who used the 
procedure in New Jersey.  With improved relationships between the 
participants, development density and architecture can change.  Features 
like parks, recreational facilities, walk and bike paths, and community 
buildings can be included to enhance the original neighborhood

"Achieving a sense of community among all land development stakeholders 
is the road to the best economic growth," says Kehde, "We discovered a 
step-by-step procedure that mends relationships across the board and 
achieves profitable development designed specifically to benefit the 
surrounding neighborhood. Using this process, proposed land development 
can become the catalyst for inclusive cooperation in a community.  It's 
an effective resource throughout project design and permitting."

For more information visit www.landuse.org or contact Karl Kehde at 
karl@landuse.org.

--


Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org

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