WISH LIST $100: policy staff time to review a development proposal; $500: publication of our Pedestrian Safety report or Metro/Zipcar travel to meetings for a month; $1000: a print run of 5,000 brochures for our outreach or professional production of Blueprint DVD, our main advocacy tool

In the early 1990s, the Disney Corporation proposed to locate its third US theme park near Manassas National Battlefield in rural Virginia. The prospect of historic landscapes paved over like Orlando galvanized local citizens, environmentalists, and historic preservationists. Disney withdrew the project, but the conservation groups saw that healthy regional growth was a bigger issue than one debate might suggest. The Coalition for Smarter Growth was founded in 1997 to coordinate the campaign for a better way to grow in the Washington, DC region. CSG has orchestrated efforts against outer beltway and sprawl in rural areas, and in favor of transit-oriented development, urban revitalization, mixed-use development, walkable/bikeable communities, affordable housing, land conservation and balanced regional economic investment (including jobs and investment in the east side of the region). To get the message across, it has created a powerful media campaign, supported local organizing efforts, expanded its outreach to include a series of public forums and walking tours, and broadly disseminated its Blueprint for a Better Region. Since 2005, regional jurisdictions have made these principles central to their agendas, a sea change brought about by 10 years of hard work. This is your community and you can participate in its smart growth and healthy development!

Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director 4000 Albemarle Street NW, Suite 310 Washington, DC 20016 202-244-4408 www.smartergrowth.net