APA WA Allied Professions Hosts “Housing People in Transportation-Efficient Communities” Panel at Spokane Conference, October 11-13

Wednesday, October 11 from 4:15 – 5:30pm | Breakout Session 2C 

Photo Credit: Michelle Pappas, Futurewise, Spokane 

Housing, transportation, and land use are critical issues in every community. Washington’s Growth Management Act (GMA) requires comprehensive plans with housing, transportation, and land use elements that are internally consistent and demonstrate how the community proposes to house population growth planned over a 20-year period.  

Planners can use data, population forecasts, land supply analysis, and transportation model scenarios to understand needs according to adopted goals, policies, and land use regulations to support Transportation-Efficient Communities, which allow higher-density housing and commercial services along arterials with sidewalks and bikeways that are served by public transit service.  This allows people to walk, bike, roll, ride the bus, carpool, or rideshare between home, education, shopping, entertainment, recreation, and medical destinations.  While driving a private vehicle might be an option, parking supply in transportation-efficient communities is often reduced, restricted, or even eliminated.    

There have been many names and variations on Transportation-Efficient Communities over time, such as row houses, attached housing, new urbanist mixed use, cottage housing, transit-oriented development, and 15-minute neighborhoods.  This type of development can house more people on less land and promote less single-occupant vehicle driving, which benefits public health, climate and the environment, and costs less tax-payer dollars to serve with water, sewer, and transportation infrastructure.  However, they are also often controversial because they require that change be allowed in existing neighborhoods. 

Implementing Transportation-Efficient Communities requires adequate funding, community advocacy and support, and most importantly, elected leaders who have the political courage to allow and support change within existing neighborhoods and on existing transportation corridors. 

Panelists:

• Michelle Pappas, Spokane Program Manager, Futurewise
• Brian Jennings, Deputy Director for Community Development, Spokane Transit Authority
• Dave Anderson, AICP, Growth Management Services Director, WA Department of Commerce

Moderator:

• Chris Comeau, FAICP-CTP, Allied Profession Liaison APA WA; Senior Transportation Planner, Transpo Group (425) 896-5254 or [email protected]