Thursday, March 18, 2004
Encouraging compact development patterns strengthens the competitive position of a region. Think of it this way. Every region has to carry a certain "social overhead". These costs include the operating and capital costs of infrastructure (water, sewer, electricity, communications) and services (public safety, education).
By spreading development out over a larger area, sprawl increases costs. Regions undergoing sprawl pay more in infrastructure and services than other, more compact regions.
This viewpoint is explored in a new report from Brookings. You can download it from this page. Go.
posted by Ed Morrison |
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Some Background on EDPro Weblog
The purpose of this weblog is to help economic development professionals -- EDPros -- keep up with the changes sweeping our profession. Strap on your goggles. It's a whole new game. There are no experts any more. The only place to learn about economic development is from other EDPros who are doing it.
One other point: the prevaling approach (paradigm, if you like) in economic development is shifting from competition to collaboration. There are a lot of reaasons underlying this shift, but here's the important insight: You, your community, and your region will do better by collaborating and sharing information.
If you are using a news reader, here is the link to syndicate this site:
Here's the link if you are a bloglines subscriber:
Speaking and workshops on Open Source Economic Development
As the idea of Open Source Economic Development starts spreading, more people are asking about it. Visit the I-Open web site to learn more. My colleagues and I are happy to explain the basic concepts in a talk or a workshop. E-mail Susan Alshuler if you'd like to learn more about workshops and speaking.
Background on Ed Morrison
Download some background information on me here.
New report on smart growth
