Smart Growth for Small Towns
Smart Growth for Small Towns relates the principles of Smart Growth to towns and rural communities, providing examples, discussion, explanation, and advice on community design and development.
The educational information provided on this site is intended to contribute to an understanding of the intent and purpose of the Smart Growth principles. However, planning for the future of our small towns requires input from a variety of fields and includes issues of design, policymaking, and governance. This site is focused primarily upon design issues associated with small towns and is intended to serve as a resource for government officials, teachers, designers, and the general public.
The explanation of each Smart Growth principle includes the following:
A.) Discussion of the purpose of the principles and why it is important.
B.) Strategies that suggest actions communities can take to help achieve the goals of the principle.
Ten Principles of Smart Growth:
- Mix land uses
- Take advantage of compact building design
- Create a range of housing opportunities and choices
- Create walkable neighborhoods
- Foster distinctive, attractive communities with a strong sense of place
- Preserve open space, farmland, natural beauty, and critical environmental areas
- Strengthen and direct development towards existing communities
- Provide a variety of transportation choices
- Make development decisions predictable, fair, and cost effective
- Encourage community and stakeholder collaboration in development decisions
Smart Growth for Small Towns is a cooperative project of Extension faculty of the Department of Landscape Architecture and the Stennis Institute of Government and Community Development. For more information contact Michael Seymour, Associate Extension Professor at Michael.Seymour@msstate.edu or Jeremy Murdock, Research Associate at Jeremy@sig.msstate.edu.
Publications
News
STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Experts from the Mississippi State University Extension Service will offer a workshop designed to help food-related business owners prepare for disasters.
“Food as a Business: Disaster Preparedness for Food Businesses” is for anyone who currently operates or is interested in operating an agriculture-based food business, including retail, cottage food or food processing operations.
Topics include financial preparedness, risk management, record keeping, crisis communication planning, emergency-action planning and food recall and traceability planning.
Mississippi fruit and vegetable producers, specialty foods producers and interested farmers can learn how to get their products on local store shelves and into new markets during an upcoming meeting.
PICAYUNE, Miss. -- The Mississippi State University Crosby Arboretum in Picayune will host the Piney Woods Heritage Festival Nov. 16.
The 17th annual event celebrates the region’s heritage with musical performances and displays and demonstrations of traditional skills and arts, including blacksmithing, spinning, quilting, butter churning, basket making, Native American dancing and more.
BILOXI, Miss. -- The Mississippi State University Extension Service invites volunteers to participate in the rescheduled 2019 annual Mississippi Coastal Cleanup Nov. 16.
Volunteers will remove litter from 30 sites across Hancock, Harrison and Jackson counties beginning at 8 a.m. A complimentary lunch will be provided after the cleanup ends at 11 a.m.
Community organizations are encouraged to participate in an upcoming community training forum on racial understanding Oct. 31 and Nov. 1.
Success Stories
See what is new in Extension... Extension Holds New Agronomy Camp, Larry Alexander Fund Gives to the Future of 4-H, Extension Offers Ag Literacy Workshop for Teachers, Extension Offers Resources to Residents Affected by Backwater Flooding.
In 2016, Abby Braman was a newcomer to Mississippi, and she began looking for places where she could enjoy the outdoors as she did growing up in New Jersey.
After a conversation with a fellow volunteer at St. Dominic’s Hospital in Jackson, John Malanchak decided to follow his heart.
“I’d always wanted to work with special needs individuals,” explains Malanchak, a retired geologist. “But I didn’t know what I could offer them.”
He joined the US Marine Corps to serve and protect the country, and, as a Marine in Iraq, Lance McElhenney felt 10 feet tall and bulletproof.
Jackson Precast Inc. is Mississippi’s only company that specializes in producing architectural precast, DeVoss explains. When the business competes for jobs, out-of-state manufacturers are its main competitors
