An Urban Land Institute feature article focuses on central Ohio’s insight2050 initiative, a community-wide effort to engage everyone from residents to public officials in determining how our communities will evolve to accommodate future population growth that is expected to be dramatically different than the last 30 years. The goal of the effort is to create an open, productive dialogue among communities and their stakeholders that will lead to more effective long range planning to enhance quality of life and economic vitality.

The narrative describes insight2050 and the collaborative efforts of ULI Columbus, Columbus 2020 and the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission to provide the insights and resources to proactively plan for growth in Columbus and the seven county region. Emerging trends suggest that market demand over the next 30 years will be in sharp contrast to the last 30 years when growth was dominated by development of single family detached homes on larger lots.

Phase One produced data-driven planning resources to enable communities to objectively evaluate the consequences of different growth scenarios, ranging from low density, automobile-oriented development to compact, mixed use, walkable development, on specific factors such as transportation, finances, health, land consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. Phase Two, which is currently underway, will provide guidance, planning resources and community engagement tools to enable communities to make informed decisions about land use practices.