Many local governments in Virginia would like the authority to enact “Adequate Public Facilities Ordinances” (APFO) giving them more power to block undesired development projects. In theory, APFOs would ensure that roads, public schools, water, sewer, fire/police/rescue stations and other public facilities are “adequate” to support new development. The goal: no more overloaded connector roads, no more kids attending classes in school buses, no more slow response times for fire and police.
Now comes a report from The National Center for Smart Growth Research and Education, affiliated with the University of Maryland, which takes a close look at APFOs as applied in Maryland. Some 13 counties and 12 municipalities in Maryland have enacted APFOs. The result: Things didn’t always turn out as planned.
As it turns out, APFOs can accelerate the spread of the very dysfunctions they were designed to curb. Due to inappropriate applications and inconsistent uses, concludes the Smart Growth Research group: “APFOs are being applied in ways that often deflect development away from the very areas designated for growth in county plans to other counties, other states and often rural areas never intended for growth.”
There’s a lesson here for Virginia. The solution to our disastrous land use policies isn’t giving local government more regulatory authority, it’s reforming the sprawl-inducing complex of zoning codes, subdivision ordinances, comprehensive plans so as to give developers more freedom to devise creative solutions. We need more balanced communities, more mixed-use development, more transit-friendly design, more bike/pedestrian-friendly design. As Pulte Homes and KSI Services have demonstrated, developers want to build these kinds of communities, and the biggest obstacles are NIMBYs backed up by the power of local government. Giving NIMBYs more power through APFOs will not help build Smart Growth communities.
