A Smart Growth Bibliography:

Handbooks and Planning Guides

American Farmland Trust. Is Farmland Protection A Community Investment? - How to Do a Cost of Community Services Study, American Farmland Trust, Spring 1993.
Summary: Guidance for conducting a cost of community services study which uses existing town financial data to show the demand for services by different land uses. Provides a snapshot of current demand for services and not a prediction of future demand. Guidebook (24 pages).

Burchell, Robert W. et al. Development Impact Assessment Handbook, the Urban Land Institute, 1994. With Development Impact Assessment Model.
Summary: The electronic model uses a combination of user provided inputs, national multipliers, and model calculations to evaluate the impacts of a new development. Impacts considered include: market; social; environmental; economic; fiscal; traffic; and shared infrastructure. The Handbook explains development impact analyses in general, provides examples, and gives instructions on how to use the electronic model. Handbook (326 pages) and Model on 3.5" diskette (Lotus 1-2-3 and Excel versions).

Burchell, Robert W., et al. The New Practitioner's Guide to Fiscal Impact Analysis, Center for Urban Policy Research, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, 1985.
Summary: The handbook provides post-1980 multipliers for projecting households and school children by single-family unit, garden condominium, townhouse, high-rise apartment, mobile homes, and duplex/triplex/quadruplex structures. Handbook (82 pages).

California Energy Commission. Energy Aware - Planning Guide, State of California, January 1993.
Summary: Guide for the production of a community wide energy plan. Provides a methodology for identifying the type and magnitude of energy issues in a particular jurisdiction, followed by a discussion of actions that can be taken by communities to address the issues identified. Planning guide (50 pages)

Canter, Larry, et al. Impact of Growth: A Guide for Socio-Economic Impact Assessment and Planning, Lewis Publishers, Inc., Chelsea, MI, 1986.
Summary: Delineation of a systematic approach which can be used in addressing potential socio-economic impacts resulting from major development projects. A step-by-step guide including factors and examples with emphasis on the project level. Book - Impact Assessment Model (533 pages).

Criterion Inc. PLACE3S - PLAnning for Community Energy, Environmental, and Economic Sustainability, Criterion Inc., Portland, OR, 1995.
Summary: Planning methodology that compares the energy performance of alternative urban plans as a means of encouraging more sustainable community development.

Hanousek, Donna et al. Project Infrastructure Development Handbook, 1989.
Summary: Focuses on the physical infrastructure of new residential and commercial developments that the private developer has traditionally been responsible for providing. The handbook provides a description of the basic infrastructure systems, reviews the infrastructure planning process from the public and private perspective, and reviews infrastructure design considerations, infrastructure financing, and infrastructure construction and management. Handbook (152 pages).

McLean, Mary L. and Kenneth P. Voytek. Understanding Your Economy, APA Planners Press, 1992.
Summary: The book shows how to conduct local economic analysis to support strategic planning decisions and determine which clusters of industry to strengthen. It explains how to use basic economic analysis techniques to analyze changes in the local economy and to evaluate the significance of these changes for economic development policy. Book (245 pages).

Nelessen, A.C. Visions for a New American Dream, Chicago, IL: American Planning Association, 1994.
Summary: The book shows planners how to combine the best design principles of the past with the technological advances of the present to achieve a more satisfying environment. A seven-step planning and design process for creating three types of traditional communities - hamlets, villages, and neighborhoods - is outlined. The author first introduces techniques planners can use to involve citizens in the creation of a common community vision. He then presents 10 design principles that will help planners translate this vision into design standards for a community's master plan. Book (374 pages).

PAS. Local Economic Development Planning: From Goals to Projects. PAS 353, 1980.
Summary: The report presents a model planning process that a community can use to examine local resources and set economic development goals. It shows how to identify programs that can be used to achieve development goals; evaluate alternate programs according to their costs and benefits; design a plan to implement the chosen program; and evaluate the success of the total plan and its implementation. Report (34 pages).

Roser, Maureen Feeney. Fiscal Impact Model, Newark Planning Department, Newark, DE, December 1989.
Summary: Fiscal impact model used by the City of Newark for all major development projects. The model projects the direct costs and revenues associated with proposed development based on current City income and expenditure patterns. The study includes the methodology used in the model and four development examples to illustrate the use of the model. Guide (37 pages).

RPA, Regional Plan Association. Redesigning the Suburbs: Turning Sprawl into Centers. New York, New York: RPA 1994.
Summary: Prepared jointly by RPA/MSM Suburban Design project, this report is intended to help residents of the region envision a community that promotes a sense of local identity, is aesthetically pleasing, pedestrian and transit friendly, infrastructure efficient and environmentally friendly. The project used case studies from the Princeton Route 1 Corridor in central New Jersey.

Vermont League of Cities and Towns and Vermont Natural Resources Council. The Tax Base and the Tax Bill - Tax Implications of Development: A Workbook, September 1990.
Summary: The workbook helps public officials and citizens in Vermont project the direct costs and revenues associated with proposed developments in their towns and estimate the effect on the tax rate. Provides a rough estimate for planning purposes and is not a substitute for a more detailed fiscal analysis. Guidebook (48 pages).

Virginia Fiscal Impact Assessment Model, 1990. Loudoun County, Virginia, Department of Economic Development.
Summary: The model is used by Loudoun County planning officials to estimate the fiscal impacts of different development scenarios. It is a locally specified, per capita cost-based model which is driven by demographic assumptions such as persons and school children per dwelling unit. No information on format or size of model.

Washington State, Department of Community Development. Making Your Comprehensive Plan A Reality - "A Capital Facilities Plan Preparation Guide", Washington State Growth Management Program, Department of Community Development, Growth Management Division, June 1993.
Summary: This guidebook was prepared to assist communities in developing a Capital Facilities Plan (CFP) as required by Washington State's Growth Management Act of 1990. The guide outlines the steps of developing a CFP, and identifies the people or groups to involve as well as the general roles they can play. Methods for setting level of service standards and for forecasting needed capital facilities are presented. Guidebook (142 pages)

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