Comprehensive Strategy to Enhance Landscape

LANSING, MI

The Michigan Chamber of Commerce is working with Landscape Architects, architects and planners to bridge the gap between land use and urban policy in the state, hoping to enhance the economy while addressing urban decay and poor land use patterns. Photo by Vito Palmisano, courtesy of BDCVB.

The Michigan Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors recently adopted a comprehensive policy statement on what is likely to be a major issue in the 1999-2000 legislative session-- land use and urban policy. The Chamber supports a balanced approach to land use and urban policy that enhances the business climate and economic competitiveness of Michigan.

"We believe the best approach is a comprehensive strategy of both urban investment and land use policy that protects Michigan's natural resources," explained Christina MacInnes, CO-Chair of the Michigan Chamber's Land Use Task Force and President of Crystal Properties, Inc. "Land is a precious and finite resource. The Chamber recognizes the way we treat our land today will affect the quality and character of Michigan's landscape for many generations."

The Chamber recommends a land use policy that reduces government bureaucracy. Specifically, the Chamber believes MI land use policy should enhance the state's environmental quality, add value to the state's economy and address the decay of urban areas and resulting land use patterns regulations that hinder land assembly, business investment and job growth.

The Chamber will work with city planners, architects, Landscape Architects, and engineers to guide state legislation and to direct the "smart growth" and responsible land use of the state.