SAMPLE RECOMMENDATIONS Future Land Use The Future Land Use Chapter of the Master Plan builds upon prior chapters examining the existing conditions in their respective topic areas to present a comprehensive view of future land use in 2025 and beyond, and illustrating the proposed location, extent, and intensity of future land use and by expressing the Master Plan Vision Statement in physical terms. Presented by SRPC to the Future Land Use Committee on September 21, 2017
Community o Diversity and affordability o University partnership o Life-cycle housing Recommendations: o Residential zoning audit: Public input at the forum and other outreach events repeatedly indicated that Durham should be more affordable and diverse. However, the current zoning environment, including large portions of the town that are zoned for lowdensity residential development and severe limitations on duplexes and multi-family housing development contributes to development patterns that are predominantly single-family homes on large lots, which are more expensive to construct, maintain, and purchase. An audit to determine the best place for multi-family housing (likely Downtown or Main West), duplexes and accessory dwelling units (the Urban Core or urban periphery), and additional density (allow infill in Residence A, possibly increase density bonus of conservation subdivision in RC and R) and appropriate degrees of implementing each can help lower the cost of housing in Durham. Plan NH offers Municipal Technical Assistance Grants ($5,000-$20,000, 25% match required) to support reviews of local policies and regulations to help communities remove barriers to the types of housing that meet their needs. Inclusionary zoning: In addition to removing barriers for affordable housing or housing that is affordable, inclusionary zoning can be used to incentivize adding affordable housing, most often by allowing a density bonus in exchange for committing to a percentage of rent-controlled units. Floor area ratio: The floor area ratio(far) expresses the ratio of usable floor area in a building to the size of the parcel it is located on. Expressing building limits in terms of FAR instead of height or footprint allow some flexibility in design (e.g. increasing height to allow more open space on a parcel) while keeping the density of development constant. A maximum FAR in outlying areas could prevent overdevelopment, while a minimum could encourage density in a downtown. 1 1 https://www.minnpost.com/cityscape/2016/10/floor-area-ratio-101-obscure-useful-planning-tool-shapes-city
o Historic preservation framework: Shared understanding of Durham s historic resources could help identify contributing buildings and structures and help to differentiate the historic from the old. The Town has previously developed criteria for evaluating conservation lands and may benefit from a similar approach to historic resources. Balance o Parking & traffic o Commercial opportunity areas o Leverage the commercial core o Life-cycle housing o Alternative & renewable energy sources o Natural resilience and environmental protection Proposals: o Gateway Design Overlay District: Currently some districts along major transportation corridors (e.g. the Office & Research Route 108 district) have additional development requirements for properties fronting along those corridors. Implementing a design overlay along these corridors could simplify the code by providing uniform guidelines for all development requiring site approval. If the overlay were applied across both commercial and residential zoning districts it could reassure residents of the quality of future development if properties were ever to be rezoned. Likely areas would include route 108 south of the Historic District, route 108 north of route 4, and route 4 east of route 108. Portions of 155A may also be appropriate. o Targeted commercial development: Discussed further under the urban transect section below. Durham s limited remaining land available for commercial development means future commercial development will largely be dependent upon infill or redevelopment to further expand the commercial tax base. Certain types of commercial development (e.g. retail or restaurants) will be heavily impacted by the size and demographics of the local market, making it highly interdependent with Durham s future housing policy and with the access and mobility that residents of neighboring communities have to commercial areas in Durham.
Connectivity o Parking & traffic o University partnership o Recreation connectivity o Access to local food o Historic preservation o Land Conservation Proposals: o Complete streets and bike/ped improvements: Residents emphasized the need to improve the connectivity of infrastructure for alternative modes in Durham. Improving connectivity of recreational trails or access to recreational facilities was an important part of the Recreation chapter, and forum participants indicated that better mapping, wayfinding, or advertising of trails would improve their experience. Implementation efforts should target possible trail connections, complete street improvements that could link recreational trails to the urban core, and improvements within the urban core to improve safety and accessibility. Woonerf: Complete streets generally attempt to provide equal priority to all modes of transportation, but do so in separated rights-of-way. A woonerf uses design and traffic calming to accommodate pedestrians, bicycles, transit, and automobiles in a shared right of way. Low vehicular speed limits are typically reinforced with brick or other textured surfaces and psychological reinforcement to make automobiles uncomfortable traveling at high speeds, but vehicles are not excluded from the space entirely. 2 o Structured parking: Long-term development and densification in downtown is likely to require structured parking to satisfy demand. As a land use chapter, this document is not likely to provide a final solution, so the town should continue to explore options within the urban core, possibly in conjunction with UNH or private partners, to provide structured parking. o Agricultural zoning audit: The Agricultural Resources chapter identifies a number of ways to support local agriculture, including policies that advertise and promote local farms, advocate for a local food hub and other programs to directly market agricultural products, and small-scale community agriculture including community gardens and keeping livestock on residential properties. Since that chapter was adopted, the Agricultural Commission, Economic Development Committee, and Planning Board have collaborated to adopt the State of New Hampshire definition of agriculture for local regulations. This definition recognizes the necessity of preparing produce for market; transporting people, goods, and machinery; onsite sales, marketing, and agritourism 2 http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/columnists/ct-batavia-dutch-street-met-20140827-column.html
