Livable Centers Initiative

Who is ARC

ARC and its predecessor agencies have been at the

forefront of regional planning in the U.S. since it’s

creation in 1947.

• Governmental Services

• Aging Services

• Workforce Development

• Research & Data

• Commute Connections

• Environmental Planning

• Transportation Planning

• Land Use Planning

• Leadership Development

Regional

Commission

Metropolitan

Planning

Organization

Metro North

Georgia Water

Planning District

Workforce Board

Area Agency on

Aging (AAA)

Atlanta Urbanized Area

2000

1990

1970

1950

Urban Expansion Without Services

Importance of Centers and Corridors

• Encourages local governments to plan and

implement strategies that link transportation

improvements with development

• Planning grants provided to develop studies

• Program links implementation actions to receipt of

transportation project funding

• Takes advantage of existing infrastructure in

centers & corridors

LCI Program Overview

• Mix of land uses

• Multiple transportation modes

• Public involvement

Resolution adopted by ARC Board in 1999 creating LCI.

Additional approvals in 2004 and 2009.

• $13 million for studies over 13 years

• $500 million for transportation projects

LCI Authorization

• Focus on activity

centers, town

centers, corridors

• Uses STP-Urban

(L230) funds

11 counties and 52 cities with an LCI study

Atlanta – 18

Cherokee – 4

Clayton – 6

Cobb – 11

DeKalb – 19

Douglas – 2

Fayette – 2

Fulton – 16

Gwinnett – 14

Henry – 3

Rockdale – 2

Outside – 10

Total – 107

Studies

Supplemental LCI StudyFull LCI Study

• FY03 first year transportation funds available

• $169 million programmed between FY 2003-2011 for

design, right-of-way and construction projects

• Funds distributed to 96 projects in 53 LCI

communities

• 49 projects are authorized for construction or have

been completed to date

LCI Transportation Funding

Perimeter Center Parkway

Before

Decatur MARTA Plaza

Stockbridge US 23

LCI Transportation Projects

Morrow

Chamblee Suwanee

Public Engagement

LCI Evaluation Reports

The LCI developments result in:

• 84,506 residential units

• 12,329 hotel units

• Over 19 million sq ft of commercial retail space

• Over 38 million sq ft of office space

Development Numbers

• LCI communities reported 1,148 developments:

• 762 are complete

• 222 are planned

• 164 under construction

Development Numbers

• Regional Development Comparison • (completed development only)

Development 2000-2007 Housing (Units) Commercial (sq ft) Office (sq ft)

335,138 38,912,381 32,016,187

26,645 8,185,449 21,411,504

7.95% 21.04% 66.88%

2008 Regional Comparison

LCI % of 13 County Development

LCI 13 County- Completed Developments

13 County Development (Source: Co-Star)

Land Area: 3.4%

Land Area: 83,224 Acres

Land Area: 2,450,762 Acres

*13 Counties: Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry, Newton, Rockdale, Spalding, Walton

Development Examples

Hapeville

WoodstockMorrow

Development Examples

City Center (GSU) Buckhead

Suwanee

Chamblee MARTA Parking Lot

• 92% of LCI communities have adopted their LCI Study

into their comprehensive plan

• 66% have special LCI zoning districts

• 56% of those surveyed reported having policies in

their comprehensive plan that focus on building more

senior, workforce, or special needs housing

• 83% have design guidelines in place to ensure that

new development supports a livable, walkable

environment

Policies and Regulations

Hwy 78 Build-Out Modeling

Emissions from VMT

-

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

CO

2lb

s p

er

ca

pit

a p

er

ye

ar

Existing Land Use

LCI Plan

Lessons Learned

• Federal transportation funds offer flexibility to

create LCI type programs

• LCI has allowed ARC to engage local governments

in detailed planning

• Incentive to implement Regional Development

Plan policies

• Smart Growth concepts have applicability in every

place

• Change takes time

Questions?

Tom WeyandtDirector of Comprehensive Planning

Atlanta Regional Commission

40 Courtland Street

Atlanta, GA

404-463-3250

tweyandt@atlantaregional.com

www.atlantaregional.com/lci