PRINT | PDF

Mixed-Use Zoning

Tyler Adams (author), Jonathan Rosenbloom & Christopher Duerksen (editors)

INTRODUCTION

Mixed-use zoning permits a complementary mix of residential, commercial, and/or industrial uses in a single district. Mixed-use zoning can take a variety of forms, but often is categorized as one of three types: vertical mixed-use, horizontal mixed-use, and mixed-use walkable.[1] Vertical mixed-use allows for a combination of different uses in the same building and most frequently the non-residential uses occupy the bottom portion of the building, with the residential on top.[2] Horizontal mixed-use allows distinct uses on separate parcels to be combined in a particular area or district. This helps avoid the complexities of combining uses that may have different safety or regulatory requirements in a single building.[3] Mixed-use walkable combines vertical mixed-use and horizontal mixed-use, thus creating an area containing mixed-use buildings as well as distinct single-use buildings in close proximity to each other.[4]

Prior to the rise of the automobile and modern zoning practices, mixed-use developments were the norm.[5] Since the rise of classic Euclidean Zoning, use segregation has been the norm and integrated land uses have been relatively rare.[6] The emergence of sustainability and walkability as important factors in community development has led to a resurgence of mixed-used zoning.[7] Implementation of mixed-use zoning has evolved to include more than just permitting mixed-use developments in certain districts. Local governments are now creating mixed-use districts. This allows for a more widespread integration of uses and the development of increasingly cohesive and efficient communities.

EFFECTS

Mixed-use zoning can provide several important benefits, including:

  • Reducing combined housing and transportation costs for households by providing diverse housing options and alternatives to automobile travel;
  • Creating cohesive, yet diverse, neighborhoods with increased economic and cultural opportunities, contributing to greater livability and a healthier local economy;
  • Encouraging healthier lifestyles by creating a pattern of development in which biking and walking are part of everyday travel behaviors;
  • Reducing vehicle miles traveled, dependence on fossil fuels, and associated greenhouse gas emissions;
  • Reducing the costs of delivering public services by encouraging infill and redevelopment in areas with existing infrastructure;
  • Providing a more compact development pattern that helps preserve open space and natural resources elsewhere in the community or region;
  • Encouraging a more sustainable transportation system over the long term by creating viable options for people to get to destinations by multiple modes of transportation;
  • Reducing reliance on building new roadways or widening existing roadways to meet transportation needs as a community and region continues to grow; and
  • Taking advantage of and facilitating public investments in transit infrastructure, enabling more efficient servicing of community and regional transportation needs.[8]

When implementing mixed-use zoning, municipalities should consider how to mitigate potential adverse impacts related to mixed-use developments and buildings. Such negative impacts may include increased traffic, differing parking needs for residential and commercial uses, and insufficient existing infrastructure.[9]

EXAMPLES

Baltimore, MD

In 2017, the city of Baltimore’s most recent zoning code update went into effect. The updated code included the addition of new mixed-use zoning districts aimed at boosting the economic development of the City as well as preserving the existing character.[10] For example, an industrial mixed-use zoning district was added, intending to encourage the reuse of older buildings for light industrial use and other non-industrial uses.[11] An industrial use must account for at least 50% of the total ground floor area of all buildings on the lot or a use other than residential must account for at least 60% of the total ground area. Also, the addition of Rowhouse Mixed-Use Overlay districts as well as Detached Dwelling Mixed-Use Overlay districts were intended to address those areas where a mixed-use environment was desired in rowhouse or detached dwelling developments.[12] The overlay districts are directly tied to the underlying rowhouse or detached dwelling district in order to preserve the existing character and development of the neighborhoods.[13] Commercial and non-residential uses are restricted to those that are compatible with the existing residential use.[14] For instance, detached dwelling mixed-use districts limit the permitted non-residential to the ground floor of the dwelling and  only four types of uses are permitted.[15]

To view the provision, see Baltimore, MD City Code, Art. 32 § 6-201 (2017).

St. Anthony, ID

The city of St. Anthony established mixed-use zones to provide for commercial aspects in neighborhood centers.[16] These centers should include a mix of land uses that are “located together either vertically or horizontally within the same building as well as a mix of individual residential and commercial buildings in close proximity.”[17] There are two types of mixed-use districts. The low intensity mixed-use district (MU1) has an allowable housing unit density of up to 8 units per acre and is intended to have a more residential style rather than commercial.[18] The moderate intensity mixed-use district (MU2) has a permitted housing unit density of 16 units per acre with a special use permit and is more commercial in style.[19] In both districts, a principle building is required to have its main entrance accessible through a public sidewalk or a private sidewalk publicly accessible through a public use easement in order to encourage pedestrian-oriented developments.[20]

To view the provisions, see St. Anthony, ID Municipal Code §§ 17.06.090-17.06.120 (2015).

ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES

Madison, WI Code of Ordinances § 28.060 (Current through 2018) (establishes several mixed-use districts including a limited mixed-use district that allows for small scale mixed-use development in residential areas).

Wheat Ridge, CO Code of Ordinances § 26-1102 (2010) (establishes a mixed-use commercial zone district, designed to encourage medium to high density mixed use development, and a mixed-use neighborhood district, designed to encourage medium density mixed use development).

Mount Dora, FL Land Use Development Code § 3.4.16 (2018) (mixed-use transitional district and mixed-use downtown district established to encourage a pedestrian environment and reduce automobile trips).

Fort Lauderdale, FL Unified Land Development Code § 47-18 (1997) (permits mixed-use development in certain zoning districts).

CITATIONS

[1] Howard Blackson, Don’t Get Mixed Up on Mixed-Use, PlaceMakers (Apr. 4, 2013),https://perma.cc/SPW9-Q3DH.

[2] Id.

[3] Id.

[4] Id.

[5] Mixed-Use Development 101: The Design of Mixed-Use Buildings, Urban Land Institute (Aug. 30, 2011), https://perma.cc/3ZWU-5UPN.

[6] Id.

[7] Id.

[8] Jill Grant, Mixed Use in Theory and Practice, 68 Journal of the American Planning Association 71, 72-73 n.1 (2007); Adrienne Schmitz & Jason Scully, Creating: Walkable Places: Compact Mixed-use Solutions 21-23 (2006).

[9] Grant, supra note 8, at 70-80 n.1.

[10] Archana Piyati, Baltimore’s New Zoning Hoped to Boost More Mixed-Use Development, Urban Land (Aug. 8, 2017), http://perma.cc/YPL9-TM3D.

[11] Baltimore City Code, Art. 32 § 11-203 (2017).

[12] Id. at §§ 12-208, 12-209.

[13] Id.

[14] Id.

[15] Id. at § 12-1105.

[16] St. Anthony Municipal Code § 17.06.090 (2015).

[17] Id.

[18] Id. at § 17.06.110.

[19] Id. at § 17.06.120.

[20] Id. at §§ 17.06.110-17.06.120.


Please note, although the above cited and described ordinances have been enacted, each community should ensure that newly enacted ordinances are within local authority, have not been preempted, and are consistent with state comprehensive planning laws. Also, the effects described above are based on existing examples. Those effects may or may not be replicated elsewhere. Please contact us and let us know your experience.