Metro's "innovative" codes

Form-based codes.  The transformation of suburbia to higher density, more urban development patterns.  

Metro's Community Investment Tools

Innovative Design 

and 

Development Codes

Innovative design and development codes: tools for investing in our communities 

Model approaches and tools in the toolkit
  FROM SUBURBAN TO HIGHER DENSITY URBAN
How can we make graceful physical transitions from suburban development patterns to a higher density, more urban, pedestrian- oriented character?

Public realm transitions

• Pedestrian improvement requirements 
• Ground floor active use provisions (Mixed use retail, office or other commercial)
• Design and development standards
• Minimum floor area requirement (Floor Area Ratio - higher FARs mean higher density)
• FAR bonus (Typically a density bonus for adding housing)
• Flexible parking requirements 

Density and use transitions
• Non-compliant use provision (Helpful when transitioning from one land use to another)
• Development Agreement 

TRANSITIONS IN SCALE

How can we improve the relationship between buildings and zones of different scale through creative design approaches that also maintain support for compact development in centers and corridors?

Code flexibility to support contextual design

• Form-based codes (Disregards old zoning land use codes)
• Menu-based codes
• Improved objective design standards (Streamlines developers's projects with little or no  
                                                               development review or public input)

Transition zones for better contextual design
• Cottage housing development code provision (No zone allows for clustered housing on LO - yet)
• Stepbacks
• Transfer of development standards 
• Mixed-use development standards (All commercial areas may become mixed-use zones with 
                                                           upcoming code changes. This would drastically change the city.  
                                                           Is anyone talking about this?)

PARKING

How can we best provide parking in areas targeted for compact development to achieve desired levels of density and urban forms?

Managing parking to maximize urban form

• Parking supply inventory (Number and location of on-street and off-street parking spaces in a given 
                                            area.)
• Structured parking (Above or below ground parking garages - replaces standard lots)
• Removing parking minimums (No need to provide for minimum parking needs - we're all going to 
                                                    walk, bike or take transit everywhere!)
• Parking maximums  (Limit on how many parking spaces a development can offer - usually designed 
                                    to be minimal and ignores the fact that people drive cars.  See above.)
• Unbundling parking (Separating parking from development or use; parking can be on-street or in a 
                                    lot shared by another business, but no more parking at the building you want to
                                    go to, but there won't be enough parking anyway.  See above.)
• Parking benefit district (This is where the developer, not the public, benefits.)

PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT

How can multi-faceted codes and planning documents be translated effectively to developers and the general public to articulate a clear vision for future growth that can be rendered in built form?
Visualizing zoning 
• Urban design plan   (We need graphic representations and educational seminars. Right now, only 
                                   the planners know what they are doing to the city.)
• 3-D modeling (This would be wonderful!  What would the city look like with proposed new codes?     
                          We should know.)
• Urban form focused codes and code guides (Codes that dictate the shape and bulk of buildings 
                                                                         rather than what they are used for. Form-based codes 
                                                                         are best for mixed use and transforming areas into 
                                                                         higher density urban shapes.)

How can we engage neighborhoods to build support for the implementation of the region’s 2040 vision?

Involving neighborhoods

• Neighborhood grant program
• Educational series                                                      
• Outreach and education program    (Any effort to allow the public to SEE what codes will do to/for 
the city would be great! Then allow citizens, not just advisory groups to have a say in what the city should look like - regardless of what Metro wants!  Maybe we should even vote for a plan - not just the Comprehensive a Plan full of policies, but 3-D models and descriptions of how the city would 
function when fully built out.  Modeling should be a requirement for all code changes.)