Sustainable megapolitan: How large-scale urban development can help green America

Megapolitan growth becomes even more significant when people consider that the United States is the only developed nation in the world projected to make major population gains to mid-century. Refocused development-in the form of intensified, compact nodes and alternative pathways linking them-is helping megapolitans “go green.” Some metropolitan areas within megapolitans have begun to establish and intensify their nodes, and several regions in the United States are approaching the point where they are built out. When the nation’s population jumped from 150 million in 1950 to 300 million in 2006, most residents were accommodated by suburban greenfield development at the expanding edge of the metropolis. Establishing guidelines for flexible and responsive urban design-such as varied retail floorplates and diversity of uses-can help ensure the sustainability of new mixed use centers. Beyond the question of implementation, both in terms of mixed use and density, there is the issue of what the newly formed or intensified nodes mean for sustainability and community.