Posted on 04/15/2006 5:12:19 PM PDT by Lorianne
Smart growth. Low-impact construction. Sustainable development. Open-space ordinances. Greenway planning.
These land-use buzz phrases are not new, but some environmentalists think they're also not used nearly enough by local planners, developers, contractors and even homeowners.
Enter the Chicago Wilderness consortium, an alliance of 190 organizations in the Chicago metro region -- including several in Northwest Indiana -- eager to assist, educate and work hands-on with new developments.
One development -- singled out by consortium members as a model development in the making -- is Portage's effort to recapture part of the Lake Michigan shoreline and create a beachfront park through Phase 1 of the Marquette Greenway proposal.
Another example is the new Porter County tourism visitor center under construction, built with smart-growth design principles in mind, said Tom Anderson, director of Save the Dunes Council, a longtime member.
Members are eager to help local residents who want to protect the region's biodiversity, enhance their property and improve property values with good conservation designs.
"Chicago Wilderness can provide the methodology, the tools, even funding help," Anderson said.
Consortium members include experts, government agencies and municipal departments more prepared to help than ever before, said Reggie Korthals, environmental director for the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission.
"Local planners have identified a need of more education for smart growth and conservation design principles, and this is what Chicago Wilderness can do," Korthals said.
NIRPC is part of the consortium that reached a new critical mass in this region by joining forces with the Porter County Plan Commission, the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore and the city of Portage, among others.
Another prime example of smart development in the region is Coffee Creek Center in Chesterton, a 640-acre new urbanism project developed to include a 167-acre Coffee Creek Watershed Preserve, marked for protection from development and beautified with prairie grasses and native plants.
However, Korthals is somewhat critical of the development, noting it has neither met initial expectations nor grown as fast as it should have.
But Anderson suggested giving it time, hinting at a large new development within the center.
Anderson, Korthals and Wendy Smith, education coordinator of the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, are unsure if planners of the proposed hotel inside Indiana Dunes State Park will ask the consortium for help. But they hope so.
Other "biodiversity recovery projects" currently under way across the region include the Marquette Park lagoons, and a seven-mile, 500-foot wide, north-south utility corridor, owned by Nisource Inc., that's being restored.
Local environmental activist Lee Botts, of Miller, is creating a master "restoration inventory" of projects completed or under way, expected for completion this fall, to showcase Northwest Indiana's triumphs -- and needs.
Korthals singled out key "go-to planners" in the region who have their pulse on such smart growth, including A.J. Monroe, Portage's director of community development and planning, and Bob Thompson, director of the Porter County Planning Department.
Consortium members said local planners have expressed interest in learning more about environmentally friendly development practices, but there simply weren't enough people or resources organized to serve their needs. Until now.
CASEY RIFFE | THE TIMES Grass grows around an insulated metal beam that litters an area of the Portage beachfront at the mouth of the Burns Waterway. The area is to be made into a public-access park, beach and recreation area.
Agenda 21
My town is full of parks, the only ones used are the ball parks.
I love the term "smart growth". That indicates any other idea than their agenda is "stupid growth."
Seize the terminology. That's the critical first step.
Oh goody. Can we live 500 people/acre the way that Club Sierra wants us to? (yes, this is actually true).
Environment supporters think smart growth is when they put homes so close together you can speak to your neighbor with two tin cans and a string. They think that a good view is being able to look out your bathroom window directly into your neighbors that is 5 feet away.They think that 3 feet of grass between your neighbors home and yours is more than adequate. They think these homes should sell for $500,000 dollars. and they do. Huge houses on lots barely big enough to spit without getting it on your neighbors lawn.
Wilderness in Chicago? LOL Thought it ws The Jungle.
If municipalities would adopt a land-value tax instead of the more socialistic property tax, smart growth would occur on its own.
Same here. Lots of parks. Lots of extra effort for law enforcement to patrol. Few users. Lots of maintenance for water and cutting grass. The ball park areas add extra trouble by encouraging people to fill all the available parking in the adjoining neighborhood streets. That necessitates special parking permits for the residents and extra work for parking enforcement to ticket parties who don't belong there. There is also a cost for lighting the ballpark areas...others are closed at sunset. There is also the public restroom problem. A target for vandalism and a location of opportunity for child pervert predators. All in all, the parks are a really bad deal.
The free market at work.
I passed a softball park at 3AM, coming in from out of town to see it was all lit up and do mean all.
You are probably right.IMO people who buy these shacks are far from smart. You can buy a nice place off by itself for less. You just have to shop around.
The average joe thinks that is free because nobody is charging admission at the gate. That average joe probably isn't a property tax payer. There is no free lunch. The lawn mowing staff gets paid $10/hour.
Astute observation. Definitions are the guardians of reason and logic.
Sound familiar?
The Soviet Union collapsed, so we're trying to recreate it here.
They need Dr. Pianka as a consultant for 'extra smart' growth.
Me neither. You couldn't pay me to live in a HOA neighborhood. Yet, many people like them ... see them as a protection of their property values.
I'll take the risk the next door neighbor will paint his house pink and put his lawn trimmings in the wrong color bag
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