Why build sustainable communities with LEED for Neighborhood Development (LEED-ND)? There are many good reasons, including: combating sprawl; fostering healthy living; protecting threatened species; increasing transportation choices, and decreasing automobile dependence - to name a few.
- To combat typical sprawl development. To reduce the impacts of sprawl and create more livable communities, LEED for Neighborhood Development (LEED-ND) gives preference to: locations that are closer to existing town and city centers, sites with good transit access, infill sites, previously developed sites, and sites adjacent to existing development. Typical sprawl development — low-density housing and commercial uses located in automobile-dependent outlying areas — can harm the natural environment in a number of ways. It can consume and fragment farmland, forests, and wildlife habitat; degrade water quality through destruction of wetlands and increased stormwater runoff; and pollute the air with increased automobile travel.
- To encourage healthy living. LEED-ND emphasizes the creation of compact, walkable, vibrant, mixed-use neighborhoods with good connections to nearby communities. Research has shown that living in a mixed-use environment within walking distance of shops and services results in increased walking and biking, which improve cardiovascular and respiratory health and reduce the risk of hypertension and obesity.
- To protect threatened species. Fragmentation and loss of habitat are major threats to many imperiled species. The rating system encourages compact development patterns and the selection of sites that are within or adjacent to existing development to minimize habitat fragmentation and also help preserve areas for recreation.
- To increase transportation choice and decrease automobile dependence. These two things go hand-in-hand; convenient transportation choices such as buses, trains, car pools, bicycle lanes and sidewalks, for example, are generally more available near downtowns, neighborhood centers, and town centers, which are also the locations that produce shorter automobile trips.
Additional benefits for project developers
- Increasingly, municipalities are reducing fees or waiting periods associated with the approval process for projects that can demonstrate a commitment to sustainability.
- LEED-ND will assist projects that are still in the planning stages to gain the necessary approvals as expediently and cost-effectively as possible.
- Rising demand for housing in highly walkable or transit-accessible areas can result in higher tenancy rates at premium prices.
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