Sun, Jul 05, 2009
 John Landis, the Crossways professor of city and regional planning at the University of Pennsylvania, told those who attended Friday's growth forum that our region can create more sustainable places and does not have to settle for "monotype boomburgs."
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Tucson, Arizona | Published: 03.16.2008
The Tucson region craves consensus, information and fresh ideas on growth.
Those are some of the conclusions from "Tucson Growth: Decision at the Crossroads," the forum on understanding growth in the Tucson region that the Star convened on Friday at the University of Arizona's Student Union Memorial Center ballroom.
The intense interest in and concern for our region's future was evident from the 600-plus who attended, many of whom arrived before the 7:15 a.m. sign-in began.
It is encouraging and inspiring that so many people — business people, nonprofit agency staff members and volunteers, city, county and regional officials, and neighborhood representatives and homeowners — invested their time in the forum.
One of the overarching goals of the forum was to present economic facts and ideas on how our community can work through the clutter of confusion and misunderstandings. The half-day forum included three national speakers and a panel discussion on how to approach growth issues.
The response to the forum and to the information presented was generally favorable. One comment card said "this conference and the quality of the three presenters has caused me to revise my view of how to address growth in the Tucson Metro area. It's been one of the best conferences I've attended."
The forum was also criticized for not including alternative economic theories and perspectives on global warming, and the needs of wildlife and the greater ecosystem.
We welcome disagreement because all ideas must be offered for thoughtful discussion to begin. Recognizing differences in viewpoints and extracting common values will help us reach the overriding theme that percolated up from Friday's forum: a consensus vision on the future of our region.
New thinking
A few of the interesting concepts and comments that challenged some perceptions included:
● The future will be bigger but not the same, according to speaker William Fulton, a California planner who is president of Solimar Research Group and a member of the Ventura (Calif.) City Council. He noted that in the late 1800s forecasters believed that by the 1930s most available U.S. agricultural lands would be needed for hay production and that New York City would be full of manure — cause to reflect on the possible changes here.
● Instead of thinking of infrastructure as only pavement and pipes, panelist Bill Roe suggested adding wildlife corridors and conservation as part of the infrastructure, which is the framework supporting our community.
● Home builder John Wesley Miller said that sustainability is a three-legged stool: the economy, the environment and equity — the arts, traditions and history. If one leg breaks, the entire stool tumbles.
● Fulton said that consensus must come before mechanical solutions. "Solutions will fall out of consensus."
Unanswered questions
We knew that there would not be time for all questions to be answered at the forum. Therefore, we asked for written questions from the audience, some of which the speakers and panelists answered.
Importantly, we gathered 106 questions that we plan to answer on this page on subsequent Sundays. Today, we're responding to some of the process questions.
● The local perspective was totally missing from the panel — why were local decision-makers not included?
● The agenda does not include any officials from the city of Tucson. Were they invited or offered the opportunity to participate in this event?
Some local decision makers — members of the Pima County Board of Supervisors, Tucson and Marana councils and staff members from governments all over Southern Arizona — were in attendance.
One of the purposes of the forum was to bring fresh ideas to the forefront and politics involved.
The forum was an opportunity for all to learn and hear some new ideas, including local decision-makers.
● So, what do we do now?
● What tangible, observable changes should Tucsonans see as a result of the forum?
I encourage participants to write guest opinions and letters to the editor and offer next-step thoughts.
We knew before the forum that there was an enormous amount of work that had been done in the area of growth. We created a mechanism that is a one-stop point to find the reports and information on what has been accomplished. At www.azstarnet.com/ special/growthresources you'll find links to the Web sites of these reports and analyses.
Internally, our Editorial Department will be looking at ways to communicate who's doing what in the growth discussion and how to become involved.
The forum made it clear that consensus will not be achieved quickly, nor can it be the myopic view of a government, civic group or individual.
We're committed to continuing the conversation and to following up on ideas and plans presented at the forum and elsewhere.
Contact editorial page editor Ann Brown at annbrown@azstarnet.com.
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