Prince George’s County planners are wasting a rich opportunity for job growth by not focusing on transit-oriented development, a new report asserts.
“Prince George’s County’s 15 Metro stations are among the county’s top assets, but the county has not seen the same growth in jobs as the west side of the region,” the Coalition for Smarter Growth says in its report “Cool Communities,” which is scheduled to be unveiled Monday.
The coalition, a longtime advocate of development around train stations, says “transit-oriented” development is the best way to create jobs while also cutting down on pollution.
The publication is the latest salvo by the coalition to focus community leaders on high-rise, city-style construction. The report also calls on regional leaders to reduce car-dependent development and to call for tighter restrictions on automobile traffic when considering developments.
Regional planners have sung the virtues of “smart growth” for nearly a decade. It’s taken for granted that aging baby boomers — and their children, who are now having families of their own — are no longer interested in sprawling commuter suburbs and instead want dense, high-rise downtowns where they can walk to shops and restaurants.
Authorities all around the region are already considering such projects. Montgomery County has committed to rebuilding the area around the White Flint Metro station. Alexandria is weighing projects at Potomac Yard and near the Eisenhower Avenue station. Fairfax County is in the final stages of planning a massive downtown at Tysons Corner.
Prince George’s, smart-growth advocates say, has fallen behind the curve. The county continues to dig cul-de-sac suburbs in fresh fields far from city centers and Metro stations.
The county also continues to be hit hard by the housing crisis, experiencing nearly 1,400 more foreclosures in February, RealtyTrac reported.
“Focusing job growth at Metro stations on the east side of the region will match employment opportunities with a larger housing stock that is affordable to more of the workforce,” the coalition says.
Prince George’s planning officials couldn’t be reached for immediate comment.
