Whether your community is attempting to revitalize a neglected downtown, pursuing Complete Streets, or trying to foster better transit-oriented development, it’s likely that conventional zoning codes are one of the barriers to success. While form-based codes are not a silver bullet or necessary in all circumstances, many communities find that zoning reform is essential to managing their growth in an intentional way.
Form-based codes affirm traditional modes of urban design. Instead of aiming simply to control growth or separate different land uses, they emphasize the different elements that contribute to a vital community. Where current zoning leads to segregation of land use [and people] — commercial versus residential versus industrial — form-based codes allow mixed uses, and diverse neighborhoods.
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