Zoning Code Issues Prioritization

Transcription

1 City of Streetsboro The City of Streetsboro has begun the process of updating its Zoning Code. The new Zoning Code will be based on the recently adopted Comprehensive Plan, which establishes the overall vision for the future of the community. The new Zoning Code will be consistent with the land use and development recommendations of the Comprehensive Plan. However, Comprehensive Plans by nature are broad statements of overall intent and do not contain the level of detail or specificity about how development actually occurs that Zoning Codes do. In order to fill the gap between the specificity of the Zoning Code and the generality of the Comprehensive Plan, the City of Streetsboro held public input workshops on November 16 and November 30, 2010 to solicit input from the community about the forthcoming Zoning Code rewrite. The major activity at the November 16 workshop was a visual preference survey (VPS), where participants were shown 215 images illustrating different development types and possibilities across 9 categories. Each image was rated by each participant based on how much they liked the image. The results of the VPS are presented in an accompanying document. The major activity at the November 30 workshop was identification and prioritization of issues and development priorities to be addressed in the new Zoning Code. After reviewing the VPS results for each of the 9 categories, participants brainstormed issues and priorities and then voted on the most important issues and priorities. This document presents the results of the November 30 prioritization workshop. First, we present the highest scoring priorities/issues across all categories to identify the issues and priorities that have been deemed most important by the workshop participants. Next, we list all issues and priorities that were identified within each category, along with the voting results. Contents Highest Scoring Priorities/Issues... 2 Community Character... 3 Streets... 3 Single Family Residential... 4 Multiple Family Housing... 4 Office and Industrial... 5 Retail and Mixed Use... 5 Signs... 6 Landscaping... 6 Parking... 6 McKenna Associates Page 1 of 6

2 Highest Scoring Priorities/Issues The highest scoring priorities/issues all relate to limiting density or appearance of density in the community. Maintaining rural elements and natural features, hiding parking and utilities, limiting building height, and preserving open space are rated as the most important priorities. Category Single Family Residential Preserve rural character and open space - rocks/plants 8 Landscaping Incorporate pedestrian pathways and amenities 7 Streets Underground utilities 6 Multiple Family Housing Limit building height to 3 stories maximum - 2 stories is plenty 5 Retail and Mixed Use Hide parking areas in rear yards or behind ample screening areas 5 Single Family Residential Do not permit small side yard setbacks - dictated by district, vary by 5 density Community Character Preserve natural space, trees, and water corridors 4 Landscaping Require diversity of plantings 4 Streets Beautify streets with landscaping and trees 4 Community Character Require landscaping to create a health tree canopy 3 Community Character Encourage or require hidden parking (i.e. not visible in the front yard) 3 Multiple Family Housing Limit the size of parking lots and encourage covered parking 3 Office and Industrial 3-story height limit - consider fire safety ht. limitation 3 Parking Allow for porous pavement and other environmentally friendly 3 measures Signs Use or replicate natural materials like wood and stone 3 Signs No animation or changeable copy. 3 Streets Encourage pedestrianism with sidewalks and bikeways 3 Streets Preserve existing rural roads and pathways 3 Community Character Encourage pedestrian-scale, walkable retail 2 Community Character Value old trees - plant programs - clear cutting 2 Landscaping Require coordinated streetscape image improvements such as benches, walls, etc. along important streets 2 Office and Industrial Preserve natural space 2 Office and Industrial Cluster office and industrial uses but avoid high densities 2 Signs Require address on signs 2 Signs Limit # of signs per business. 2 Single Family Residential Regulate building materials, but allow personal freedom in home 2 design Single Family Residential Encourage natural areas within single family neighborhoods 2 Streets Balance setback requirements to encourage neighborhood camaraderie 2 McKenna Associates Page 2 of 6

3 Community Character The highest scoring community character priorities relate to the preservation or improvement of natural elements such as trees, water corridors, and open space. There is also a preference that parking, which is a by-product of development, should be hidden from view to the greatest extent possible. Preserve natural space, trees, and water corridors 4 Require landscaping to create a health tree canopy 3 Encourage or require hidden parking (i.e. not visible in the front yard) 3 Encourage pedestrian-scale, walkable retail 2 Value old trees - plant programs - clear cutting 2 Require pedestrain/bicyle pathways and routes 1 Beautify with flowers and plantings - Maintenance 1 Angled parking 1 Boulevards treed/standardized plantings 1 Calm traffic with (negative aspects - access/snow removal, narrow streets and parallel parking) Wide sidewalks Wide open spaces - no fences Streets Street preferences centered around improving the aesthetic quality of the street through burying utilities, providing street trees, and ensuring that good pedestrian and non-motorized access is accommodated. Underground utilities 6 Beautify streets with landscaping and trees 4 Encourage pedestrianism with sidewalks and bikeways 3 Preserve existing rural roads and pathways 3 Balance setback requirements to encourage neighborhood camaraderie 2 Require landscape to create a healthy tree canopy 1 Separate bike and walkways except when wide enough 1 Calm traffic with roundabouts and medians Curbs/gutters Moderate setback ft. Balance existing with new improvements Utility aesthetics - street lights, stop signs, etc. 4ft. Space between every 2 parallel parking spaces Stone/iron work details McKenna Associates Page 3 of 6

