Regulatory Barriers to Smart Growth: The Impact of Local Government Development Controls on Urban Form

New Urbanism is an urban design movement that is a reaction to urban sprawl and is often used as a physical model that represents the principles as Smart Growth. New Urbanist development, also called Traditional Neighborhood Developments (TND), attempts to combat urban sprawl through neotraditional urban design elements such as higher density, mixed land uses, and interconnected street networks. It is generally agreed among New Urbanists, however, that the land use regulations of local governments are not supportive of New Urbanism (Barnett, 2004; Russell, 2004; Steuteville & Langdon, 2003). This study assesses the impact of local land use regulations on Smart Growth efforts, by comparing the urban form of TNDs in five different jurisdictions in the Washington, DC metropolitan area. Urban form measures of density, land use mix, and street connectivity are calculated to quantify the variation in urban form among the projects. Then the land development controls of the jurisdictions are evaluated. Finally, variations in the jurisdictions' land development controls are used to help explain the variations in the urban form measures. This study shows that regulations targeting street connectivity demonstrate a more apparent barrier to Smart Growth urban forms than those targeting density and land use mix. The permanent nature of transportation networks, the (typically) equal application of street design guidelines across a jurisdiction, and its apparent impact of urban form suggest that connectivity should be a primary issue for achievement of Smart Growth goals.Master of City and Regional Plannin