Zoning and Neighborhood Design

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Zoning and Neighborhood Design
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What are zoning and neighborhood design, and how
do they work together?

• Zoning is a set of community laws and regulations
  that divides a community into various zones, and
  specifies what kinds of building, development,
  and economic activity can take place in each
  zone.
• Neighborhood design refers not only to the
  design of buildings, but to the design of the
  neighborhood as a whole.
• The type of zoning a community adopts can
  greatly shape the design of neighborhoods subject
  to that zoning.

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Why use zoning and neighborhood design to
influence the physical structure of your
community?

• They can guide public spending toward the
  appropriate places by putting money into projects
  and improvements most needed and wanted by
  neighborhood residents.
• They can foster economic and racial/ethnic
  diversity.
• They can foster social interaction and mixing
  among neighbors, and among neighborhood residents
  from diverse backgrounds, leading to more
  community involvement and more effective problem
  solving.
• They can make the chores of daily life easier and
  more convenient.

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• They can provide health benefits from walking and
  biking.
• They can create ease of travel and independence
  for everyone.
• They can provide easy access to jobs.
• They can afford residents savings on
  transportation.
• They can produce environmental benefits.
• They can foster development thats energy
  efficient and environmentally responsible.
• They can lead to more profit for developers, and
  more reasons for them to invest in affordable
  housing.

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• They can create a better commercial environment.
• They can make for a physically and aesthetically
  more pleasant neighborhood.
• They can foster safer and more secure
  neighborhoods.
• They can enhance neighborhood quality of life.

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When should you use zoning and neighborhood
design?

• When a zoning code is being revisited or
  developed.
• When a community strategic planning or
  neighborhood planning process is in place.
• When a major development that could change the
  character of the neighborhood is proposed.
• When a community or neighborhood development
  effort is under way.
• When a community or neighborhood appears to be in
  a downward spiral.
• When a neighborhood is in the midst of, or
  threatened by, changes in population.

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Who should use zoning and neighborhood design?

• Residents.
• Neighborhood business owners and professionals
  (i.e. those who make their living in the
  neighborhood, although they may not live there).
• Industries with facilities in the neighborhood.
• Those with financial interests in the
  neighborhood (landowners, developers with current
  plans).
• Neighborhood health and community service
  providers.

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• Civil servants police, firefighters, etc.
• Local government representatives and agencies
  that serve the neighborhood city councilors,
  state representatives, municipal recreation
  agencies, public transportation, etc.
• Cultural organizations with a venue or base in
  the neighborhood museums, libraries, performing
  arts centers.
• Educational institutions, both public and
  private.
• Neighborhood houses of worship.

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How do you implement zoning and neighborhood
design?

• Reach out and recruit stakeholders.
• Solicit stakeholders ideas about the ideal
  future for the neighborhood.
• Hold a series of public meetings where
  stakeholders can discuss their initial ideas and
  develop a shared vision for the neighborhood.
• Flesh out the vision statement with outcome
  goals.
• Generate concrete objectives tied to specific
  actions to achieve outcome goals.

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• Prioritize the lists of goals, objectives, and
  recommendations.
• Identify the necessary zoning changes.
• Implement the necessary zoning changes.
• Choose a neighborhood design committee or other
  body to coordinate the effort.
• Keep in close contact with everyone involved in
  changing the physical structure of the
  neighborhood.
• If necessary, work with the municipality and
  developers to attract businesses and residents to
  the neighborhood.

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• Encourage neighborhood events, use of new bike
  and walking paths, public transportation, etc.
• Deliver regular progress reports to the
  neighborhood on work toward specific objectives
  and goals.
• Revisit the neighborhood plan regularly and
  revise it as needed.
• Maintain momentum indefinitely.