buffalo green code The Buffalo Green Code New land use and zoning for place-based economic development
Introduction to the Green Code
Jan 28, 2015
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The Buffalo Green CodeNew land use and zoning
for place-based economic development
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In 2006, the City of Buffalo adopted a new comprehensive plan. It expressed a new vision for the future, rooted in five key principles:
Smart Growth Sustainability “Build on Assets” “Fix the Basics” Invest Strategically
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Project background
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But a new vision needs new tools to implement it…
Buffalo’s zoning code was written in 1951
We need a new approach to guide growth
It will follow the comprehensive plan
The “Green Code” project will create a land use plan
And a zoning code to implement it.
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Project background
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The Green Code project will provide those tools
A new land use plan will guide city investments
A new zoning code will regulate what can be built and where
Together they will shape the city over the next few decades
And give investors and citizens the predictability they require
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Project background
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Step 1: Create a future land use plan that addresses:
The Smart Growth and Sustainability goals of the Comprehensive Plan.
The Sense of Place that Buffalonians desire in the places that they live, work, shop and play.
The requirements necessary to implement the City’s Economic Development Strategies.
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Step One: Land Use Plan
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Smart growth means new development should:
Encourage transportation choices. Reinforce a strong sense of place Promote a mix of land uses
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Step One: Land Use Plan
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Sustainability means new development should:
Integrate the needs of natural and human-made systems.
Create development that responds to local climate and ecology.
Establish development patterns that minimize auto-dependency.
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Step One: Land Use Plan
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Investing strategically means new development should:
Create places that are attractive to new investment.
Encourage development that builds on existing competitive advantage.
Establishes stable environ-ments for businesses to grow
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Step One: Land Use Plan
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Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Building on our natural assets means taking advantage of a unique geography of lakefront and waterways.
Step One: Land Use Plan
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Building on our physical assets means preserving and enhancing corridors of Olmsted Parks and Ellicott Radial Streets
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Step One: Land Use Plan
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Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Building on our neighborhood assets means providing places to live, shopping nearby, local parks, schools, and civic centers.
Step One: Land Use Plan
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Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Building on our district assets means providing places for employment, education, health care, services, and regional shopping.
Step One: Land Use Plan
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Step 2: Create a new zoning code with rules for development that are:
Equitable: where discretion is minimized so that everyone knows up front what is expected.
Predictable: where what gets built matches what has been agreed to in the land use plan.
Efficient: Where doing the right thing is made easier by removing obstacles.
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Step Two: Zoning Code
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Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Smart Growth
Comprehensive Zoning
OrdinanceSustainabili
ty
Smart Growth:The use and design of buildings contributes to the creation of compact and accessible development and reflects the character of the place in which they are located.
SustainabilityThe use and design of buildings encourages residents and businesses to make low-impact environmental choices.
Future LandUse Plan
An approach to re-zoning
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What is a zoning code?
Zoning is a set of legally established rules administered by the City that determines how a property can be developed.
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Step Two: Zoning Code
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What Does Zoning Regulate?Zoning controls: But does NOT control:Development on private property.
Development on public land and buildings.
The size and location of a parcel of land.
The construction and interior design of a building.
The type of use permitted on a parcel of land.
The quality of use on a parcel of land, or the building’ ownership.
Where in the city a building gets built.
Whether a building gets built or torn down.
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Project background
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Why Should Zoning Matter To You?
Zoning rules make choices that affect: How well the size and scale of new development
fits with what is around it. How attractive the city is for new business
investment. Your transportation options and how far you
have to travel to meet your daily needs. How big an impact new development has on the
environment and natural resources.
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Step Two: Zoning Code
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The current zoning code reflects 1950’s ideas about the city and its future. It was written in 1951 to accommodate growth
by creating more flexible standards which had unpredictable results.
1950’s zoning was based on a concept that good places were created by rigidly separating land uses -- the opposite of what we believe today.
It was rewritten over the years as a patch-work of amendments and overlapping rules which make the code confusing to use.
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Step Two: Zoning Code
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Because the code regulates land use but not the character of development, the same zoning can allow two very different projects.
One result of the current code is development that is unpredictable in character.
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Step Two: Zoning Code
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Martin Luther King Park Starin Central
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
A new zoning code should reflect the diverse places we live.
Step Two: Zoning Code
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Cazenovia Park Parkside
A new zoning code should reflect the diverse places we live.
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Step Two: Zoning Code
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A new zoning code should reflect the diverse places we live.
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Downtown
Step Two: Zoning Code
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Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
A new zoning code should also reflect the diverse places we shop.
Hertel Avenue Broadway Fillmore
Step Two: Zoning Code
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A new zoning code should also reflect Buffalo’s civic and cultural diversity.
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Step Two: Zoning Code
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A new zoning code should reflect Buffalo’s economic diversity, as well.
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Step Two: Zoning Code
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“The new Buffalo zoning ordinance will be known as the Buffalo Green Code. It will embody 21st century values about economic development, sustainability, and walkable, green urbanism.”
Mayor Byron BrownApril 22, 2010
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Step Two: Zoning Code
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In large scale public meetings at each phase of the project;
In neighborhood focused land use and zoning workshops (called charrettes);
With support from a Community Advisory Committee of grassroots leaders.
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
Citizens are invited to participate
We need your help
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The project encompasses three major phases through September 2012
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
We need your help
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Be involved.
Look for updated information here at:www.buffalogreencode.com
If you have questions or comments, e-mail us at:[email protected]
Introducing the Buffalo Green Code Project
We need your help
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