Smart Growth America

What Smart Growth America does

Smart Growth America is a Washington, DC-based nonprofit organization founded in 2000 (with 25 years of operating history cited in its 2025 anniversary materials) that operates a coalition-based portfolio of programs and research initiatives spanning housing, transportation, land use, and economic development. Its core technology footprint is non-commercial — a WordPress-hosted website (smartgrowthamerica.org), SalsaLabs-powered donation processing, email/newsletter infrastructure, and social media channels — supporting knowledge dissemination rather than product sales. The organization's substantive outputs are research publications (notably the biennial Dangerous by Design report and the annual Best Complete Streets Policies report), policy frameworks (Building Resilient States, Lessons from the Culture and Community Network), training programs (Complete Streets Leadership Academy), and demonstration projects (Community Connectors). Revenue is sourced entirely from donations, sponsorships, and grant funding, with named foundation sponsors including Surdna Foundation, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, and Natural Resources Defense Council, and federal grantors including CDC's Active People, Healthy Nation initiative, EPA, and DOT. Go-to-market operates through community-led, event-driven, and federal advocacy motions, serving Metropolitan Planning Organizations, state Departments of Transportation, federal/state/local policymakers, real estate developers (via the LOCUS coalition), and community organizations. The organization is governed by a Board of Directors chaired by Madeline Fraser Cook, with Beth Osborne serving as President and CEO since October 2025.

Name

Smart Growth America

Legal name

Smart Growth America

Website

https://smartgrowthamerica.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Smart Growth America is a Washington, DC-based nonprofit founded in 2000 that advances smart growth in housing, transportation, and land use through research, advocacy, and technical assistance for policymakers, state and local governments, developers, and community organizations nationwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Policy Advocacy and Research

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Administration of Housing Programs, Urban Planning, and Community Development (9251), Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Smart Cities & Urban Innovation Programs (Digital Planning, Civic Tech for Cities) (BPAIANAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Sustainable Cities, Urban Development & Green Infrastructure (BPADALAL), Digital Development & ICT4D / GovTech Technical Assistance (BPADAEAL)

Keywords

• Smart growth advocacy
• Community development research
• Transportation policy advocacy
• Complete streets initiatives
• Land use planning

Headquarters

HQ city

S Central Washington Co

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: Primary revenue stream from individual donors, membership donations, and event fundraising. The SGA@25 event raised nearly $130,000 from sponsors and attendees.
2. Sponsorships: Event and program sponsorships from foundations and organizations. SGA@25 sponsors included Surdna Foundation, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, and Natural Resources Defense Council.
3. Grant Funding: Funding from federal agencies including CDC's Active People, Healthy Nation initiative, and EPA and DOT for programs like State Resilience and the Governors' Institute on Community Design.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Smart Growth America is a national nonprofit that conducts policy research, advocacy, and direct technical assistance to advance smart growth across housing, transportation, and land use. It produces authoritative research publications such as the biennial Dangerous by Design report, operates multiple coalitions (National Complete Streets Coalition, Transportation for America, LOCUS, Center for Zoning Solutions, Smart Growth Network), and delivers hands-on community support through programs like Community Connectors and the Complete Streets Leadership Academy.

Product overview

Smart Growth America is a nonprofit organization (not a technology product company) that operates as a coalition of programs focused on community development, transportation, housing, and land use policy. The organization offers research publications (including the biennial Dangerous by Design report), runs multiple coalitions and programs (National Complete Streets Coalition, Transportation for America, LOCUS, Center for Zoning Solutions, State Smart Transportation Initiative, Arts & Culture Program), and provides direct community support through technical assistance workshops and the Community Connectors program. The portfolio is structured as a coalition-based model where distinct programs work collaboratively under the SGA umbrella, each addressing different aspects of smart growth including street design, zoning reform, housing, brownfields redevelopment, and state resilience planning.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• National Complete Streets Coalition: A program focused on making streets safe and accessible for everyone through human-centered urban design.
• Center for Zoning Solutions
• Transportation for America (T4A)
• LOCUS
• National Brownfields Coalition
• State Smart Transportation Initiative
• Smart Growth Network (SGN)

Products and services

• National Complete Streets Coalition A coalition focused on human-centered urban design, making streets safe and accessible for everyone through advocacy and policy support for Complete Streets initiatives.
• Center for Zoning Solutions A program focused on reimagining zoning laws to make dream communities a reality, providing advocacy and technical assistance for zoning reform.
• Transportation for America (T4A) A coalition advocating for transportation systems that support safety without compromise and serve everyone, everywhere, beyond car-centric infrastructure.
• LOCUS: Responsible Real Estate Developers and Investors A coalition advocating for real estate policies that are economically viable, socially responsible, and environmentally sound.
• National Brownfields Coalition A coalition leading the charge to transform Brownfields (contaminated properties) into viable community assets through redevelopment support.
• State Smart Transportation Initiative (SSTI) An initiative working on state transportation policy to make state transportation smarter, more effective, and future-proof.
• Smart Growth Network (SGN) A national alliance of over 80 organizations bringing together advocates, practitioners, policy makers, and local leaders working toward healthy, sustainable, equitable, and prosperous communities.
• Community Connectors Program A program bringing city staff and community organizations together to repair divisive infrastructure through quick-build demonstration projects in cities such as Akron OH, Baltimore County MD, and Little Rock AR.
• Dangerous by Design Report A biennial research publication ranking the deadliest states and metro areas for pedestrians, examining disparities by race and analyzing pedestrian fatality data.
• Complete Streets Leadership Academy A training program designed to train state departments of transportation and local agencies to collaborate and commit to making changes that address safety concerns on state-owned roads, supported by CDC's Active People, Healthy Nation initiative.
• State Resilience Program A first-of-its-kind initiative offering resources, tools, and guidance for state leaders working to build more resilient places and reduce natural hazard risks.

