In the News

from the Independent-Record, Helena, MT, 11.20.04

Big Sky or big sprawl

By MARTIN J. KIDSTON

The fourth annual Big Sky or Sprawl Conference opened Friday at Carroll College, bringing together national experts to address current trends in growth and development, and how to make that growth advantageous for communities.

Parris Glendening, the former governor of Maryland who is credited for building one of the most effective statewide smart growth programs, served as the keynote speaker.

Glendening was followed later in the day by gov.-elect Brian Schweitzer.

In his 20-minute address, Schweitzer urged smart growth advocates, including those from the building community, to dedicate their best and brightest members in helping lead the state through its next transition.

"If we want communities we'll be proud of 20 years from now, we need to start collaborating," Schweitzer said. "We're not looking at the next year, or even the next five years, but at the overall future of Montana." When someone from the Bitterroot Valley asked what he could do to build better planning at the county level, Schweitzer recommended voting for progressive representatives.

"Send me a Legislature that's looking toward the future and not to the past," Schweitzer said. "You've got to elect people that embrace planning. This has to be done at the grassroots level. This has to be from the ground up."

Schweitzer promised a new approach to highway planning within the Montana Department of Transportation. He also said he would restore funding for the Made in Montana program.

"That's already done," he said. "The name Montana has significant value."

Schweitzer then addressed affordable housing, a common topic when discussing smart growth. He attributed the high cost of housing, in part, to the high cost of land.

"When we talk about affordable housing, we have to put those houses where the jobs are," Schweitzer said, adding that affordable housing needs to be built near a city's job center.

After Schweitzer spoke, Tim Davis, a member of the Montana Smart Growth Coalition, said the group will introduce two pieces of legislation at the upcoming session, including the Quality Growth Act.

Davis said the bill would provide funding to the state's nine largest municipalities for use in planning. The bill would also mandate that city and county governments work together.

"Cities and counties in Montana are not planning for growth together," Davis said. "This is a pro-growth bill."

Davis added, "We hope that with the governor's support, and with a bi-partisan legislature, we can move these bills forward."
Kathy Macefield, senior planner with the Helena planning division, called the conference a chance at professional growth and an opportunity to study new methods of development.

Among the morning workshops, Macefield attended a seminar on basic economic growth and its impact on quality of life and open space.

Statistics compiled by the Sonoran Institute, which were offered at the workshop, showed a link between a community's amount of open space and the area's growth in personal income.

Other contributing income factors to personal income growth included education, ski resorts, airport services, arts, dining opportunities, and the area's array of topography.

Macefield said detracting factors included long commutes to and from work, lack of diversity, and economic specialization, such as a community's reliance on mining or logging.

"When I talk to others from around the state, they always say how much Helena has to offer," Macefield said. "We're still seen as a small, friendly town with open space, access to hiking and biking, and lots of arts."

Montana success stories in growth and development included Bozeman's relaxation of certain zoning standards that make smart development easier.

Changes made by the city allow for taller downtown buildings, incentives for mixed-use development, smaller parking lots, and reduced lot sizes, among other things.

Missoula and Billings were also recognized, Missoula for its Planned Neighborhood Clusters, and Billings for its westside development plan, which encourages efficient growth patterns and densities.