Peter Calthorpe's Stimulus Prescription

"We must not unwittingly (allow the stimulus package to) subsidize another generation of sprawl by overinvesting in new freeways or underwriting remote subdivisions.

The alternative to sprawl is simple and timely: compact neighborhoods of housing, parks, and schools within walking distance of shops, jobs and transit.

Using the power of the federal government to promote such community development requires an integrated effort focused on three areas:

• Transportation funding that moves away from a bias for highway projects and toward transit investment.

• Environmental policy that protects air quality and opens space.

• Federal housing assistance that moves beyond its historic orientations toward single-family hosing to encourage urban redevelopment."

"Just as federal policy set the stage for sprawl with enormous investment in freeways and VA loans that drove sprawl, it must now support a new direction though investments in transit and walk able communities."