Sustainable Land Development in Northampton, Massachusetts: Limiting Sprawl

This paper is an examination of the City of Northampton’s sustainable land development. I looked at city regulations, bylaws and practices in determining how successful Northampton can be at achieving sustainable land development. I also looked at the intentions of Northampton by exploratory its smart growth goals. Next I looked at the steps Northampton has taken to embrace these goals and what steps it could take. I found that Northampton has a clear plan for smart growth but is not immune from sprawl. Limiting sprawl is an excellent way to ensure that land practices of Northampton will be sustainable. The best way to do this is to purchase conservation land and there are ways to obtain funding through this at the Federal, State and local level. The way to protect the most land, for the longest time, is to involve the community in purchasing conservation land, and limiting its own sprawl. Sustainable development is best accomplished on the local level and my findings support this conclusion