{"id":19980,"date":"2024-09-11T20:19:03","date_gmt":"2024-09-11T20:19:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/realtorparty.realtor\/?p=19980"},"modified":"2024-09-11T20:33:36","modified_gmt":"2024-09-11T20:33:36","slug":"santa-fe-realtors-promote-diverse-housing-options-in-housing-strapped-region-2-3-2-2-3-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-3-3-2-3-2-2-2-2-2-2-4-2-4-2-2-3-2-4-2-2-3-2-2-2-2-3-3-2-2-3-2-2-2-3-2-3-2-2-2-2-3-3-2-2-2-3-2-2-3-5","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/realtorparty.realtor\/homepage\/success-story\/bar-sg0924","title":{"rendered":"Boise Regional REALTORS\u00ae Trains Local Communities in the Basics of Smart Growth Development"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"The nuts-and-bolts of urban development present a steep learning curve in any jurisdiction.\u00a0 In Idaho, which for several years has been the nation\u2019s fastest-growing state, it has become a matter of some urgency for those trying to address the dual demands of housing creation and preserving the natural beauty that defines the state.\u00a0 To help REALTOR\u00ae <\/sup>members and elected officials throughout Idaho learn about the fundamental forces that affect development, Boise Regional REALTORS\u00ae <\/sup>recently partnered with the Urban Land Institute to offer training in six different Idaho municipalities.\u00a0 A Smart Growth Grant<\/a> from the REALTOR\u00ae<\/sup> Party supported the effort.<\/p>\n

Government Affairs Director Cameron Kinzer was introduced to the idea by Jessica Durham, a REALTOR\u00ae <\/sup>member who owns a real estate school and had worked with the Urban Land Institute to condense its Urban Plan game into a six-hour version specifically for REALTORS\u00ae<\/sup>, approved for CE credit.\u00a0 \u201cIt was an eye-opening, engaging class \u2013 using LegoTM<\/sup>!\u201d recalls Kinzer.\u00a0 \u201cFrom what I experienced, it was clear that the course would benefit not only REALTORS\u00ae<\/sup>, but also elected officials.\u00a0 By offering the training to both these groups, together, we anticipated that it would facilitate advocacy, partnership, and decision-making down the road as they encounter the real-life process of planning and development in their cities and towns.\u201d<\/p>\n

In coordination with the state association, Kinzer secured funding from the REALTOR\u00ae<\/sup> Party to offer the program, including a working lunch, in Idaho Falls, Chubbuck, Burley, Coeur d\u2019Alene, Moscow, Star, and Boise. \u00a0Working with the Association of Idaho Cities, the organization tasked with training public officials in public policy, they invited Idaho mayors, city council members, and city planners to join REALTORS\u00ae<\/sup> from their own communities in learning about the development process.<\/p>\n

Durham describes the Urban Plan course as a game that takes participants through the entire development process, from concept to permitting and presenting the plan for approval. \u00a0At tables of six to ten, each player is assigned a role, such as site planner, city liaison, marketer, or financial analyst.\u00a0 Play begins with a 3.5-minute video introducing the fictional RFP to re-build a portion of a city that had burned down.\u00a0 \u201cI explain what structural inventory the LegoTM<\/sup> on the table represents, and the teams get to work arranging the mixed-use built environment and recreational zones such as pickleball courts and skate parks.\u00a0 They also have to factor in transportation, such as bus routes and pedestrian plazas. \u00a0\u00a0Once they\u2019ve worked together for about an hour on creating sites that are invariably pretty, that\u2019s when I throw the cold water, giving them the \u2018bad news\u2019 about restrictions and constraints \u2013 forcing them to think more sobering thoughts about zoning and efficient allocation of resources.\u201d\u00a0 Having revised their plans, the teams present their solutions to a mock City Council. \u201cREALTORS\u00ae<\/sup>, being typically competitive, tend to like this part,\u201d observes Durham.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Feedback from the six-city tour was overwhelmingly positive, with an emphasis from REALTORS\u00ae<\/sup> on the value of participating and engaging with local officials and city employees from their own communities.\u00a0 \u201cI think this will help in the real world,\u201d said one.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were very lucky to have someone as knowledgeable and experienced as Jessica leading the classes,\u201d says Kinzer, adding, \u201cI would encourage associations to hold these classes in smaller communities where elected officials don\u2019t have as much access to educational resources, or experience with urban planning and development.\u201d\u00a0 In addition to this course, in recent years, Boise Regional REALTORS\u00ae <\/sup>has offered its members several opportunities to participate in NAR\u2019s Smart Growth for the 21st<\/sup> Century training.\u00a0 \u201cWe really appreciate the Smart Growth Grant program,\u201d says Kinzer.\u00a0 \u201cIt has been great to be able to conduct these projects, and remind members that it\u2019s made possible by their dues coming back to their communities.\u201d<\/p>\n

To learn more about how Boise Regional REALTORS\u00ae <\/sup>is helping communities across Idaho learn about the process of smart growth development, contact Government Affairs Director Cameron Kinzer at cameron@boirealtors.com<\/a> or 208.599.4783; or REALTOR\u00ae<\/sup> and course instructor Jessica Durham at jdurham@groverealtyid.com<\/a> or 208.921.1338.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With support from a Smart Growth Grant from the REALTOR\u00ae Party, the Boise Association sponsored a series of six Urban Plan courses in different communities around the state of Idaho. Developed by the Urban Land Institute, the training teaches the nuts-and-bolts of Smart Growth development, then engages participants in proposing a mock-development of their own \u2013 built with LegoTM.","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":19981,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[1003,1053,344,353],"class_list":["post-19980","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-success-stories","tag-boise-realtors","tag-idaho","tag-smart-growth","tag-smart-growth-action-grant"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/realtorparty.realtor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19980","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/realtorparty.realtor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/realtorparty.realtor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/realtorparty.realtor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/realtorparty.realtor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19980"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/realtorparty.realtor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19980\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/realtorparty.realtor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19981"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/realtorparty.realtor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19980"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/realtorparty.realtor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19980"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/realtorparty.realtor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19980"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}