• make appropriate infill and revitalization our highest priorities,
• discourage suburban sprawl,
• make traditional town form the standard,
• grow a livable transportation network,
• assemble an enduring green network,
• and create attainable housing.

City Plan 2025 encourages development within existing infrastructure while discouraging sprawl, auto-dependency and further impacts on global climate change. The Plan emphasizes traditional town form with walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods that are available to people of diverse incomes and backgrounds. It also advocates the protection and preservation of the unique natural environment in the Ozark Hills. This emphasis maintains the irreplaceable natural resources, recreational opportunities and overall quality of life associated with living in Fayetteville.

The primary challenge involved educating citizens on the positive impacts of increased density and traditional neighborhood form. Five months of public outreach and education culminated in a 10-day charrette, resulting in the participation of over 700 citizens. Dense, mixed-use communities reduce vehicle miles, which not only decreases GHG emissions and improves air quality ity-wide, but also helps to avoid emissions that would have occurred with conventional growth. The Plan’s emphasis on tree planting and preservation also provides greater carbon sequestration, mitigates urban heat islands, and reduces energy consumption.

The Plan is the first in Arkansas and one of the first in the United States to incorporate a Sector Map and Future Land Use Map (FLUM), which both utilize the SmartCode to depict desired development patterns. The Sector Map utilizes public input as well as topographic and land use data to identify Controlled Growth Areas, Intended Growth Areas, Restricted Growth areas and Infill Areas.

FLUM provides a spectrum of density and intensity of desired development through a careful analysis of current development and envisioned development patterns. These designations are form-based, which focus on use, and include: Natural Areas, Rural Areas, Residential Neighborhood Areas, City Neighborhood Areas, and Urban Center Areas.

Finally, the Plan includes corridors for mass-transit in case future population growth demands this service.

The Plan designates approximately 11,000 acres or 20 percent of the planning area as natural areas. These designations protect riparian corridors and target areas identified as having significant biodiversity, high numbers of native plant species, connections to large habitat areas and potential for walking trails.

Resulting developments will provide housing for a mixed-income community with amenities such as trails, sidewalks and tree-lined streets that encourage residents to walk or bike to popular destinations. Two initial developments are participating in the US Green Building Council LEED-ND Pilot Program as well. These close-knit communities encourage neighborly interaction, inspire community involvement and create a sense of security and well-being, thus improving the overall health of the community.

Planning Staff has developed a number of long range sustainability policies in the recent past. Most of the work done so far has focused on generally accepted smart growth and sustainability policies. I have summarized relevant projects and code amendments with a link or a description of where the adopted policy can be located.