New Nonprofit Promotes Sustainable Community Development

SAN RAFAEL, Calif., Nov. 9 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Changing local land use policies to reduce sprawl and encourage reinvestment in established neighborhoods is critical to make American cities and towns sustainable, according to a new nonprofit group that began operations here this month.

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The Partnership for Sustainable Communities (PSC) operates nationally to promote land use policies and development practices that encourage high-density transit oriented development and housing and economic opportunity for persons of all incomes, said its president and founder Andre F. Shashaty.

"The housing market crash and the new alarm about the dangers of global warming mark the beginning of the end of the 'General Motors model' of community planning that dominated post-war America," said Shashaty.

"With increasing fears of climate change on their minds, progressive cities and states are going far beyond just green building. They are changing land use policies to reverse our love affair with car-dependent, carbon-spewing, cost-inflating sprawl. They are working to facilitate more compact, transit-oriented development and vibrant, diverse communities."

PSC will help realize that vision by providing tools and information to help local governments improve their local land use policies and help developers build projects that enhance community sustainability.

PSC will serve a broad range of participants and advocates in community and transportation development, as well as state and city officials concerned with GHG emissions and land use.

Federal housing, environment, and transportation officials are now collaborating on federal policy. PSC will encourage similar collaboration among private sector companies and state and local governments by serving as an objective clearinghouse of information on sustainable community planning and development (SCPD).

Through a state-of-the-art website, PSC will become the focal point for news and interpretation of developments in SCPD. It will also offer well-organized archival information on land use research.

PSC will provide tools for developers and activists to influence government policymakers to adapt progressive land use and zoning policies.

"For PSC the goals are simple: to protect the earth and build better communities for people," Shashaty said.

The Partnership for Sustainable Communities is operating on an initial seed money grant from a small family foundation in Ohio and is currently soliciting other grants from individuals and foundations to support planning, capacity building and upgrades to its web site at www.p4sc.org.

PSC's Leadership Advisory Council includes Henry Cisneros, former Secretary of HUD and Executive Chairman of Cityview, F. Barton Harvey, Former Chairman and CEO, Enterprise Community Partners and Nicolas Retinas, Director, Joint Center for Housing studies, Harvard University.

For more information, visit www.p4sc.org.