A public hearing on expanding Spokane County’s Urban Growth Areas (UGAs) is scheduled for Wednesday, February 27th. The hearing will begin at 5:30 p.m. in the Hearing Room on the lower level of the Public Works Building, located at 1026 W. Broadway Avenue.
The options under consideration would add nearly 6,000 acres of land for suburban-style subdivisions and 1,000 acres for commercial and industrial use. Many of the areas under consideration are currently held in parcels of 10-to-20 acres. Some of the areas under consideration are included in the proposal because the landowners requested urban designation.
The Board of County Commissioners is basing the expansion on projections that the county’s population will grow from 480,000 residents in 2013 to more than 612,000 by the year 2031.
So what’s that have to do with transportation? You’ve got to build and maintain roads to reach subdivisions.
And if you're building more new roads, you don't have the money to maintain the existing ones. There's a surplus of buildable land inside the existing urban growth boundary so why expand and create cost for more new services?
Futurewise has good information on why this expansion isn't good for our ability to maintain a transportation system and streets for all: http://futurewise.org/spokane/index_html
Thanks Barb! I'm just writing about that very topic right now in our draft Metropolitan Transportation Plan, which will be out for review soon.