Sustainable Urban Development Overview 

The American Society of Landscape Architecture outlines a number of urban development strategies that limit climate impacts and make for livable, sustainable communities.

Below are excerpts from their article on Sustainable Urban Development for more information, visit their web page fore more information and resources on this topic!

“Urban development should be guided by a sustainable planning and management vision that promotes interconnected green space, a multi-modal transportation system, and mixed-use development. Diverse public and private partnerships should be used to create sustainable and livable communities that protect historic, cultural, and environmental resources. In addition, policymakers, regulators and developers should support sustainable site planning and construction techniques that reduce pollution and create a balance between built and natural systems.

New sustainable urban developments or re-developments should provide a variety of commercial, institutional, educational uses as well as housing styles, sizes and prices. The provision of sidewalks, trails, and private streets, connected to transit stops and an interconnected street network within these mixed-use developments provides mobility options and helps reduce pollution by reducing vehicle trips. Walking, bicycling, and other mobility options should be encouraged throughout the urban mixed-use core and mixed-use neighborhoods with easily accessed and well-defined centers and edges.

SUSTAINABLE ZONING: The replacement of conventional zoning codes that control land use with those that control physical form can benefit growth and development. Implementing form-based codes can result in communities that fit their place and time, have a mix of uses that are appropriately scaled, enjoy pedestrian friendly well-defined public realms, and are generally more sustainable.

INVESTING IN DOWNTOWNS: Encouraging businesses, non-profits, governments, and cultural institutions to locate their offices and other facilities within the urban core as opposed to suburban or fringe locations can support sustainable urban development. Investing in an urban core can help support urban core revitalization efforts, and attract and retain businesses and services. Often, tax credits or other incentives are needed to encourage the preservation or rehabilitation of historic properties or green spaces within the urban core.

SUSTAINABLE LANDSCAPES AND BUILDINGS IN AN URBAN CONTEXT: Decreasing impervious pavement areas; providing abundant (usable) interconnected greenways and open space; implementing sustainable stormwater techniques; and planting or preserving vegetation will all help mitigate greenhouse gas emissions from urban areas. In addition, siting buildings to maximize passive heating / cooling, using energy-efficient building technologies, including green or cool roofs can help mitigate building emissions. Communities should also move toward energy conservation and non-oil and coal based alternatives, such as solar, wind, thermal, and biomass, which can reduce dependency on non-renewable resources, as well as minimize air, water, and thermal pollution.

FIGHTING SPRAWL: The application of land-use based zoning, real-estate tax laws, and highway design regulations, has created automobile-dominated sprawl conditions where cars are required for almost all activities, leading to ever-increasing congestion and longer commute times. Development patterns that result in sprawl are not in the long-term interest of cities, small towns, rural communities, and agricultural lands. As communities plan for growth and change, in-fill and redevelopment should utilize existing infrastructure. Public agencies should promote and facilitate processes for remediation of urban sites to relieve pressure to develop at the urban fringe. Plans should identify open lands that can be sustainably developed into green spaces or left alone. In fact, preserving open green spaces in cities is crucial to fighting sprawl because these spaces provide important outlets within the city.

Sustainable urban development means responsible growth and development strategies that are broader in vision and more regional in scale. There are a range of sustainable growth strategies: For instance, urban in-fill, suburban redevelopment, and open-land development can all lead to more diverse housing styles and multi-modal transit. As there is no such thing as a “one-size-fits-all” solution for every community, appropriate principles must be developed for each. Responsible and innovative development strategies at the federal, state and local levels are needed to guide private development.

OPEN SPACES: Communities should take advantage of government and private initiatives, such as conservation districts and open land trusts, to preserve open space. Open space can help curb scattered development, protect watersheds and natural habitat, maintain historic and cultural assets, and provide diverse recreational opportunities. Emphasis should be placed upon the creation of a diverse mix of uses and housing options within communities, such as an infill redevelopment instead of developing on open spaces.

Existing General Plan Policies 

Housing Element

Goal H-1.5 Energy Conservation, Sustainability and Climate Change: Promote available energy conservation programs, and develop new programs to address sustainability and climate change issues.

• Program H-1.5.1:  Energy Conservation Program: Provide information for public distribution on programs which provide assistance for energy conservation improvements, and information on sustainability and climate change. Make this information available on the City’s web page, at the City offices, the Contra Costa County Building Inspection Department, the Lafayette Library and at the annual Earth Day event. Coordinate community activities and programs with Sustainable Lafayette.

• Program H-1.5.2:  Green Building Program: Develop a green building program for residential, industrial and commercial uses. Consider offering incentives to property owners whose buildings exceed the City’s minimum requirements such as granting Green Awards, posting details of the building on the City’s web site, and providing plaques certifying that the building exceeds the City’s minimum green building standards.  The draft program was developed by the City’s Environmental Task Force, and it is based on the Build It Green checklist. It will require different types of projects to achieve a minimum number of checklist points.

