From: 1000 Friends of Iowa Subject: MPO Public Information Meetings Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) Please attend one of the Des Moines Area MPO Public Information Meetings that are coming up. There is one tonight (9/15) at 7:00 at the Neveln Center, 406 SW School Street, Ankeny (515-965-9606). The next one is tomorrow night (Tuesday 9/16) in Pleasant Hill, the Community Room, 5151 Maple Drive (515-262-9368). See future dates below. Talking Points for Des Moines MPO Public Meetings 1. The three proposed growth scenarios might be characterized as Sprawl 1, 2 and 3. There is no attempt made to present a "Smart Growth" scenario. None of the three options offer any hope for a more responsible development pattern that would protect farmland and natural areas, or encourage redevelopment and infill in existing cities and towns. If any one of the three proposed scenarios are accepted by the MPO, it would lead to transportation decisions that focus on more new highway construction at the expense of maintenance of existing roads and expansion of other transportation modes. 2. Organizations with interest and expertise in neighborhood development, environmental protection, agriculture, historic preservation, public transit and bicycle and pedestrian access need to be integral participants of this process from the beginning. The region's growth plan needs to reflect more than the wish list of developers and city and county officials. 3. Extensive abuse of tax abatement and tax increment financing (TIF) have shifted more and more of the property tax burden to residential payers. The three proposed growth scenarios mean further taxpayer subsidies to accommodate a sprawling pattern of growth, a pattern that is being rejected by more and more communities across the country. If the Des Moines metro area is serious about becoming a place that people and businesses want to locate, it will create a plan that is sustainable and affordable. The plan must emphasize enhancement and redevelopment of existing cities and towns and preservation of farmland and natural areas, assuring a higher quality of life and a fairer distribution of the tax burden for all. It is very important that our members choose a meeting to attend. This is our chance to make our voices heard. Sept. 15 - 7:00 p.m. - Neveln Center, 406 SW School St., Ankeny (515-965-9606) Sept. 16 - 7:00 p.m. - Pleasant Hill Community Room, 5151 Maple Drive, Pleasant Hill (515-262-9368) Sept. 18 - 7:00 p.m. - Des Moines Botanical Center's Willow Room, 909 E. River Drive, Des Moines (515-323-8900) Sept. 23 - 7:15 p.m. - West Des Moines Public Library, 4000 Mills Civic Parkway, West Des Moines (515-222-3400) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To get off the IOWA-TOPICS list, send any message to: [log in to unmask]