If you have been following rezoning applications lately, like the one for Lake Kilby Road, then you have probably heard the term ‘Smart Growth’. At the City Council meeting on April 19, 2023, there were people there wearing Smart Growth stickers to support the developer. Many of them were real estate agents there with the Hampton Roads Realtor Association (HRRA). HRRA’s Chairman of the Board mentioned Smart Growth while speaking on behalf of the developer, but did not say anything specific about it. Additionally, a new community group, Smart Grow Suffolk, was recently started. Care4Suffolk has been talking and writing about Smart Growth for months now and believes it aligns with many of our goals and objectives when followed appropriately.
You might be wondering, what is Smart Growth? Why is everyone talking about it? Why is it important?
Smart Growth is a network of government agencies, civic organizations, citizens, and businesses that share a common goal and theory that development should happen in a controlled, intentional manner that protects the health, safety, and economic well-being of the community. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was actually one of the founding members of this network and you can learn more about it on their website.
Smart Growth promotes the following ideas:
Invest tax payer money wisely in communities and conserve resources by reinvesting in existing infrastructure and rehabilitating historic buildings.
Design neighborhoods that have homes near shops, offices, schools, houses of worship, parks, and other amenities; giving residents the option of walking, bicycling, taking public transportation, or driving as they go about their business.
Incorporate a range of different housing types to make it possible for individuals and families at all stages of life to find a safe, attractive home they can afford.
Enhance neighborhoods and involve residents in development decisions, creating vibrant places to live, work, and play.
Creating a high quality of life that makes these communities economically competitive, creates business opportunities, and strengthens the local tax base.
Use local food sources to revitalize downtowns and neighborhoods, create economic opportunities, and improve human health and the environment.
Preserve open space, farmland, natural beauty, and critical environmental areas.
These are principles of Smart Growth and why Care4Suffolk supports it. It is also a huge part of why we oppose the Lake Kilby rezoning application. The Lake Kilby Road rezoning application wants to turn farmland zoned Rural Estate into high-density suburban sprawl. The proposed houses, by the developer’s own estimate, will cost $500,000 each (hardly affordable), and they will be densely packed homes in a community that the developer is intentionally not adjoining to the abutting neighborhood. These homes will require driving to and from every activity because they are not being built near any amenities and there is no bus stop nearby. The proposed development would be on a busy, narrow, ditch-lined country road, not suitable for walking or biking. It is not a smart investment for the city because the developer is proposing road improvements that do not even meet the state’s minimum for safety standards. It will add family homes in an area with already over-crowded schools. Additionally, this proposed development looks to build on land that contains wetlands, and will drastically alter an area that feeds our reservoirs and provides drinking water to so many in Suffolk and Hampton Roads. The Lake Kilby Road rezoning application fulfills NONE of the bulleted points that comprise Smart Growth, and in fact, it is incompatible with most of them.
Smart Growth is NOT about lining the pockets of a few developers and real estate organizations. It is NOT about encroaching on farmland with suburban sprawl. It is NOT about creating insular housing developments with no connection to the broader community. It is NOT about reducing the quality of life for communities by adding traffic, crowding schools, or destroying natural resources.
Care4Suffolk understands that development will happen and that development can be a positive change in a community and city. To make that happen, those making the decisions need to follow these Smart Growth principles and ensure that the development is positive for the community and will enhance the lives of those already living there. This Lake Kilby Road project is the antithesis of everything that Smart Growth stands for, and that is why Care4Suffolk opposes this rezoning application. A development that benefits only the developer and a few real estate agents is not a project that City Council Members or anyone who supports Smart Growth should ever consider supporting.