• Program H-1.5.3: Annual Earth Day Event: Continue to co-sponsor the Earth Day event with Sustainable Lafayette and Lafayette Chamber of Commerce which is held annually in Downtown Lafayette. At this event, booths are provided to the local schools and other organizations interested in environmental sustainability to help them publicize their efforts to promote sustainability.

• Program H-1.5.4: Home Energy Retrofit Program: Work with Contra Costa County to offer subsidized home energy assessments and rebates on the cost of energy efficiency improvements to residents proposing home improvement projects that achieve at least a 20% reduction in home energy consumption. 

• Program H-1.5.5: Implementation of AB 811 for Residential Energy Financing: Join the CaliforniaFIRST energy and efficiency financing program to implement AB 811.

Goal H-1.5.6: Environmental Action Plan: Develop a plan to include specific goals, policies and programs for community sustainability.

Goal H-2.7 Infill Housing: Encourage private housing development on existing infill sites in order to efficiently utilize existing infrastructure. 

• Program H-2.7.1:  Infill Sites: Develop and maintain an inventory of vacant and/or underdeveloped residential land, distinguishing between land within the City limits and land within the City's Sphere of Influence. 

Land Use Element

Goal LU-20.10 Buildout Projections: Use the buildout projections for Lafayette and the region to establish goals for environmental protection and community character and to provide the basis for all public facilities planning.

Conservation Element

Goal C-5.1 Protect Irreplaceable Resources: When planning new roads or roadway improvements, protect resources such as open space, hillsides, ridgelines, riparian corridors, and recreational facilities.  Circulation projects must be consistent with goals and policies of the Open Space and Conservation Element. 

• Program C-5.1.1: No road should be constructed within 250 horizontal feet of the centerline of a major ridgeline.  This prohibition does not apply to a road and attendant underground utilities which cross a major ridge if the crossing is necessary for orderly development. 

• Program C-5.1.2: In designing road improvements consider seismic risk, soil stability, drainage, scenic character, and privacy. Require compliance with current engineering standards and practices. Require peer review as needed. 

Open Space Element

Goal OS-1.1 Protection of Major Ridgelines. Preserve Major Ridgelines in their natural state as scenic resources and wildlife corridors. 

• Program OS-1.1.1: Require a setback from the centerline of Major Ridgelines for all development including roads, grading, fencing, and introduced vegetation other than indigenous native vegetation, wherever feasible. The centerline of a ridge is the line running along the highest portion of the ridge. 

• Program OS-1.1.2: Limit the height of structures near major ridgelines to a plane sloping downward at a 15-degree declination from the ridge. 

• Program OS-1.1.3: Require open space, scenic, or conservation easements as conditions of development approval.  

• Program OS-1.1.4: Designate publicly owned or dedicated open space areas on visually prominent ridgelines with the Open Space Land Use Designation.  

Goal OS-1.2 Ridgeline Protection: Protect all ridgelines consistent with their function as scenic resources for the community and as wildlife corridors. 

Goal OS-1.3 Conserve a Variety of Open Space Features: Protect areas of special ecological significance, including ridges, hillsides, woodlands, wildlife corridors, riparian areas, steep slopes, prominent knolls, swales, and rock outcroppings. 

• Program OS-1.3.1: Protect areas of special ecological significance through the use of open space, scenic and conservation easements as conditions of development approval.  

• Program OS-1.3.2: Require that land dedicated as open space as a condition of development approval be permanently restricted to open space uses by recorded map or deed. 

• Program OS-1.3.3: Develop a standard Open Space/Scenic and Conservation Easement which requires that dedicated land be restricted to open space uses in perpetuity and which establishes standards for the protection of natural features and open space functions. 

Goal OS-3.1 Protect natural features of the lands: The character and natural features of hills, steep slopes, riparian areas, woodlands, and open areas will be preserved in as natural a condition as feasible.

• Program OS-3.1.1: Ensure that grading does not detract from the natural forms of hillsides and that development retains the ecological characteristics of the site.  This includes prominent geological features, individual trees, woodland, riparian vegetation, rock outcroppings, streams, ponds, drainage swales, and other natural features.  Minimize the disturbance or removal of vegetation.

• Program OS-3.1.2: Limit the scarring and cutting of hillsides caused by grading, especially for long roads and driveways.  

Goal OS-3.2 Preserve the predominant views of the hill areas: Require that structures in identified environmentally sensitive areas be substantially concealed by existing vegetation or terrain when viewed from lower elevations, to the maximum extent feasible.

• Program OS-3.2.1: Require structures in identified environmentally sensitive areas be located away from prominent locations such as hilltops, knolls and open slopes, wherever feasible.