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FORM- BASED ZONING
Alternatives to Conventional Zoning
Over the last several years, an alternative to conventional zoning has
emerged called “Form-Based Zoning” (FBZ), which seeks to regulate the form
of new development. As the names suggests, Form-Based Zoning utilizes a
regulatory approach, usually through clear and simple graphics and design
illustrations, to define the massing, height and location of buildings and
amenities as well as their relationship to streets, public right-of-ways and
civic spaces. By contrast, conventional zoning seeks to control land uses
and density, but is largely silent on the matters of building and
architectural form beyond basic height, floor-area and setback requirements.
The underlining concept in Form-Based Zoning is that the physical form of
development is its most important and enduring feature. Form-Based Zoning
trys to capture and codify that “form” in a straightforward and easy to
understand visual way so planners, citizens, developers can implement the
vision and turn it into a built reality or maintain the character of
existing neighborhoods. Another way to think about the concept is to
envision a warehouse and industrial district, which has evolved into a
trendy arts district with galleries and restaurants. The form of the
buildings has remained constant over time while the internal uses have
changed. Form-Based Zoning would regulate the massing, height, location of
buildings and the configuration of the street and sidewalks – the form and
character of the former warehouse district- to maintain its larger, unified
appearance with the interior uses as secondary considerations.
Differences Between Form-Based and Traditional Zoning
The principal differences between Form-Based and Traditional Zoning noted by
the American Planning Association include:
- Prescriptive, Contextual Standards. Traditional zoning prescribes
minimum setbacks which permits building placement anywhere within the
building envelop. Instead, Form-Based Zoning prescribes build to lines,
specifically defining building placement, that control the placement of
structures in relation to fronting streets and adjacent building lots
resulting in a more predictable development pattern.
- Encouraging Mixed Use. Traditional zoning makes mixed-use development
difficult because it tends to focus on the segregation of land uses.
Form-based zoning de-emphasizes land use regulation. Permitted uses are
stated in general terms (i.e. retail, residential, professional) and
identified for each building type and floor level, resulting in promoting
a healthy mix of retail and residential uses.
- Market Oriented. Traditional zoning except for special district
overlay zones mainly relies on regulating land uses and separating uses
like office and light industrial from residential. It tends to be very
proscriptive in terms of what a community does not want in a district
while Form-based zoning is heavily prescriptive and weans developers
toward what the community wants and encourages integration of land uses in
neighborhoods, corridors and transit oriented development. This allows the
real estate market to more quickly respond to changes such as demographic
trends and market shifts
Developing a Form-Based Zoning Code
One of the unique aspects about Form-Based Zoning is that it is grounded in
a community visioning process involving numerous public design workshops or
charettes. Through these meetings, a long range plan emerges that focuses on
economic development, land use and zoning, urban design, transportation,
public infrastructure improvements, as well as open space and recreation
needs. This consensus vision is conveyed through visuals, perspective
drawings and an illustrative plan. Planners and design professionals
translate the illustrate plan into a diagrammatic regulatory plan showing
what goes where and assigns building and frontage types to each available
parcel of land. The physical characteristics of each building type are
summarized in building standards section dealing with building height (both
maximum and minimum); siting standards showing placement of structures in
relation to frontage streets, adjacent building lots and public outdoor
spaces; street and landscape standards; and defining a range of uses by
building type.
Why Residents and Develops like Form-Based Codes
One of the first applications of Form-Based Zoning was in Seaside, Florida
by architect-planner Andres Duany and The Kentlands in Gaithersburg,
Maryland. Form-Based Codes
have since gained in popularity in Florida, California and Arizona for a
number of reasons including:
- Encourages public participation
- Offers graphics, not just legal words
- Easily understood by local officials and the public
- Can allow developers to build “by-right”
- Achieves more predictability
- More enforceable than design guidelines
- Can be applied to multiple property owners, not simply large land
assemblies
- Promotes compact mixed use, walkable projects
Examples of Form-Based Codes
Arlington, Virginia, Columbia Pike Revitalization Plan,
www.co.arlington.va.us
Austin, Texas, Traditional Neighborhood District Ordinance,
www.ci.austin.tx.us
Columbus,Ohio,TND Article,
www.columbusinfobase.org
Gainsville,Florida,Land Development Code,
www.comdev.cityofgainsville.org
Source: American Planning Association, PAS QUICK NOTES, Form-Based Zoning
Peter Katz, Form First, The New Urbanists Alternative to Conventional
Zoning,
Planning Magazine, November 2004
Local Government Commission, Sacramento, California,
www.lgc.org
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