My newspaper column is about the broad-based, tech-adept coalition that won a big conservation battle to allow the expansion of the Haw River State Park, and the possible emergence of a new force in local politics. "The idea that excites me is not opposition to growth, but smart growth, green growth, a sense that Greensboro and Guilford can and should be the most livable metropolitan areas in the state."

A key quote: "The Internet has changed the way the neighborhoods can organize themselves and present their case," says City Councilman Robbie Perkins, himself a prominent developer. "Politicians are listening to these groups. They are listening to the blogs."

Read the whole thing after the jump.

A watershed moment for Guilford County

by Edward Cone
News & Record
1-20-08

The Battle of Haw River took place in 1781, during the Revolutionary War. It was a surprising victory by a band of upstarts over the forces of a rich and powerful empire.

The second Battle of Haw River ended earlier this month and followed much the same story line, albeit with less gruesome consequences for the losers than befell the Tories attached to Banastre Tarleton's command. Bluegreen Corp., a big Florida real estate development company, was routed by a group of local volunteers and forced to abandon its plans for a gated golf-course community along the Haw, but still got paid for selling its options on the land to the state.

The fruits of this victory are sweet: nearly 700 additional acres for the Haw River State Park, an oasis of undeveloped land on the border of Guilford and Rockingham counties. Securing such a large parcel adjacent to the existing park also adds momentum to plans for further expansion.

I wonder, though, if there may be another beneficial result, one that will make itself apparent in the months and years to come: the awakening of a new force in local politics, the emergence at long last of a counterweight to the dominance of the real estate industry. Call it the voice of the people.

Let me hasten to say that developers are people, too, contributors to our economy and leaders in our communities. We are all consumers of their products. But for too long they have held disproportionate power in Greensboro and Guilford County. Real estate interests in other places put their pawns on elected boards; here, they often serve on the boards themselves. Developers have the money and the lawyers to work the system and change the zoning rules and get their way. It has been hard for anyone to stand up to them, as a tour of our strip-malled and mini-mansed topography quickly makes clear.

The second battle of the Haw suggests that this imbalance of power may be shifting. To be sure, the doomed Patriot's Landing project ran into a perfect storm. The drought made the idea of stressing the river with both withdrawals and discharge look irresponsible. The meltdown of the housing market made the new homes look unnecessary. And unlike the failed effort to preserve Greensboro's War Memorial Stadium, there was a sugar daddy (the state) on tap to fund a project (a park!) that only a grinch could oppose. It was the most one-sided public debate I've ever seen.

But as any sports fan who has watched a losing franchise rebuild can attest, you start by winning the ones you should win. And the victory on the Haw didn't just happen, it was the result of a well-organized campaign by a group, Citizens for Haw River State Park, that took advantage of technology and leveraged public sentiment in ways that should be repeatable in other battles to come over land use and planning. Earlier efforts to stop or modify development, including recent projects near Country Park and across from Friendly Center, have been successful, but each one seemed self-contained, not part of something larger. Suddenly there is something larger. The Haw River question was, if you will, a watershed moment.

It used to be that neighborhood groups organized by collecting names on clipboards and holding a few open meetings. Developers outlasted them by delaying board and council votes for months, or tabling projects until the ad hoc opposition drifted away. Now the volunteers use e-mail lists and Web sites to organize and keep themselves informed, to connect volunteers and governmental agencies, to spark conversations among bloggers and create blogs of their own. They are agile and can reconstitute themselves as necessary over time, providing a portable infrastructure that moves from one fight to the next. "The Internet has changed the way the neighborhoods can organize themselves and present their case," says City Councilman Robbie Perkins, himself a prominent developer. "Politicians are listening to these groups. They are listening to the blogs."

Anne Hummel, a leader of the community group that formed during the parkland dispute and quickly stopped a plan to put a Walgreens drug store at the busy corner of Lawndale Avenue and Cornwallis Drive, says the Haw River team's use of the Net was a model for her organization. "Technology was very important for us," she says. "We started a blog and were in the newspaper the next day. We got picked up by WFMY television. It was a very nice conduit to the news media."

