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Teaming the Zoning Ordinance
<br />By Christopher)ennette, AICP
<br />Many communities around the country are
<br />workingwith aged, outdated, and cumbersome
<br />zoning ordinances. These ordinances neither fit
<br />the existing development of their communities
<br />nor facilitate the achievementofa consensus
<br />vision for the future.
<br />This mismatch happens for a variety
<br />of reasons, not the least of which is that
<br />older ordinances often contain complex
<br />sets of rigid regulations that lump specific
<br />uses into a pyramidal structure that actively
<br />works against achieving a mix of uses and
<br />dimensional standards narrowly designed
<br />to achieve a particular —often suburban —
<br />development form that may not reflect the
<br />existing on -the -ground conditions. Further,
<br />many communities have heavily adapted and
<br />amended their zoning ordinances over time,
<br />adding layers of additional requirements,
<br />techniques, and processes that together
<br />result in a web of regulations that may
<br />unintentionally discourage just the type of
<br />development they desire.
<br />Some of these problems appear to
<br />be generational in nature: What was once
<br />deemed desirable has fallen out of favor for
<br />numerous reasons and must be updated.
<br />Other issues, however, are simply more
<br />functional in nature. What if, as we were
<br />drafting regulations to address a resident's
<br />unsightly addition, we looked more carefully
<br />ahead, anticipating and testing their
<br />impacts, to assure that we were not creating
<br />unintended consequences for homes across
<br />town or home owners who may want to invest
<br />in a tasteful addition so years from now?
<br />What if we tested that new regulation to
<br />ensure that we knew the full extent of how it
<br />would impact the homes in our community,
<br />so that we could aid in an informed decision -
<br />making process about how to move forward?
<br />Updating a zoning ordinance is not
<br />a simple process. It involves reconciling
<br />adopted policy with existing development
<br />patterns, future development goals, and the
<br />often competing interests of landowners,
<br />residents, the business community, and
<br />elected officials, among others. With so many
<br />interested parties at the table, and so much
<br />at stake for the community and its residents,
<br />new regulations must be vetted through a
<br />thoughtful process that is seated in reliable
<br />data, modern techniques, and a whole lot
<br />of research. As communities work to update
<br />their zoning ordinances, a proactive approach
<br />to testing regulations can ensure that new
<br />standards do not create a ripple of unintended
<br />consequences, but rather match the character
<br />of existing development and result in new
<br />development that is in line with adopted
<br />plans, policies, and community desires.
<br />Finally, if you are a fan of creative problem
<br />solving, testing can also be (gasp!) fun.
<br />WHAT IS TESTING?
<br />Here, "testing" refers to putting regulations
<br />through their paces, ensuring that we
<br />fully understand the consequences and
<br />impacts of what we're proposing, drafting,
<br />discussing, and ultimately adopting. Though
<br />it is often heavily driven by data, testing
<br />itself is not purely a technical exercise.
<br />Rather, it can take a variety of forms, from
<br />presenting "proof of concept" draft districts
<br />that allow us to gauge the level of support for
<br />general approaches, to completing complex
<br />geographic information systems (GIS)
<br />analyses to ensure that we're not increasing
<br />nonconformities through new dimensional
<br />regulations. Some typical forms of testing:
<br />a Testing new approaches to gauge
<br />community support, such as
<br />implementing a modern planned unit
<br />development process or collapsing
<br />overlay districts into base districts
<br />a Testing new or revised district
<br />dimensional standards (lot sizes,
<br />setbacks, etc.) to ensure that existing
<br />development patterns are acknowledged
<br />in the zoning ordinance, and that the
<br />built character and future desires of the
<br />community are accurately reflected in the
<br />range of districts provided
<br />a Testing design standards to ensure that
<br />they are both specific enough to create
<br />high -quality development and flexible
<br />enough to accommodate architectural
<br />diversity and creativity
<br />a Testing specific regulations, such as
<br />maximum heights, design standards, or
<br />unique provisions, such as sliding -scale
<br />setbacks, to ensure they work both within
<br />the particular contexts that are driving
<br />their creation as well as throughout the
<br />community overall
<br />a Testing new or revised processes to
<br />ensure they will work relative to the
<br />comfort and capacity of staff and elected
<br />officials, and that they represent an
<br />improvement over previous processes.
<br />Zoning does not exist in a vacuum.
<br />Assessing the impacts of regulations before
<br />they are enacted is invaluable in ensuring
<br />that an updated or revised ordinance will
<br />suit the community it is designed to serve.
<br />The overarching benefit that testing can
<br />provide is the opportunity to evaluate any
<br />proposed regulations or approaches in
<br />action before they are formally adopted and
<br />enacted as part of a new zoning ordinance.
<br />The testing process allows a variety of
<br />stakeholders —staff, elected officials, the
<br />development community, and the public at
<br />large —to get a much clearer understanding
<br />of the techniques being employed and the
<br />anticipated results of the technical zoning
<br />language that is being proposed.
<br />Testing, therefore, plays a critical role in
<br />ensuring that an updated zoning ordinance
<br />or regulation has been properly vetted
<br />through a process that aids truly informed
<br />decision making.
<br />This article will cover when, what,
<br />and how to test zoning ordinances and
<br />regulations, and it will provide examples of
<br />how testing has been used to produce zoning
<br />ordinances that are more predictable and
<br />more closely customized to the needs and
<br />desires of their communities.
<br />WHEN TO TEST
<br />Broadly, the question of when to test
<br />your zoning ordinance can be answered,
<br />"now." It can be beneficial whether you are
<br />workingwith a 3o-year-old ordinance and
<br />thinking about updates, or are currently in
<br />the process of updating your ordinance, or
<br />if you adopted a new ordinance yesterday.
<br />Proactively assessing your community's
<br />primary tool for controlling development is
<br />a good habit to get into no matter what your
<br />community's current situation may be.
<br />ZONING PRACTICE u.i7
<br />AMERICAN PLANNING ASSOCIATION I page 2
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