Fighting Urban Sprawl: Mixed-Use Development

Mixed-use developments are no longer the sole purview of science fiction novels and films. These days, it is increasingly popular - and environmentally responsible - to live in a building or complex where you can work, shop, eat, exercise, watch movies, get medical care, and do everything else in your daily life.

Urban sprawl has made enormous in-roads into the land available for future development. around major cities, single-use development has led to a solid corridor that stretches 30 miles or more along the interstates. This gauntlet consists of strip malls and sound barrier walls protecting housing tracts from the noise of the cars they need so much. Every new development is further from the commercial centers than the one before it because people are building out instead of up.

They Save You Money and Time

Mixed use developments help to combat issues of finding affordable housing by taking transportation costs out of the equation. In suburban areas, combining commercial enterprise - offices, restaurants, and shops - with housing helps eliminate commutes. This means fewer cars on the road, lower emissions, and less wear and tear on infrastructure. It also means that people do not need to pay for vehicles or to insure or maintain them.

Living in a condominium in a mixed-use complex also means that your housing payments will cover common maintenance and repair issues that the owners of individual houses must cover on their own. The condo association will be responsible for things like painting the exterior, keeping the elevators running and the sprinkler system operating, and fixing a leaky roof. This allows home owners to spend their money on their families instead of paying the furnace repair person.

They Help the Environment

Using a mixed-use approach also means that the surrounding environment need not be plowed up and parceled into individual housing or strip mall lots. This leaves more room for agriculture and grazing lands, parks, and other green spaces. Such spaces are crucial for sustainable population growth.