Agenda - Planning Commission - 06/02/2016

Home

0 Many areas in Flint have zoning designations that are currently incompatible with the vision in Imagine Flint. standard condition, while another 22 percent were vacant. Many of these properties were also owned by the Genesee County Land Bank, which as of June 2013 was maintaining 8,335 properties representing 18 percent of all parcels in the city. While casual observation could lead one to believe that housing stock was generally distressed in several neighborhoods, this data made it clear that significant change was needed to stabilize neighborhoods and start on a path toward managed reinvestment. With so much land either vacant or under control of the land bank, which has very limited resources, the issue of neighborhood revitalization became an issue of land management and how fewer households could occupy and maintain the same physical space. The Green Neighborhoods place type in the city's master plan 1s designed to help manage the transition of struggling traditional single-family residential neighborhoods to stable, less populated neighborhoods with a well -maintained mix of open space. Green Neighborhoods are envisioned as low -density residential areas consisting of a mix oftradi- tionat and large -lot residences complemented by neighborhood open space, community gar- dens, and small-scale urban agriculture. The Green Neighborhood place type represents a new approach to repdrposing vacant or underutilized areas to create a healthy and sus- tainable low -density residential neighborhood. Flint and its partners will empower residents to adopt and care for properties in their neighbor- hood through changes to zoning regulations, neighborhood capacity building, and lot im- provement programs. Zoning Strategy: Managing Decreasing Density While the master plan provides a clear vision for the broad areas identified as Green Neigh- borhoods, housing conditions vary widely on the ground. These areas all share the trait of significant vacancy, but some blocks within Land Use Typology / Zoning Compatibility Analysis C7 ResiierodZrntg ED CompatUewih Garmt rKrn waeaay Z«na ComovociZeog • Wow Proteao, Buffer Incarrpoctty Gv'stioIAral InampoaxTry a given area are worse than others. Within a given block there are also disparities, such as vacant lots clustered in one area and stable residential development clustered in another. As such, when attempting to transition a single-family neighborhood to a less dense version of itself, minimizing nonconformities for existing single-family properties emerges as a significant challenge. To address this issue, the city's new zon- ing ordinance establishes two related districts: GN-i—Green Neighborhood —Low Density and GN-2—Green Neighborhood —Medium Density. Both districts promote the expansion of green uses, but the less dense GN-i district encour- ages larger lot living while the denser GN-2 district more closely resembles the form of a traditional single-family neighborhood. In addition to minimizing nonconformities, this approach also helps establish a more natural transition between stable, traditional single- family neighborhoods and the most blighted Green Neighborhoods. As shown in the table on the next page, the minimum lot size for the low density GN-1 district was established at 15,00o square feet, which is equal to three typical lots within a traditional neighborhood. This standard essentially requires adjacent lots to be consolidated to accom- modate a new or existing house, with the home owners taking on more re- sponsibility for maintaining a larger lot. In exchange, new home owners are also granted a larger allowance for accessory structures (80o to i,000 square feet) and given as -of -right per- mission fora range of green uses such as urban agri- culture. Such uses would typically require special use permits in most other areas in Flint and the vast major- ity of other communities. With that said, the GN-2 district was estab- lished to ensure that home owners in more stable areas can continue to invest in their traditional single-fam- ily homes, while having the ability to repurpose vacant lots and improve community well-being. Within that district, minimum lot sizes and other bulk standards are more aligned with traditional single-family neighborhoods. The phenomenon of lot expansion is already occurring in some residential areas of Flint where vacancies are high. Although some expansions have not occurred legally, home owners are taking ownership of adjacent va- cant parcels by mowing lawns, erecting fences, and planting gardens. For example, one home owner near the former Buick City site (a nearly Soo -acre brownfietd) has expanded his prop- erty with an attractive picket fence and well- groomed lawns. The side yards now span three lots on either side of two central lots occupied by the home, a three -car garage, and an expan- sive playground set that any child would dream of. This type of investment ---a single household taking care of nearly a quarter of a city block — is what the new zoning ordinance is intended to encourage (in a legal manner) throughout the city's more depopulated areas. • Zoning Strategy: Introducing New Green Uses Whether a block has only one or two vacant lots —or a dozen —the threat vacant lots pose ZONINGPRACTICE 5.16 AMERICAN PIANNING ASSOCIATION 1 page 3