activities; and storage and use of fertilizers, pesticides, and compost. However, there may be additional opportunities to expand this definition to allow for a wider variety of agricultural activities: Accessory commercial/industrial activities: the state definition protects certain types of agritourism such as eating a meal, making overnight stays, farm stands, or enjoyment of the farm environment, but is less clear about the extent to which commercial or industrial processing activities (e.g. canning, preserving, brewing, distilling, or restaurant uses from onsite produce) can be included in those activities. Accessory agricultural commerce/industry could either be allowed outright or as a context-dependent conditional use to allow farms to diversify their revenue streams. Indoor/urban farming: The above definition makes no explicit mention of emerging agricultural techniques, such as vertical farming and other urban farming operations. Additionally, commercial agriculture is currently disallowed as a use in the downtown and commercial core. Either expanding the areas where commercial agriculture is acceptable or developing a new definition for urban agriculture as a permitted or conditional use will increase the likelihood that new techniques will be adopted in Durham. Partner w/ UNH to advocate for new technologies: The UNH College of Life Sciences and Agriculture has a variety of programs related to sustainable agriculture and agricultural technology. Many emerging technologies are still in the early stages of development and commercialization. While removing regulatory barriers to adoption in Durham is an important first step, continued outreach and partnership with leaders in the field will be essential if Durham is to take advantage of new technologies to support local food production. 3 3 https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-farm-grows-in-the-city-1494813900
Quality of Place o Recreation facilities o Market compatibility o Density & redevelopment o Aesthetics & design o Smart growth and housing o Efficient design & land use (energy) o Commercial opportunity areas o Agricultural past and present o Land conservation o Historic preservation Proposals: o Urban transect: This is a way of organizing development into varying degrees of density and fits with a form-based approach to zoning. Urban transects can be scaled to fit different communities by altering the number or intensity of different zones. In theory, the transect treats a community as a series of concentric circles moving from least dense to most dense, though this is often complicated in practice by historical development patterns and natural barriers. For discussion purposes, SRPC suggests the following zones as they apply to Durham: Rural: Predominantly consists of low-density residential development, agricultural uses, and conservation/recreation lands (the Rural and most of the RC zone). Limited development should be integrated into the natural surroundings. Where possible, development should be screened from major roads with limited access points from major thoroughfares. While the Rural district is currently farthest from downtown Durham, some portions along Route 108 could be considered for inclusion in the Urban Periphery due to their proximity to downtown Newmarket. Urban Periphery: This intermediate zone separates the low-density rural zone from higher density districts, acting as a visual transition between scales of building and as a buffer for varying levels of activity. Residential districts include the RB, remaining portions of the RC, and portions of the RA outside of Route 4. Other districts include Office & Research Rt. 108 and Durham Business Park (this could also be an option for Coe s Corner). Residential development should be of intermediate density and, where practical, should have pedestrian or bicycle infrastructure connecting to the urban core. Commercial and multi-family development should either be screened from major roads and/or present a welldesigned façade. Access points should be limited along major thoroughfares.
o Main West: The combined resources of this area, including existing sewer/water infrastructure, proximity to Route 4, and connections to UNH properties, make it ideal for mixed-use development including larger-scale office or research facilities and multi-unit dwellings. This district is likely to be more auto-dependent than the urban core, but its proximity to UNH athletic facilities, the main campus, and the train station make access between this district and the urban core essential. Development of 3-4 stories may be suitable in this area with appropriate design (break up large facades, use setbacks to make large buildings less imposing). Urban Core: Dense, walkable neighborhoods support commercial and mixed-use development along major thoroughfares. Residential development includes single-family homes at a denser scale than the urban periphery and scales up to include accessory dwelling units, duplexes, and small multi-unit development as it approaches downtown. Commercial development is most likely to be retail, restaurant, or small office development, and should be in 2-3 story buildings, particularly as the district scales up towards downtown. Buildings should consider four-sided design, particularly closer to downtown commercial activity. This zone includes portions of the RA inside of route 4 and the entirety of the Professional Office, Church Hill, Courthouse, and Coe s Corner districts (the committee could consider moving Coe s Corner or portions of the RA district to the urban periphery). Downtown: This zone is the epicenter of the vibrant downtown that residents desired in feedback from the forum and other sources. This area should prioritize commercial development on the ground floor (particularly restaurant, retail, or services) with office and/or multi-family housing development on upper stories. Buildings should consistently be 3-4 stories, with possible opportunities for rooftop uses or partial 5 th stories if suitable for individual sites (dependent upon design, neighboring structures, building code, fire department equipment, etc.)buildings should incorporate four-sided design and have high-quality pedestrian-scale design, particularly at street level. Transportation infrastructure should prioritize pedestrian, bicycle, and transit infrastructure over automobile convenience. Onsite surface parking should be limited, and directed to on-street parking or centralized parking lots that encourage Park-Once-and-Walk habits. Eventually, structured parking will likely be necessary to satisfy demand. The Downtown and Commercial Core chapter limits the Downtown area to the Central Business District, but indicates that areas of the Professional Office district could be integrated in the future. The Best University Town in the World: Durham s community identity and development patterns are inextricably linked with UNH. The Downtown & Commercial Core chapter in particular suggests that Durham needs to develop an identity and sense of place, particularly in its downtown, to differentiate itself from other cities and towns in the region. UNH is a unique resource, and Durham and the University should consider further opportunities to develop and implement a shared vision for integrating the University campus with the rest of the community.