Infrastructure Development, Residential Growth and Impacts on Public Service Expenditure

Scott N Lieske,Roger H Coupal,Donald M Mcleod

doi:10.1007/s12061-015-9140-8

Abstract

This paper documents the use of geographic information science based planning support systems to evaluate the effects of infrastructure development on residential growth and resulting public service expenditure. The case example presented here investigates the impacts associated with a large water infrastructure development project. The effect of infrastructure on residential development is evaluated by comparing growth trends within areas of different levels of water supply and sewerage services. The effect of changing residential development patterns on public services expenditure is evaluated with a spatially explicit model linking urban form with revenues, expenditures and fiscally efficient areas of service provision for a delivery-based public service, police. Results confirm that the development of water infrastructure leads to residential growth and also indicate this growth in some locations leads to fiscally efficient provision of a public service. A primary recommendation from this research is that, in anticipation of growth, water planning should be comprehensive rather than single issue focused. Planning support systems are indicated to be useful tools supporting policy refinement for land-use and water planning.

Highlights

Introduction and ContextThere are well-established links between water infrastructure development and residential growth as well as between increasing residential growth and increasing water demand (Hanak and Brown 2006)
It allows direct visual comparison of data representing the regions of interest (SAWS, the Big Goose watershed, the Little Goose watershed and the urban service area) contrasted with the extra-municipal region of Sheridan County
The goal of this paper is to evaluate and communicate the land-use change, residential growth, and public service expenditure impacts of the Sheridan Area Water Supply project

Summary

Introduction

Introduction and ContextThere are well-established links between water infrastructure development and residential growth as well as between increasing residential growth and increasing water demand (Hanak and Brown 2006). There remains a problematic disconnect between water planning and land-use planning in the western United States (Center for Natural Resources and Environmental Policy 2011; Cook et al 2008; Hanak and Brown 2006). At the local government level there is well established land-use authority, but limited and sometimes unclear legal authority over water development (Cook et al 2008). Municipalities and counties are responsible for land-use planning but local governments have only limited control over water infrastructure development. Water management and development is often under the purview of utilities that are distinct from city or county governments and often have jurisdictional and geographic boundaries that only partly overlap (Hanak and Brown 2006). Legal authority for local land-use planning is well defined with the main delegation of authority from the state to county and city governments (Hamerlinck et al 2013)

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Conclusion