Restoring Prosperity
The Greater Ohio Policy Center Blog
Last week, the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC) released the Corridor Concepts Scenario report. The report concludes that the Columbus region could accommodate more than half of its predicted population growth into five major corridors through denser development and coordinated investments in improved transit.
Scenario planning has the capability to better inform public officials and development authorities of the costs associated with different development models. Vibrant NEO 2040 and insight2050 are examples of regional planning in Ohio providing collaborative and forward thinking models for regional development planning bolstered by data-driven inquiry and neighborly support.
This past week, Greater Ohio Policy Center attended a Columbus Metropolitan Club event on insight2050 and the impact of land use decisions on our health, economy, environment, and mobility.
Here are some highlights from the panel, which were live tweeted from the event by GOPC:
- Yaromir Steiner: what are the infrastructure, health, social, environmental & fiscal costs of the way we develop? #Insight2050 answers this question
- Yaromir Steiner: land use is the critical determining factor for the success and quality of life of places.
- Yaromir Steiner: economic development is about creating places where people want to live.
- Steve Schoeny: we don't have enough #transportation options for downtown. This will take investment to change.
- Keith Myers: cities have been shaped by #transportation since the beginning. We need transportation options supportive of #development we want.
- Keith Myers: the transformation of cities requires political leadership & commitment
Click here to see all of our live tweets from the event on Storify.
About insight2050:
insight2050 is a collaborative initiative among MORPC, Columbus 2020, ULI Columbus, and a stakeholder committee consisting of public and private partners. The initiative aims to help Central Ohio communities proactively plan for development and population growth over the next 30+ years, which is expected to be dramatically different from the past.
The first phase of insight2050 is a regional analysis that provides data for decision makers to understand the impact of future land use policies on specific factors influencing the region’s quality of life. The Scenario Results Report is now available online at www.getinsight2050.org.
The regional growth scenarios that reflect different types of development patterns were informed by the latest data and projections and then compared utilizing a variety of metrics, such as land consumption, infrastructure costs, air pollution, household expenses for transportation and utilities, as well as public health and safety costs, to arrive at an assessment of their relative impacts.
The Importance of Regional Land Use
The scenarios developed through insight2050 lay out different ways the Central Ohio region can grow and the impacts those land use decisions have on the region’s future competitiveness, sustainability, and quality of life. The video above features Peter Calthorpe, whose firm developed insight2050, talking about the critical importance of land use.
Greater Ohio Policy Center is a firm believer in the immense significance of land use and will be addressing these issues of regional growth throughout the state at our upcoming Summit, Restoring Neighborhoods, Strengthening Economies. Click here to learn more about the Summit.
