The Massachusetts Smart Growth Alliance is a collaboration of organizations which represent different constituencies but share the powerful mission of advocating for a Commonwealth that is better planned, more prosperous, and more fair. The following organizations are the founding members of the Alliance.
- Boston Society of Architects
- Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association
- Conservation Law Foundation
- Environmental League of Massachusetts
- Fair Housing Center of Greater Boston
- Massachusetts Association of Community Development Corporations
- Metropolitan Area Planning Council
The Boston Society of Architects (BSA) is the largest branch of the American Institute of Architects. It is a nonprofit professional service organization which administers programs and provides resources that enhance the practice of architecture and the public and professional understanding of design. The BSA has made creating livable communities a centerpiece of its public service and public policy agenda. It has been working since 2000 to implement smarter growth in Massachusetts in response to the widespread feeling that sprawling development is damaging our state's special sense of place, its environment, and its economic competitiveness.
Established in 1967, Citizens' Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA) is the non-profit umbrella organization for affordable housing and community development activities throughout Massachusetts. CHAPA's mission is to encourage the production and preservation of housing that is affordable to low-income families and individuals. CHAPA has adopted smart growth principles to reflect its commitment to equitable community development and affordable housing.
Since 1966, the Conservation Law Foundation has worked to solve the most significant environmental problems that threaten New England. CLF’s advocates use law, economics and science to create innovative strategies to conserve natural resources, protect public health and promote vital communities in our region. CLF has worked for many years to promote smart growth by fighting sprawl, developing smart growth models in communities throughout New England, advocating for public transportation, promoting state policy reform, and protecting farmland.
The Environmental League of Massachusetts is an independent, member-based, nonprofit organization established 100 years ago as the Massachusetts Forestry Association. Over time, ELM became involved with fighting pollution, waste disposal and recycling, biodiversity, and toxins. Reflecting this broadened area of concern thorough ELM's research, watchdog and education work, the organization became the Environmental League of Massachusetts in 1993.
The Fair Housing Center of Greater Boston is the only private, non-profit organization solely focused on ending illegal housing discrimination in the greater Boston area. The Fair Housing Center challenges illegal discrimination through education and outreach, enforcement, public policy advocacy, and research. Smart growth is an important piece of the Center’s work because housing discrimination has resulted in segregation and concentrations of poverty. Smart growth policies support equitable and fair housing in all locations.
Founded in 1982, the Massachusetts Association of Community Development Corporations (MACDC) is the policy and capacity-building arm of the community development movement in Massachusetts. MACDC’s mission is to support and advance the affordable housing, economic development and community building strategies of our members, and to build the power of low and moderate income people to achieve greater economic, social and racial justice. MACDC’s work has long supported smart growth by encouraging economic development and housing production in existing neighborhoods
The Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) is a regional planning agency representing 101 cities and towns in the metropolitan Boston area. Created by an act of the Legislature in 1963, it serves as a forum for state and local officials to address issues of regional importance. As one of 14 members of the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), MAPC has oversight responsibility for the region's federally funded transportation program. MAPC's smart growth program includes its involvement with the Alliance, the development of a regional plan through the MetroFuture process, and advocacy on policy issues that impact the development of the Greater Boston region.
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