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Smart Growth

Smart Growth Tools

EPA offers a wide variety of tools and resources to help communities learn about and implement smart growth approaches.


Cover of Smart Growth Self-Assessment for Rural Communities

General Smart Growth Tools

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Brownfields and Infill Development

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Climate Change

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Disaster Resilience and Recovery

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Economic Development

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Planning, Zoning, and Building Codes

Essential SG Fixes for Rural Planning, Zoning, and Dev PDF Cover

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Transportation

  • National Walkability Index – Nationwide geographic data resource that ranks block groups according to their relative walkability.
  • Access to Jobs and Workers Via Transit Tool – Geospatial data resource and web mapping tool for comparing the accessibility of neighborhoods via public transit service.
  • Infrastructure Financing Options for Transit-Oriented Development – Comprehensive overview of existing tools and implementation strategies for transit-oriented development and emerging, innovative models for financing.
  • Mixed-Use Trip Generation Model – Spreadsheet tool that makes it easy to estimate trips generated by a new mixed-use development to more fairly assess these projects in development review processes.
  • Smart Location Calculator – Simple tool, developed by EPA and the U.S. General Services Administration, for exploring how workplace location affects worker commute travel. Indicators include worker commute greenhouse gas emissions, mode-share, vehicle miles traveled, and workplace accessibility via transit.
  • Smart Location Database – Nationwide geospatial database characterizing the built environment for use in travel demand studies and scenario planning.

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Water Quality

  • Impervious Surface Growth Model – Simple spreadsheet tool for estimating net impervious surface growth associated with development proposals based on the development location.
  • Water Quality Scorecard – Tool to help local governments identify opportunities to remove barriers and revise and create codes, ordinances, and incentives to better protect water quality.

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