Stewart Schwartz, executive director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, offered a statement to the Fairfax County Times on the tools needed to ensure affordable housing.
Category: CSG in the News
CSG in the News: How a simple bingo game gets people moving through the city
Greater Greater Washington: TranspoBINGO is a DC-born game that challenges people to try new ways of moving through and exploring the city.
CSG in the News: Rumors Flying that Trump Admin Wants to Undo Bike Lanes in Capital
Streetsblog USA: The feds appear to be mounting an argument that bike lanes cause congestion in the nation’s capitol — and advocates are bracing for a fight.
CSG in the News: In wealthy Chevy Chase, divisive plan advances to add housing to library
The Washington Post: The recently released proposal would add affordable and market-rate housing on top of the new library, stoking a debate about the right ways to use public land.
CSG in the News: Traffic fatalities in DC drop more than 50% in 2025, Attorney General says
“We’re supportive of these kinds of efforts to ensure that drivers who are being dangerous and careless are accountable. And so we appreciate that out of the STEER act,” Cheryl Cort with the Coalition for Smarter Growth said.
However, Cort and other advocates said enforcement alone isn’t enough. They said that long-term safety improvements must also include better street design.
CSG in the News: Planning commission approves Potomac Yard amendments to enable final development phase
“Between April 2024 and 2025, average home prices in Alexandria rose by 10.5 percent and in that time, over 93 percent of residents making below $50,000 per year are housing cost burdened,” wrote Becca Dedert of the Coalition for Smarter Growth.
CSG in the News: Task force recommends increasing Metro funding, starting at $460M
Bill Pugh, speaking on behalf of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, said the package represented “real progress.”
CSG in the News: Route 7 BRT planners welcome feedback at recent Culmore open house
October 20, 2025 | Scott McCaffrey | FFXNow
Among the open house attendees was Sonya Breehey, a Falls Church resident who was viewing proposals both as a prospective rider and as a staff member of the pro-transit group Coalition for Smarter Growth.
“This is really important — BRT is really an opportunity,” she said. “So many people ride the bus.”
Breehey also voiced hope that transit improvements would be complemented by pedestrian safety initiatives. A study conducted by the Coalition for Smarter Growth and the immigrant advocacy nonprofit CASA in 2022 found that much of the Route 7 corridor is decidedly unfriendly to those trying to walk or cross.
In memoriam: EYA founder Bob Youngentob dies at 64
CSG honored Youngentob with its Livable Communities Leadership Award in 2018. Youngentob was EYA executive chairman and helped shape some of Greater Washington’s best known communities, including Reservoir District and Riggs Park Place in D.C.
CSG in the News: Key vote on I-495 Southside express lanes project postponed to 2026 or beyond
October 15, 2025 | Scott McCaffrey | FFXNow
Critics of the toll lanes, however, believe once they are in place, it would be difficult — or impossible — to retrofit the bridge for transit.
Some of those critics lined up to make their case in advance of the TPB’s final discussion. Their concerns went well beyond the Metro question and to the core of VDOT’s efforts to date.
“Multi-billion-dollar decisions should not be made based on flawed and incomplete information,” said Bill Pugh of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, which opposed inclusion of the project. He accused VDOT of trying to push through a “conclusion-first” study justifying the project’s feasibility.