Quantifiable outcome

• 78% of people willing to pay more for homes in walkable communities
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 July 2026Complete Streets Leadership Academy partnership in 2026, designed to train state departments of transportation and local agencies to collaborate and commit to making changes that address safety concerns on state-owned roads. Supported by CDC's Active People, Healthy Nation initiative.
• Senator John Curtis (R-UT) and Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE)flagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 29 January 2026Sponsors of Build HUBS Act (bipartisan legislation) to amend TIFIA and RRIF infrastructure loan programs to include transit-oriented development projects. Smart Growth America advocated for this legislation which also has companion bills in the House.
• American Planning AssociationcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 29 January 2026Endorsed the Build HUBS Act legislation along with Smart Growth America, addressing nationwide need for housing near transit.
• National Association of Counties (NACo)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 August 2024Launched Counties for Housing Solutions (C4HS) cohort, a program designed to increase housing supply in urban counties. C4HS helps counties implement recommendations from NACo's 2023 Housing Task Force to address America's housing crisis.
• Smart Growth NetworkflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational alliance of over 80 organizations bringing together advocates, practitioners, policy makers, and local leaders working toward shared vision for land use and infrastructure policies resulting in healthy, sustainable, equitable, and prosperous communities.
• Smart Growth Roundtable MemberscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition of leaders from state, regional, and local smart growth organizations including: Greenbelt Alliance, WakeUP Wake County, Metropolitan Area Planning Council, Greater Ohio Policy Center, New Jersey Future, Build It Green, CPEX, 1kFriends, 1000 Friends of Oregon, East Metro Strong, GrowSmart Maine, GrowSmart Rhode Island, Coalition for Smarter Growth, Preservation Maryland, Environmental Council of Rhode Island, T4MA, Regional Plan Association, 1000 Friends of Philadelphia, 10000 Friends of Wisconsin, SPUR.
• National Association of REALTORS (NAR)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership at REALTORS Legislative Meetings where SGA urged real estate professionals to become advocates for safer streets. SGA cited NAR's Community & Transportation Preferences Survey data (78% willing to pay more for walkable homes).

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• SPUR: San Francisco Bay Area urban planning think tank. SGA Smart Growth Roundtable member with comparable focus on housing, transit, and land use, but operates regionally rather than nationally.

Direct peers

• National Association of Counties: Represents U.S. county governments on federal policy. Direct partner with SGA on the Counties for Housing Solutions cohort and member of the federal advocacy ecosystem for housing and infrastructure legislation.
• Regional Plan Association: Research and advocacy organization focused on the New York region and national urban planning. Member of SGA's Smart Growth Roundtable and addresses overlapping themes of transit-oriented development, housing affordability, and climate resilience.
• National Housing Conference: Nonprofit housing policy organization that combines research, advocacy, and convening on affordable housing. Highly comparable to SGA's Center for Zoning Solutions and housing-focused work, with overlapping membership and congressional advocacy focus.
• National League of Cities: Represents municipal governments on federal policy and provides technical assistance on housing, transportation, and infrastructure. SGA partners with municipal leaders through programs like Community Connectors and Complete Streets Leadership Academy, making NLC a direct peer in the city-level advocacy space.
• Lincoln Institute of Land Policy: Research and policy organization focused on land use, taxation, and urban planning. SGA sponsor and overlapping programmatic focus on zoning reform, equitable development, and policy research at national scale.

Broad incumbents

• Bipartisan Policy Center: Washington, DC-based think tank that works across political lines on housing, infrastructure, and economic policy. Overlapping federal advocacy space with SGA's transportation and housing work, particularly on the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act.
• American Planning Association: National professional association for urban planners. Highly comparable to SGA given shared focus on land use, zoning, housing, and transportation policy, though APA operates a broader membership and credentialing model rather than a coalition-advocacy model.
• National Association of REALTORS: Major trade association with overlapping interest in walkable communities and property value research. SGA partners with NAR at REALTORS Legislative Meetings and cites NAR's Community & Transportation Preferences Survey, making it a coalition peer with much larger scale.
• Urban Land Institute: Global research and education organization focused on land use and real estate development. Comparable to SGA's LOCUS coalition work on real estate/smart growth policy, but ULI operates at significantly larger scale with broader real estate industry focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/smartgrowthusa
• YouTubeyoutube.com/smartgrowthamerica
• Facebookfacebook.com/SmartGrowthAmerica
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/smart-growth-america
• Instagraminstagram.com/smartgrowthusa

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Smart Growth America