- In 2002, the Coalition challenged the transportation sales tax referendum in Northern Virginia because of its failure to tie funding to better land use planning. The voters agreed and voted to reject the tax package. Following this success, the Washington Business Journal recognized Executive Director Stewart Schwartz as a Businessperson of the Year.
- In 2005, the Coalition joined with the Smart Growth Alliance (now the Washington Sustainable Growth Alliance), Urban Land Institute, and others to sponsor the Reality Check regional conference. Over 300 government, nonprofit, civic, and business participants proposed allocations for regional growth, land conservation, TOD, more jobs and investment for the east side of the region, and mixed-use development. Since 2005, regional jurisdictions have made these principles central to their vision for the future.
- Between 2003 and 2009, the Coalition (and its predecessor organization WRN) worked with the D.C. government to successfully enact a sound Inclusionary Zoning requirement for most D.C. residential developments. This affordable housing law requires new housing developments with more than 10 units to set aside 8-10 percent as affordable to low- to moderate-income households.
- In 2004 and 2008, the Coalition was selected by the Catalogue for Philanthropy as one of the best small nonprofits in the Washington region.
- In 2009, the Coalition's campaign with partner organizations like Action Committee for Transit helped win approval of the Purple Line light rail project. The Purple Line will take 17,000 cars off the road each day and encourage reinvestment for communities inside the Beltway.
- In 2010, the Coalition helped form the Fair Share for Metro campaign to oppose drastic Metro service cuts. Thousands of people signed the Fair Share for Metro petition, which helped sway Metro’s decision makers to avoid deep cuts to service and find funding to maintain quality bus and rail service.
- In 2010, after seven long years, the plan for a sustainable redesign of Tysons Corner finally passed. The Coalition called for a new plan and spent countless hours working to shape the design, share best practices from around the nation, and reach out to Fairfax residents.
- In 2010, the Coalition’s service on the Council of Governments' (COG) Greater Washington 2050 committee resulted in Region Forward, a sustainable vision now endorsed by all 21 local governments. The Coalition ensured that TOD, affordable housing, environmental restoration, and equitable economic development were at the core of the vision.
- In 2010, the Coalition helped make transit-oriented development a top priority in Prince George's County. Our recommendations for TOD, walkable communities, and mixed-income housing were incorporated into in the county-led Envision Prince George's agenda.
- The Coalition is opposing the recent revival of the Outer Beltway by Virginia state officials. We will be working in Virginia throughout 2011 to advocate for better transportation alternatives and more important funding priorities, and will fight to protect the historic Manassas Battlefield, which the Outer Beltway threatens to destroy.
- We are continuing our campaign to improve economic development opportunities by promoting development around Prince George's County's 15 underutilized Metro stations. Collaborating with community activists who participated in the Envision Prince George’s process, the Coalition is convening a series of public forums on TOD in Prince George’s County. The Coalition is also working with partners to help the County retool its housing programs to better meet residents’ needs.
- In Fairfax, Montgomery, Loudoun, and other jurisdictions we continue our community by community efforts to promote well-designed TOD along with the transformation of commercial strip corridors into vibrant, walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods.
- "A New Approach: Integrating Transportation and Development in the National Capital Region" (WRN, 1992)
- "A Better Way to Grow" (CBF, 1996)
- "A Network of Livable Communities" (CBF, ED, 1996)
Origins
In the early 1990s, the Disney Corporation proposed to locate its third U.S. theme park near Manassas National Battlefield in rural Virginia. The prospect of historic landscapes paved over like the Orlando region in Florida galvanized local citizens, environmentalists, and historic preservationists. Prominent national historians added their clout and helped to defeat the proposed theme park. The groups involved in the Disney fight saw that the issues of regional growth and transportation were bigger than this one debate. They founded the Coalition for Smarter Growth in 1997 to coordinate a campaign for a better way to grow in the Washington, D.C. region.
A New Vision
Building on a series of reform reports1, the Coalition issued "Highway Robbery" in 1997 to challenge those who were pushing the Outer Beltway and continued outward sprawl as their preferred approach for the region. In 2002, the Coalition captured an alternative regional vision in its Blueprint for a Better Region.
Campaigns and Cooperation
The Coalition went on to coordinate campaigns against the Outer Beltway and sprawl in rural areas, and for transit-oriented development (TOD), urban revitalization, transit, walkable/bikeable communities, affordable housing, land conservation, and balanced regional economic investment. Recognizing areas of agreement, the Coalition and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation partnered with business groups, including the Urban Land Institute, Greater Washington Board of Trade, and Metropolitan Builders Council, to found the Washington Smart Growth Alliance in December 2000.
Since then the Smart Growth Alliance (now the Washington Sustainable Growth Alliance) has added Enterprise Community Partners and the ULI J. Ronald Terwilliger Center for Workforce Housing to its board, which includes a jury that reviews and endorses smart growth developments and a jury that endorses land conservation initiatives.
A Winning Record
Current Work
1Reform Reports
