ABSTRACT
Fundamental to the long-term success of any initiative to link growth management efforts and public land acquisition programs is the support of the state’s citizens. The purchase of environmentally sensitive lands requires extensive public sector resources that usually come from taxes or fees. A lack of broad public support can hinder, if not terminate, any program aimed at protecting environmentally sensitive lands through the acquisition of land (or of development rights) by the public sector. Similarly, the management of growth typically requires the public sector to regulate the location, timing, and form of development, an activity that cannot succeed without public support for developing and implementing land use regulations and growth management processes.
