Driven by New Urbanism, more than two dozen communities in the U.S. have loosened zoning restrictions in recent years. Cities are opting to use form-based codes, a concept less concerned with the use of buildings and more with their appearance and the way they relate to each other.
The goal of city planners is to shape the streetscape according to a vision for a neighborhood. The new approach has been called “performance-based zoning.” An example is a large development in Fremont, Calif., where the city council changed its approach to zoning on a nearly 900-acre development adjacent to a light rail station.
Planners started with several goals—a certain number of jobs, a certain number of homes including affordable homes, and strict standards for a low carbon footprint. The developers were allowed to design the project as they saw fit as long as they could achieve those goals.
The performance-based approach is contrary to the principle of separation of uses that led to color-coded zoning maps pinned up in most town halls. According to the old philosophy, ach zone had its own designated use: residential, commercial, or industrial. This method is increasingly seen as inappropriate for urban development—especially infill, downtown, and transit-oriented projects.
(http://www.citylab.com/housing/2014/08/braving-the-new-world-of-performance-based-zoning/375926/)
Related Stories
| Apr 16, 2014
OSHA proposes $2.3 million in fines against Olivet Management for exposing workers to asbestos and lead
Olivet Management LLC, a real estate development and management company, faces $2.3 million in proposed fines from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
| Apr 10, 2014
Green Building Certification Institute partners with Well Building Institute on standard
The Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI), which administers third-party certification for the LEED standard, and the Well Building Institute will collaborate to promote the WELL Building Standard.
| Apr 10, 2014
OSHA’s construction safety advisory committee invites input on construction regulations
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration will hold a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health May 7-8, 2014, in Washington, D.C.
| Apr 10, 2014
ASTM’s International Standards in Building Codes now available in DVD and online
The compilation ASTM Standards in Building Codes contains more than 1,300 ASTM construction specifications, practices and test methods, and is now available in DVD and online.
| Apr 10, 2014
New California energy code requires building systems to be ready for demand response energy management
Starting in June, California’s latest version of its Title 24 building code kicks in, requiring several systems come with demand response capability.
| Apr 4, 2014
Green Building Initiative moves to include locally sourced materials in Green Globes
The Green Building Initiative group based in Portland, Ore., met with the Department of Agriculture on a plan to include locally sourced materials in its green building standards.
| Apr 4, 2014
White roofs outperform green roofs in reducing heat-island effect, says Lawrence Berkeley Lab
A new report from LBNL says that white roofs are three times more effective than green roofs at “cooling the globe.”
| Apr 4, 2014
ASHRAE standard aims for consistency in measuring building energy use
The standard answers such questions as: Should the measurements of a building’s area used in the equation to derive energy use per square foot be taken from the exterior dimensions or to the centerline of the wall? And, should storage spaces be included even though they are unoccupied?
| Apr 4, 2014
Cleveland’s sewer authority to pay developers for green solutions to stormwater runoff
The district’s intent to use natural features to absorb stormwater reflects an urban trend that other cities including Philadelphia and Detroit have embraced.
| Mar 30, 2014
Solar panels on Big Ben intended to spur U.K.’s sustainability targets
Solar panels may soon be installed on the face of Big Ben in London as part of the U.K.'s initiatives to reach its greenhouse gas emissions objectives under the Climate Change Act of 2008.