David Wharton, a perceptive observer of development issues, wrote about this technology trend at his blog, A Little Urbanity: "This is very irritating to developers, but in the long run I think it will hold them to a higher standard, which is good for everybody."

Things would get really interesting if these newly powerful community groups come together to form some sort of political movement built around their shared concerns. The idea that excites me is not opposition to growth, but smart growth, green growth, a sense that Greensboro and Guilford can and should be the most livable metropolitan areas in the state. We missed the boom that lifted Charlotte and Raleigh, but we also missed some of the problems that came with that boom. Now it's time to leverage our advantage before we squander it.

This understanding that open space and careful planning can be part of a sound growth strategy was part of the Haw River story, in which politicians and economic developers emerged as key opponents of the Patriot's Landing plan. Says Perkins, "The Haw River Park is a huge win for our community, and will be a great economic generator for our county." That same logic applies to urban infill development, neighborhood zoning and other development issues.

We may see politicians emerge from the smart growth crowd. David Craft, a leader of the Citizens for Haw River State Park group, says he is considering a run for office at some future date. And new coalitions that reach beyond familiar partisan lines seem possible, too. John Young, another leader of the group, says the effort brought together "hunters and fishermen and tree huggers. It was a joyous experience to work with such a broad-based coalition -- that's not a common thing in Greensboro."

Not yet, at least. But after the second battle of the Haw, maybe we'll see some positive changes around here.

© News & Record 2008

Edward Cone (www.edcone.com, [email protected]) writes a column for the News & Record most Sundays.

Comments

[Sidney C. Gray]

Ed: I do hope that the Haw River State Park victory is a beginning for leaving our grandchildren something other than a slab of concrete from New York to Florida.
I believe that the "Heart of the Triad" project is another situation that extends Urban Sprawl.
I offer the following as one solution to the Urban Sprawl versus private property rights:

Urban Sprawl, Individual Property Rights and Development:

The exponential population growth is the single greatest challenge that we as a community face. These population increases challenge our basic values and natural resources. The solutions that we set in motion today will be our legacy. How do we balance our right of economic gain while slowing down urban sprawl? I support the revitalization, adaptive re-use and 'infill' of existing neighborhoods. I propose that the City of Greensboro in conjunction with surrounding communities continue to support and expand the Urban Greenway in all directions by a reallocation of current budgeted tax priorities or by an additional tax for the purchase of land to be held in trust for our heirs. This could be accomplished by an existing agency such as the Piedmont Land Conservancy or another sanctioned group. This public purchase of land will slow urban sprawl thus encouraging infill development while not infringing on individual property rights.

One needs only to look at China and India to propel us towards workable solutions that we choose rather than those that will be forced upon us by the government in the future.

[Dave Ribar]

Sidney:

Accommodating inevitable population growth is a huge challenge. The "Heart of the Triad" concept, however, seems consistent with this. Encourage growth toward the center of the Triad where infrastructure either exists or can be put in place at relatively low cost. Discourage growth outside those areas.

We need to be careful with concepts like the Greenway. You correctly point out that we should encourage "infill development," but the Greenway amounts to an urban park that would limit such development. If we are going to restrict development in some areas, we need to allow higher density development in others.

[Billy The Blogging Poet]

Well Dave, I knew we'd not agree very long. Dave had a great idea on his blog yesterday I think.

HOT is nothing more than a taxpayer funded land grab on the part of Robbie Perkins and his ilk and they are lying through their teeth when they claim they will not seek the use of eminent domain. Oh sure, none of the involved local governments will exercise eminent domain but that is only because the NCDOT will exercise eminent domain for them.

As for HOT being a solution to transportation issues-- bulls***! A solution to transportation issues would be to put these jobs where people live instead of putting them 30 miles away from where the most jobs are needed-- east and south Greensboro.