By John R. Dierking

JOHN DIERKING, Attorney, Planning Commissioner, and candidate for City Council advocates "smart growth" planning and development concepts including mixed land uses, the creation of a range of housing opportunities and choices, the creation of walkable neighborhoods, fostering distinctive, attractive communities with a strong sense of place, strengthening and directing development towards existing neighborhoods, and perhaps what is the crown jewel of transformation, the cultivation of community and stakeholder collaboration.

Mixed Land Uses- Smart growth supports the integration of mixed land uses into our community as a critical component of achieving a better place to live. By putting uses in close proximity to one another, alternatives to driving, such as walking or biking once again become viable. Mixed land uses also provides a more diverse and sizable population and commercial base for supporting public transit. It can enhance the vitality and perceived security of an area by increasing the number and attitude of people on the street. It helps streets, public spaces and pedestrian-oriented retail again become places where people meet, attracting pedestrians back onto the street and helping to revitalize community life. Create a Range of Housing Opportunities and Choices- Providing quality housing for people of all income levels is an integral part in any smart growth strategy. Housing is a critical part of the way communities grow, as it constitutes a significant share of new construction and development. More importantly however, it is also a key factor in determining households' access to transportation, commuting patterns, access to services and education, and consumption of energy and other natural resources. By using smart growth approaches to create a wider range of housing choices, communities can mitigate the environmental cost of vehicle dependent development, use their infrastructure resources more efficiently, and sure a better jobs to housing balance, and generate a strong foundation of support for neighborhood transit stops, commercial centers, and other services.

Create Walkable Neighborhoods- Walkable communities are desirable places to live, work, learn, worship, and play, and therefore a key component to smart growth. Their desirability comes from two factors. First, walkable communities are located within an easy and safe walk to goods and services that a community resident or employee needs on a regular basis. Second, by definition, walkable communities make pedestrian activity possible, thus expanding transportation options, and creating a streetscape that better serves a range of users + pedestrians, bicyclists, transit riders, and automobiles. To foster walkability, our community must mix land uses and build compactly, and ensure safe and inviting pedestrian corridors.

Encourage Community and Stakeholder Collaboration + Growth can create great places to live, work and play if it responds to our community's own sense of how and where it wants to grow. We have suffered from some level of disinvestments, and may seek to emphasize infill development. We may wish to achieve a sense of place provided by mixed-use town centers. We may also want to seek relief from air and environmental toxicity by offering transportation choices. When elected, I will promote the concept of smart growth, place a high value on increased public safety, and let responsible budgeting be the guiding influence on all of my decisions as your Council Member.

I respectfully ask for your support and vote on March 8th. Please vote John Dierking for Azusa City Council.