Benefits of Master Planning

Why the INA Master Plan is a Good Idea

The INA initiative arose out of realization throughout the Interbay community that change was coming to the neighborhood one way or the other, and that we could either steer these changes ourselves, or let them roll over us.  Through a series of open meetings and outreach to other local community groups, the INA built consensus as to the primary needs, desires and concerns of the community, then incorporated all this into a master plan.  The INA master plan will:

  • Prevent the unwanted intrusion of big box retail into the Interbay.
  • Preserve industrial businesses and existing retail.
  • Create a Local Improvement District, through which Interbay property owners will finance street and traffic improvements.
  • Reduce traffic congestion; it will take 30 years of steady growth in the region before congestion once again reaches current levels.
  • Improve traffic safety.
  • Create a pedestrian-friendly community in which to work and live.
  • Provide enough workforce housing to, in turn, create significant new business opportunities in the neighborhood.
  • Create jobs.

Without a master plan, neighborhoods grow in a willy-nilly fashion.  New businesses and housing are built without regard to overall needs of the neighborhood, ignoring street capacities and open space.  This leads to “auto-oriented” retail – strip malls and big box retailers.  Residents must often drive their cars to get the simplest of necessities.  The result is snarled traffic and little interaction between residents.

Well-planned high-density development allows more people to live within walking distance of where they work and shop.  Combined with enhanced sidewalks and pedestrian crosswalks, this encourages people to leave their cars in the garage day-to-day.  The result is less traffic and greater interaction between neighbors, shopkeepers and other community residents.  This in turn drives down the crime rate.  High-density residential zones offer greater quality of life, more convenience and less time spent in your car.

The Interbay Neighborhood is ideally suited for this sort of development, boasting many components of a vibrant in-city village: mix of uses, job capacity, strategic location, open space, recreation, economic opportunity and over 30,000 people per day traveling through.

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