Shaping Communities Through Urban Design Zoning UpdateOctober 2001October 2001

METROPOLITAN PLANNING COUNCIL

Zoning Reform Chicago’s current ordinance circa

1957 Goals of new code: predictable,

enforceable & understandable MPC strategy to influence new

ordinance:Distribute zoning toolkitParticipate on mayor’s commissionConduct neighborhood focus groupsPublish Issue Brief with detailed

recommendationsPublish four issues of ideas@work

covering zoning topics

Zoning ToolkitGetting the word out about

zoning “Revise Recreate Rezone: A

Neighborhood Guide to Zoning” Accessible tool to promote

public participation in re-write process

Distributed more than 2000 CDs to local stakeholders

Speaking at community groups

Mayor’s Zoning Reform

Commission 21 member commission Sub-committees/public forums

• Residential • Administration• Transportation • Neighborhood retail, • Open space commercial, industrial• Central business district

Monthly meetingsSecond Tuesday of the month, 8 a.m.

City Hall room 1103

Co-chaired by Pat Dowell and Margie Muchin-Goldblatt

Partner community organizations

Urban Development Committee members: architects, developers, bankers, lawyers Aldermen’s offices MPC staff

Zoning Working Group

Community Selection

Selection criteria• Socioeconomic diversity• Geographic diversity• Neighborhood partners• Political support• Financial support

• Back of the Yards– Growing population– Industrial heritage

• Bucktown/Logan Square– Hot growth area– Strong commercial market

• North Lawndale– Vacant land– Opportunities for infill

• South Shore– High population density– First stages of new growth

NeighborhoodsBucktown/Logan

SquareAld. Ted Matlak/32nd Ward

North LawndaleNeighborhood Housing

Services of Chicago

Back of the YardsBack of the Yards

Education & Peace Coalition

South ShoreSouth Shore Planning &Preservation Coalition

Methodology Selected community partners

in four neighborhoods Developed Neighborhood Issue

Matrix, Corresponding Zoning Regulatory Approaches, Participant Preference Sheet

2 focus groups per community (May- July)

8-16 participants per group 48 responses tallied

Neighborhood IssuesNeighborhood Issues

HousingHousingParkingParkingCommercialCommercialCommunicatiCommunicationonIndustrialIndustrialOpen SpaceOpen Space

Issue #1Insufficient supply of

diverse housing options

PolicyProvide a broader range of housing

options

Zoning Solutions Rezone certain major streets from commercial to residential Permit accessory dwelling units

#1 – Housing Options/Zoning Solutions

Develop standards for and permit live/work units

Offer a menu of incentives

#1 – Housing Options/Zoning Solutions Institute inclusionary zoning

Permit townhouses in all multi-family residential districts

Allow a larger percentage of multi-family units to be efficiencies.

Create new residential districts with smaller minimum lot sizes

#1 – Housing Options/Zoning Solutions

Issue #2Inadequate supply and inefficient use of existing parking

Zoning Solutions Revise the parking provisions to allow spaces to be shared by more than one use.

PolicyIncrease neighborhood parking availability.

Establish maximum parking requirements that, when exceeded, must be utilized as shared

#2 – Parking/Zoning Solutions

Adjust the residential district special use requirements to provide opportunities for shared parking.

Issue #3The form & function of commercial districts does not fit or preserve character of neighborhoods.

Zoning Solutions Create new pedestrian-oriented districts Rezone along major streets from commercial to residential

PolicyCreate new commercial districts based on character, density & use.

#3 – Commercial/Zoning Solutions Create new “big-box” district with design standards

Create new transit-oriented districts Develop standards for and permit live/work units in commercial districts

Issue #4Industrial area transitions insufficiently protect industrial and non-industrial uses.

Zoning Solutions Require landscape of industrial setbacks from residential districts

PolicyProtect and promote industrial developments.

#4 – Industrial Transitions/Zoning Solutions Create

transition requirements/standards in manufacturing districts (see existing PMD standards) Extend river edge boundaries (see

Chicago River Corridor Design Guidelines & Standards)

Issue #5Better communication and greater opportunities for neighborhood participation in the development review process are needed.

Zoning Solutions Employ an interested parties notification procedure similar to TIF

PolicyIncrease

neighborhood involvement.

#5 – Communication/Zoning Solutions Require direct

mailed notice of all discretionary review requests Establish a neighborhood contact requirement Improve public notification process by posting announcements in public spaces

Issue #6There are no design standards for open space development.

Zoning Solutions Provide density bonuses for residential, commercial private/public open space development in neighborhoods

PolicyIncrease quality and quantity of open space.

Require public access to any developed river edge open space Limit lot coverage in residential districts

#6 – Open Space/Zoning Solutions

Establish minimum setback and screening requirements for certain active recreational uses

Lay of the Land: A National Survey of Zoning Reform, 1999

In the Zone Issue Brief, 2000 Revise Recreate Rezone, June 2001 Neighborhood Recommendations,

October 2001 Zoning Recommendations Issue

Brief, November 2001 Zoning issue of ideas@work,

February 2002 www.metroplanning.org

MPC on Zoning

Get Involved! Send email comments to the

Mayor’s Zoning Reform Commission online: www.ci.chi.il.us/mayor/zoning

Stay in touch! Regular updates of MPC’s work: www.metroplanning.org

The Shaping Communities through Urban Design project has been made possible through generous grants from the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts, the State of Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs, the Steans Family Foundation and the Woods Fund of Chicago.

Special Thanks