CA: Cut suburban sprawl, save energy, study urges ('Vision California' planning doc released)

SFGate.com ^ | 6/24/10 | Will Kane

[NormsRevenge]

New development in California needs to be designed from the start to conserve electricity and water, decrease driving time, improve air quality and promote a sustainable lifestyle, according to a landmark study of the state's future growth.

Vision California, the state's first major planning document in almost 30 years, was released Wednesday.

Growth should focus not on increasing suburban sprawl but instead on creating compact development in already established cities, the report says. Bringing commuters closer to their jobs, its authors argue, can help Californians drive 3.7 trillion fewer miles and save 140 billion gallons of gasoline by 2050.

"The days when people could afford to drive until they find an affordable quality home maybe are gone," said Peter Calthorpe, head of Calthorpe Associates, the Berkeley firm that wrote the plan.

There are few surprises in the document, which focuses on a theme Californians have heard for decades: We need to conserve increasingly scarce resources.

The $2.5 million effort was overseen by the Strategic Growth Committee, a Cabinet-level group that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger told to develop a state blueprint for growth.

"California is leading the nation in tackling smart and comprehensive land-use planning," Schwarzenegger said in a statement. "By working together at all levels of government, we can help create a brighter, more sustainable future for generations of Californians to enjoy."

[NormsRevenge]

Vision California?

Visit Cuba today.

[MrB]

The leftist elites want to cram us all into a small area so that they can control us.

[skr]

Some of us don’t like to live in crowded areas, nor do we like to pay the very high prices for the “privilege”.

[NormsRevenge]

High-speed Rail money helped pay for this study?

Hmmm.

Vision California: Calthorpe Associates leads statewide effort
(June 2009)
http://www.calthorpe.com/news/vision-california-calthorpe-associates-leads-statewide-effort
Calthorpe Associates is leading Vision California, an unprecedented effort funded by the California High Speed Rail Authority to explore the critical role of land use and transportation investments in meeting the environmental and fiscal challenges facing the state over the coming decades. It will produce a series of alternative physical visions for how California can accommodate expected growth, and clearly express the consequences of these options. The results will inform decisions about the investments and policies that will drive the state’s growth.

[NormsRevenge]

But we’ll have high speed rail connecting us. :-)

[NormsRevenge]

Strategic Growth Committee aka Council

another ‘box’ that aRnie didn’t blow up..

http://www.sgc.ca.gov/about_us.html

[umgud]

Geez, they want to bunch us up so we don’t need so many street lights, then they make us use florescent lights........ go figure.

[ExtremeUnction]

Growth should focus not on increasing suburban sprawl but instead on creating compact development in already established cities, the report says.

The so-called "established cities" are cesspools of crime and poverty. And guess what?? Urban sprawl already happened in LA! So these Berkeley liberals are late to the party. It's over in LA folks. Bottom line? If you live there and you have money, you are going to live on the safe edges. If you are poor..we'll, you are out of luck.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Herd all the smelly peasants into a small area where they can be supervised and rounded up at the proper time.

[Mtn Pass]

Google “Agenda 21”, this is right out of the Agenda 21 playbook. New World Order, Bildebergers, One World government. This is what the elites have in store for the little people.

[dljordan]

“Google “Agenda 21”, this is right out of the Agenda 21 playbook. New World Order, Bildebergers, One World government. This is what the elites have in store for the little people.”

Ding, ding, ding, we have a winner!

[Wooly]

40 yyears of living and working in California, and every time there is a long term growth plan over the last 40 years it has centered the same things. It has not worked in the past and it will not work in the future.
Conservation California style means “DOING WITHOUT!”

[RayChuang88]

I don’t know if Americans want to live in very compact cities like Hong Kong.

[bill1952]

on creating compact development in already established cities, the report says. Bringing commuters closer to their jobs, its authors argue, can help Californians drive 3.7 trillion fewer miles and save 140 billion gallons of gasoline by 2050.

WTF are they even thinking? That ship sailed 60 years ago and the exodus from the useless crime infested cesspools of the inner cites is irreversible short of mass slavery.

The only viable use for concentrated urban trash heaps is to control and corrupt the votes in them, ala Philadelphia NY, Detroit, Chicago and all of the other such tombs to a time and economic usage long ended.

[DakoKid]

Said by Wayne,

‘California Nightmare: Why California leads the nation in deficit, debt and out-migration’ January 15th, 2009

By Wayne Root

The latest reports are out- and there’s good news and bad news for California. The good news is that California leads the nation. The bad news is that California leads the nation in deficit, debt and the amount of residents escaping to other states. The Mamas and Papas are rolling over in their graves. The California Dreamin’ of the 1960’s has morphed into the California Nightmare.

Just keep up the same agenda and get most to move away, sprawl problems solved.

[okie01]

The results will inform decisions about the investments and policies that will drive the state’s growth.

How ironic.

The only thing that is growing in the state of California is the population.

On the other hand, the economy and the revenue producers are shrinking.

How will these contrasting trends affect "the investments and policies that will drive the state’s growth"?

[DugwayDuke]

“The days when people could afford to drive until they find an affordable quality home maybe are gone,”

How interesting. Exactly how does raising the cost of driving make unaffordable housing affordable? Looks like they want to raise the costs of commuting to the point where previously unaffordable housing cheaper than commuting. But it still won’t be affordable will it?

[iowamark]

It is difficult to “control growth” when the same people want to open the borders and invite in another 100 million people.

[Intolerant in NJ]

Growth should focus not on increasing suburban sprawl but instead on creating compact development in already established cities, the report says...ah yes, so-called "Smart Growth" - problem is, it's becoming obvious that "compact" development with many roads and buildings crammed together create thermal masses which in fact can increase the atmospheric temperature several degrees over that in the less developed and high-density surroundings - it could well be that the "global warming" some scientists claim is upon us is not the result of increasing CO2 or other greenhouse gases, but of the obsession with forcing individuals to live closely together in what could be called concrete griddles - maybe smart growth ain't so smart after all.....