What do coastal sustainability, the industrial construction boom, municipal annexation and neighborhood walkability have in common?
They’re all important issues when it comes to land-use planning and development, and they will be among the subjects addressed in speeches and seminars at the 2014 Louisiana Smart Growth Summit, scheduled to take place Monday through Wednesday at the Manship Theatre at the Shaw Center for the Arts in downtown.
“There is no overriding theme this year because there were too many topics we wanted to cover,” says Center for Planning Excellence Director Elizabeth “Boo” Thomas. “But these are all emergent issues that are important to our super region of Baton Rouge and New Orleans.”
Kicking off the summit will be a keynote address from Memphis, Tennessee, Mayor A.C. Wharton Jr., who is known for his success in developing Memphis’ potential as a green, connected and healthy city. Among the topics Wharton will discuss is annexation, which has been an issue in Memphis as it has been here in Baton Rouge.
“What’s interesting is that they have a different take on it there,” Thomas says. “Memphis doesn’t want to annex any more communities because it is hard to deliver services to them.”
Breakout sessions at the summit will cover a variety of topics, including coastal sustainability and development. Three different seminars will address the issue from various perspectives: what New Orleans is doing to build more resilient communities, strategies to enhance existing programs and policies to better serve Louisiana’s coastal communities, and how rising sea levels and climate change are affecting coastal development.
Several sessions during the summit will also cover topics familiar to smart growth advocates—creating communities with a sense of place, developing walkability and inner-city trails, creating ageless communities, fighting blight, the importance of parks and green space, and ways to develop and finance new mass transit options. Local, regional and national experts will participate or moderate these small-group discussions. Business Report has the full story. And you can also check out the full lineup of events and register to attend at the summit website.
