WHAT IS "SMART GROWTH?"--REALLY?

The term "smart growth" has been adopted by many different organizations for an array of very different policies. The term thus may have lost specificity and even meaningful content due to the divergent perceptions and agendas of the organizations using the term. This paper is a preliminary effort to parse the different meanings of smart growth currently in use and to assess the range of approaches and activities now promulgated under the smart growth label. Smart growth statements from ten national organizations with diverged land use agendas are reviewed. Despite their differing agenda, their broad conceptual definitions are found to converge. Turning to implementation efforts, the authors then review 49 documents regarding policies and programs in Georgia and Kentucky. The documents exhibit extreme variety in the meanings ascribed to smart growth. Few of the plans and policies incorporate multiple interventions, which is a key dimension of the smart growth approach as described by the national groups. The review also suggests that there is little reason to assume a great deal of commonality in the implementation process and emphasis between two or more programs sharing the smart growth label.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/08854122
• Corporate Authors:

  Sage Publications, Incorporated

  2455 Teller Road
  Thousand Oaks, CA  United States  91320
• Authors:
  • Ye, L
  • Mandpe, S
  • Meyer, P B
• Publication Date: 2005-2

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: p. 300-315
• Serial:
  • Journal of Planning Literature
  • Volume: 19
  • Issue Number: 3
  • Publisher: Sage Publications, Incorporated
  • ISSN: 0885-4122
  • Serial URL: http://journals.sagepub.com/home/jpl

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Definitions; Land use planning; Literature reviews; Organizations; Plan implementation; Policy analysis; Smart growth; State government agencies
• Geographic Terms: Georgia; Kentucky
• Subject Areas: Highways; Planning and Forecasting; Policy; Public Transportation; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00986639
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Feb 14 2005 12:00AM