A Berkeley, CA growth initiative revealed the stresses that smart growth play on grassroots environmental organizations like the Sierra Club where members determine positions.
Berkeley's downtown growth initiative, Measure R, "bankrolled by developers and backed by the Sierra Club" won big at the polls on Nov 2, receiving 64 per cent of the vote. It approved "a blueprint for reshaping downtown that includes five new high-rises."
"(Smart growth) is controversial in the club," said Kent Lewandowski, chairman of the organization's Northern Alameda County group. "We've got longtime club members who see efforts to promote density as colluding with developers. Others are against living in an urban environment."
"Mr. Lewandowski said that one member, who is upset about the organization's support of smart-growth development, threatened to remove the club from her will."
Thanks to David Tam
FULL STORY: Smart-Growth Policy Splits Environmentalists
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