1. Reconciling Development and Conservation: Guy Greenaway and Kimberly Good Miistakis Institute Miquelon Lake Growth Management Community Committee Presentation Brenda Wispinski, Executive Director March 22, 2011 Transfer of Development Credits (TDC) Programs

2. Directs development from areas where it is not appropriate to areas where it makes best sense Conserves valued landscapes at little or no public expense Avoids win-lose zoning scenarios, ensuring landowners suffer no serious property value reductions that accompany zoning approaches Allows large groups of parcels to be conserved in contrast to parcel-by-parcel clustering techniques Why a TDC Program ?

3. Americans Some Canadians Municipal governments, and the landowners they represent Communities facing rapid growth, rapid land conversion Communities worried about loss of valued landscapes Who Uses a TDC Program ?

4. Determine the area to which the TDC program will apply

5. Designate sending (conservation) areas and receiving (development) areas

6. Assign a ‘development credit’ to each parcel

7. Developers purchase ‘credits’ from other parcels Development potential is extinguished on ‘sending’ parcels

8. From “Transfer of Development Rights: A Flexible Option for Growth in Pennsylvania”, Brandywine Conservancy

9. In the U.S. since mid- 1960s Varying degrees of success First “broad purpose” attempt in Canada; Cypress County, 2003 Gaining prominence in Alberta Quick Background

10. Need to be clear what you want … as a community Need to recognize you can’t do it all in all places Need to make trade- offs How..? TDCs as one tool Land Use in a Community RECREATION AGRICULTURE CLEAN WATER CULTURAL IDENTITY RESIDENTIAL COMMERCIAL INDUSTRIAL … ETC.

11. Hallmark: Method for restricting development (e.g., conservation easements) Hallmark: Market-based system for transferring credits; may be assisted (e.g., brokered) Successful TDR programs are never lonely, never stagnant! Features of TDC Programs

12. Many ways for determining sending areas and receiving areas Credits may be based on development / conservation potential May be for a sub-region, an entire county, multiple counties Features of TDC Programs (cont.)

13. Current efforts in Alberta

14. Cypress County First effort in Canada (multi-landowner, rural landscape) Cypress Hills Fringe Area (2003) Beaver Hills Initiative (Strathcona, Lamont, Beaver, Camrose, Leduc) Working with Alberta Innovates Technology Futures, Miistakis Institute, Land Stewardship Centre of Canada, Ag Canada, Alberta Tourism, Parks and Recreation to identify market-based incentives Funding for a pilot in the Beaver Hills Municipal Efforts

15. TDC is voluntary Use it to protect “valued landscapes”; community determines what those are Used in very different ways in numerous Key Thinking Points

16. Programs evolve; don’t expect that the program you see today is what you will see in 5, 10 years (scrutinize continually; no autopilot) One tool in the tool box Key Thinking Points

17. Needs to support pre-existing goals Balance with opportunism Temptation otherwise in Alberta Conditions for Success Connection to community vision

18. Programs ever- changing to adapt On-going communication vital Political support is key Municipal Development Plans and Bylaws Conditions for Success Flexibility and stability

19. There is an “average” price for TDC credits TDC programs work in all areas TDC programs are a conservation “silver bullet” TDC programs are static Common Myths

20. TDC’s will trigger property rights violations Zoning alone can achieve the same goals Land trusts can achieve the same goals Common Myths (cont.)

21. Enabling legislation Underway Fine tuning the role And proposed structure Technical and financial support Financial and non- financial Catalyst investment BHI Model A Provincial Strategy

22. Proposed features of TDC legislation Inter-jurisdictional TDC programs TDC program ‘banks’ Third-party TDC easement holders TDC-specific public consultation A Provincial Strategy BHI Model

23. Proposed features of TDC legislation Flexibility in determining TDC admin body Provincial-level dispute resolution process A Provincial Strategy BHI Model