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What is Sprawl <br /> <br />Page 1 of 3 <br /> <br />op <br /> <br /> Sprawl? <br /> <br />HOME <br /> <br />ABOUT 1000 <br />FRIENDS <br /> <br />OUR .PROGRAMS <br />RESEARCH & <br /> <br />PUBLICATIONS <br /> <br />LINKS <br /> <br />LEGJ_S 4~TJ_V~ <br />NEWS <br /> <br />BECOME A <br />MEMBER <br /> <br />CONTACT US <br /> <br />For many people sprawl is hard to define, but easy to identify. Even for those well- <br />versed in sprawlo!ogy, it .can be difficult to say that one development contributes to <br />sprawl and another is a positive contribution to the community. <br /> <br />It can be useful to distinguish between two important dimensions thai combine to <br />create sprawl: density and design. <br /> <br />Density in its most simple sense is how closely buildings are built together. <br />Density standards are most frequently applied to residential developments, where it <br />is measured in Units (or residences) per acre. In recent years, new development in <br />the Twin Cities has had a net (i.e: excluding wetlands and parks) average density of <br />2.1 units per acre, The Met Council has defined a density goal of 3.0 units per acre <br />in their Regional Growth Strategy. Compare this to the 3.49 units per acre average <br />density in fashionableEdina: Even more dramatic, consider the 35 units per acre <br />average density in the city of San Francisco, where housing demand is as high as <br />any other city in the U.S.. ' <br /> <br />For some people, high densities mean high crime and unsafe neighborhoods. <br />However, statistics indicate otherwise, and urban scholar Jane Jacobs argues that <br />dense neighborhoods are actually safer, because neighbors are more aware of <br />unusual activity around other houses. <br /> <br />An important thing to remember about density is that there are two different <br />standards. In neighborhoods served by urban services, like sewer and water lines, <br />densities can (and should) be quite highl A 1995 study by Minnesota Planning <br />indicated that costs for installing these urban services (exclusive of annual <br />maintenance) average $150 per linear foot ora lot's frontage. Therefore, narrower,- <br />higher density lots are much less expensive to service than larger, wider, low- ' <br />density lots. <br /> <br />In rural districts, those not served by sewers and water lines; densities should be <br />much lower. While state regulations allow for lots as small as one acre to be served <br />by septic systems, this sort of density increases the impact that the septic <br />wastewater will have on the water table. In general, 1000 Friends of Minnesota <br />advocates for maximum densities of at least-one unit per 20, 40 or 80 acres in areas <br />not served by urban'serVices, depending on local conditions. In agricultural areas <br />outside the Twin Cities region, even lower densities are often preferable. <br /> <br />These Iow densities in rural areas accomplish a number of goals: <br /> <br />They protect agricultural economies by not artificially increasing the <br />value of farmland based on the ability to subdivide. <br /> <br />They protect natural habitat by keeping it intact. Smaller lots, anything <br />from one to ten acres, don't protect natural habitat because the relatively <br />closely spaced buildings, the associated landscape changes, and the <br />presence of domestic pets break up wildlife movement and foraging <br />areas. <br /> <br />12/15/2004 <br /> <br />http://www. 1000fom.org/what is sprawl.htm <br /> i <br /> <br /> <br />