GARDEN BROOK SENIOR VILLAGE (artist’s rendering) on Garden Grove Boulevard.

I don’t suppose that in the midst of an historic presidential election, the beginning of the NFL season and the stretch run of the baseball pennant (and playoff) races many people are spending much thought about land use policy, but …

But it matters. How local government chooses what to allow where stuff goes has a big impact on traffic, pollution, prosperity and the general quality of life in this first quarter of the 21st century.

The most popular trend in urban (and suburban) planning is mixed -use. That is, combining residential with other uses, such as commercial (stores, offices), open space (parks, stadiums, etc). and more.

It’s been the common practice is older big cities of the East for generations, even centuries. Pizza parlor, dry cleaner, gift shop, corner market on the ground floor and offices and/or apartments above.

I love this idea. It really helps to build a sense of community and reduces the need to drive a car across town to get what you want, thereby reducing traffic and air pollution.

But … I wonder if in trying to transplant this practice in New York or Boston or Milwaukee is really taking much successful root in Orange County.

When I drive around our West Orange County cities I see a lot of new mixed-use developments that are apartment blocks on top of empty first floor spaces. Take a look at the projects along Harbor Boulevard in Anaheim south of Lincoln Avenue.

Or how about the mixed-use building in Huntington Beach at Beach Boulevard and Main Street? In Garden Grove, there’s the Garden Brook Senior Village on Garden Grove Boulevard (just west of Brookhurst Street) with lots of seniors above but nary an occupied store front on the ground floor.

There are exceptions. Garden Grove’s Main Street has several apartments above first floor businesses, but things have been that way for decades.

On Wednesday night the Westminster City Council will consider mixed-use zoning for the city’s planned “Downtown District,” Little Saigon and the West Side. Here’s hoping that Westminster has figured out a way – a “secret sauce,” if you will – to turn what may be a fad into something fabulous.