Making a worn-down place into a smart, hospitable neighborhood

While preparing for a presentation, I was reminded that smart growth can and should be implemented step-by-step, and neighborhood-by-neighborhood.  It also should be built at a scale and character appropriate to the setting.

For example, here's a photo of a run-down street in Fayetteville, Arkansas:

Begin with infrastructure improvements: sidewalks, street trees, and a median.  It's already better:

This invites some mixed uses to come in - shops with offices above (note the gas station remains, but no longer fronts the street):

As the neighborhood improves, some restaurants and stores with apartments above come in on the near side of the street.  This in turn brings people to the walkable environment:

With this block now improved, the block behind can come next, with appropriately scaled, three-story buildings:

Finally, finish it off with a roundabout and monument to anchor the neighborhood with a sense of place.  It's still a small-city environment, but much more walkable and inviting:

Working with our partner, the visualization wizards at Urban Advantage, NRDC has placed 70 such step-by-step scenarios, all precisely located on Google Maps, on our web site, Picturing Smart Growth.  We also include a little contextual information on the metro regions where the sites are located.  The scenarios demonstrate what the future can be.  Please visit!