Newly built infill homes within an existing community breathes new life into these communities and provide several social and economic advantages. Infill helps make land use and existing services in these communities more efficient, with a variety of benefits.
- Infills place residents closer to their jobs and community services – less car commuting with close access to public transportation, which is better for the environment for reduced vehicle greenhouse gas emissions.
- Infill utilizes existing infrastructure and facilities like utilities, schools, fire, police, and medical clinics – lower cost to the taxpayer.
- Infills provide quick access to shopping, bistros, restaurants, and entertainment – normally a walkable distance to the city’s energy and buzz.
- Infills revitalize the area and boost the neighborhood’s economy – creating employment.
- Infills come with landscaping which increases value and reduces owner’s cost.
- Infills invest back into the community.
Perhaps one of the infill developments most significant advantages is how it creates smart growth in urban areas (rather than across large, sprawling areas like farmlands on the outskirts of a city). These urban residential communities allow workers to live nearer to their city-based workplace, making the economy more efficient and investments more likely.
The entire goal of infill development is to revitalize existing communities in urban areas. “Breathing new life” into an existing community while building new structures that benefit these areas allows a community to economically benefit from new properties without the cost of having to build an entire matching infrastructure.