4 Single Family Residential The most notable result of the single family priorities is a clear preference for maintaining rural character and for avoiding small side yard setbacks. Generally, in Streetsboro s context, a small side yard setback is anything smaller than feet. Preserve rural character and open space - rocks/plants 8 Do not permit small side yard setbacks - dictated by district, vary by density 5 Regulate building materials, but allow personal freedom in home design 2 Encourage natural areas within single family neighborhoods 2 Require design diversity within neighborhood or on same street. Less repetition the better. 1 Minimum top soil depth 1 Hide garages 1 No lot line building 1 Tradeoffs for hidden garages - increased rear yard setbacks accommodate alley. 1 Fire safety considerations 1 Vary/staggered front yard setback 1 Big foot- large structure on small lot. 1 Façade dominated by garage, driveway Require sidewalks and curbs - wide sidewalks Rules for renovation Multiple Family Housing Multiple-family priorities aim to minimize the impact of development by limiting its scale. Height restrictions and better design standards for parking lots are the clear priorities, while encouraging multiple family structures to relate to a street instead of a parking area is somewhat of a priority. Limit building height to 3 stories maximum - 2 stories is plenty 5 Limit the size of parking lots and encourage covered parking 3 Require attached and multiple family buildings to relate to a street 1 Discourage buildings facing parking areas or interior courts 1 Beautify with landscaping, flowers, and trees 1 Consider mixed use for future multi-family 1 Mix densities within neighborhoods Avoid very high densities Not cheap bldg. materials Encourage attached single family Clustering McKenna Associates Page 4 of 6

5 Office and Industrial Office and industrial development priorities center along minimizing density, both vertically and horizontally. Limiting building height to 3 stories and preserving natural space through clustering or other methods are preferred. 3-story height limit - consider fire safety ht. limitation 3 Preserve natural space 2 Cluster office and industrial uses but avoid high densities 2 Require on-site green space 1 Beautify with landscaping, flowers, and trees 1 Limit impact on adjacent residential uses, traffic, noise, light 1 Encourage large windows and natural light Manufacturing - 1st floor Vary forms and building materials and require upgrades of renovations. Business Incubator - reuse of vacant retail Retail and Mixed Use The clear priority for retail and mixed-use development is to hide parking in rear yards or behind ample screening areas. No preference was expressed over the type, design, or location of buildings so there appears to be little support for transitioning retail development away from the existing automobileoriented status quo. This being the case, the Zoning Code will focus on managing the requisite parking areas that support automobile-oriented retail development. Hide parking areas in rear yards or behind ample screening areas 5 Decorative street lights - sets tone 1 Decorative pavement 1 Scale matches neighborhood 1 Minimize parking lot size 1 Limit setbacks to promote walkability Require pedestrian-level transparency and pedestrian-friendly signage Encourage density and eliminate side setbacks Allow sidewalk sales and outdoor dining - wide ROW (right-of-way) Beautify with landscaping, flowers, and trees Widen sidewalks and activate streetscapes Calm traffic with narrow streets and on-street parking Incentives to modernize/upgrade McKenna Associates Page 5 of 6

6 Signs The sign priorities all relate to managing the scale and construction quality of signs. Further, there is a preference towards limiting animation or changeable copy elements of signs. Use or replicate natural materials like wood and stone 3 No animation or changeable copy. 3 Require address on signs 2 Limit # of signs per business. 2 Limit height - only permit low-level signs. 1 Limit the use of LED readerboard signs 1 Full prohibition on LED 1 Encourage pedestrian-friendly signs on retail buildings i.e. projecting signs. Beautify with landscaping and flowers Landscaping Pedestrian improvements and diversity in plantings are important landscaping priorities. Incorporate pedestrian pathways and amenities 7 Require diversity of plantings 4 Require coordinated streetscape image improvements such as benches, walls etc. along important 2 streets Incorporate flowers and ground covers to add interest; do not allow only large grass areas 1 Encourage buffer strips rather than screening walls between incompatible development types 1 Parking Parking was not a highly voted-upon category, with allowing flexibility for environmentally-friendly measures in parking lots being the highest priority within this category. Allow for porous pavement and other environmentally friendly measures 3 Require landscaping and shade trees in parking lots 1 Enforce strict maintenance standards 1 Provide on-street parking where appropriate and feasible Allow for, and incentivize, porous pavement and other environmentally measures Reduce minimum parking requirements to prevent construction of unnecessary parking spaces McKenna Associates Page 6 of 6