When water policy and land use planning operate in separate spheres, it's more difficult to design for efficient resource use. Better communication is needed in the drought-stricken southwest.
In this piece for Next City, Rachel Dovey explains why land use planners and water district officials "don't speak the same language" when it comes to designating resources efficiently. The first culprit is sprawl itself: "Lawns for single-family homes; paved-over green space along an expanding border; parking lots that funnel storm water into disposal drains [...] and a subterranean network of mains and pipes that becomes costlier as its footprint grows."
Lack of coordination between the two types of planning also takes its toll: "For example, water agencies often project a city's future consumption based on current gallon-per-household-per-month figures. But if planners are up-zoning a city for mixed-use, thereby cutting water demand, everyone ends up with inflated data."
The southwestern regions hit hardest by the current drought "also happen to be the regions that built cities for cars, garages, lawns and single-family homes." The article cites an expert who believes that most officials understand the need for infill, but smart growth and actual water savings don't always go hand-in-hand.
FULL STORY: Why Planners and Water Officials Need to Hang Out
Californians Struggle To Cut Water Use
The state is slowly starting to curb water consumption, but progress has been ‘disappointingly slow’ as water supplies across the West diminish to historic lows.
NYC Under Drought Warning, Residents Urged to Conserve Water
Amid a series of brush fires, including one in Manhattan, the city issued the first drought warning in 22 years and announced plans to release water through the Delaware Aqueduct to supplement local reservoirs.
New Yorkers Face New Climate Risks
A two-acre fire in a city park prompted city officials to ban grilling while urging residents to conserve water to limit the impact of a historic drought.
What ‘The Brutalist’ Teaches Us About Modern Cities
How architecture and urban landscapes reflect the trauma and dysfunction of the post-war experience.
‘Complete Streets’ Webpage Deleted in Federal Purge
Basic resources and information on building bike lanes and sidewalks, formerly housed on the government’s Complete Streets website, are now gone.
The VW Bus is Back — Now as an Electric Minivan
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Healing Through Parks: Altadena’s Path to Recovery After the Eaton Fire
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San Diego to Rescind Multi-Unit ADU Rule
The city wants to close a loophole that allowed developers to build apartment buildings on single-family lots as ADUs.
Electric Vehicles for All? Study Finds Disparities in Access and Incentives
A new UCLA study finds that while California has made progress in electric vehicle adoption, disadvantaged communities remain underserved in EV incentives, ownership, and charging access, requiring targeted policy changes to advance equity.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research