Urban, Suburban, and Rural Land Interfaces
The geographical borders among urban, suburban, and rural communities define important interfaces between inherently different places. These interfaces are both edges (that separate and differentiate among communities) and bridges (that connect the same communities). Such interfaces are defined not only by legal jurisdictional borders, but also by more practical boundaries between neighborhoods and less formally defined communities.
Prescriptive steps towards implementation:
- Identify the edges of the community and then determine the proper connections and linkages that should be made for each type of community edge
- Where necessary, revise codes, ordinances, and policies to implement the new strategy of edge treatment
- Work with adjacent jurisdictions to facilitate and embrace a vision for edge areas that embraces a common vision for these areas that can be shared by all effected jurisdictions
- Actively recruit the uses envisioned for the edge area
- Construct gateway opportunities at key locations within each edge area
RATIONALE
It is important for places that are different in scale, intensity and use to properly transition to each other whenever these differing places come into contact with each other. These edges are always present but rarely articulated, and they often just happen without thought or intention. Many times they are the leftover pieces of community — the places where unwanted or least-wanted uses and development go.
Communities that aspire to sustainability are most often focused within their own community. They look at their own neighborhoods, roads, activity centers, job centers, environmental attributes and so on to determine the most efficient and effective way to sustain the community into the future. This approach is necessary, but sustainability planning often overlooks the need to connect to adjacent communities and the related opportunities that are available. Every community operates within the context of a region, and ultimately regional sustainability is just as critical to achieving true sustainability as is local sustainability.
EFFORT REQUIRED
Establishing healthy and intentional connections to adjacent jurisdictions requires multijurisdictional cooperation. The degree of difficulty is directly related to the number and diversity of stakeholders (neighborhood associations, individual residents, elected officials, businesses, nonprofit organizations, and other community stakeholders).
BENEFIT
- Treating community edges as gateways is an opportunity to make a positive first impression on all who enter a community
- Adjacent communities can, by working together, offer a wider array of services to an area
- Proactively working with adjacent communities can help to ensure their "unwanted" uses are not located in detrimental and mutually reinforcing locations
RISKS
- The greater the number of adjacent communities the greater the risk of not being able to adequately address the needs of each edge
- Using existing resources in adjacent communities rather than pursuing recruitment of those resources into the community could be viewed as lost revenue potential
- Treating community edges as links rather than barriers can erode the separation of communities that some may embrace
ACTION AGENT(S)
Planning Department, Economic Development Department, Mayor and Council/Commission
COST
Community Transition standards can be completed internally by working groups established by each community working together to flesh out a common vision. Planning or design professionals may also be considered to lead this effort as part of a planning and implementation exercise for the cost of a typical planning study.
