Colorado at a crossroads: Why smart growth beats sprawl

Colorado’s latest effort to examine how the state grows is the Strategic Growth Report published by the Department of Local Affairs on October 31. The report analyzes the benefits of strategic growth policies and the long-term consequences of continued sprawl.

In a blog post reviewing the report, Caroline Leland of the pro-housing think tank Housing Forward Colorado highlights key findings, including nine ways strategic growth benefits Colorado’s environment and economy. She points to the proposed Karman Line “flagpole” annexation in Colorado Springs that voters overwhelmingly rejected as a clear example of the “business as usual” development pattern that DOLA recommends moving away from. The proposal would have allowed a developer to build 6,500 homes on a 1,900-acre parcel, just 3.42 homes per acre, a housing density that DOLA identifies as the most harmful place type from a smart growth perspective: large-lot, dispersed residential development.