Those who have been following the community planning process in Damariscotta have probably heard about the recent charrette and a recommendation for implementing form-based codes.
Many citizens are wondering what in the world they are and what they mean for the town.
Over the past three years, the Damariscotta Planning Advisory Committee (DPAC) has been collecting the stories and opinions of Damariscotta residents and drafting a vision for the future of the town through the Heart & Soul Community Planning initiative.
In late October 2009, DPAC hosted a town-wide planning charrette to focus the ideas of the public and professional designers and planners on how the town might grow and how to realize the community’s vision. Over 500 people have been involved in this effort so far.
DPAC released the final Charrette Report in April, providing an illustrative plan to help guide growth and development in Damariscotta for the next 40 plus years.
The report’s recommendations run the gamut from small improvements like installing informative signs to major capital improvements such as updating the School Street/Rt. 1-B intersection; from quick turn-around projects like improving signage, landscaping and repainting the back parking lot, to multi-year initiatives; and, physical improvements (policy and zoning changes).
An important and unfamiliar report recommendation is to consider “form-based codes” – a type of policy or ordinance that guides development based on how citizens want the town to look and feel.
In contrast, existing current codes are “use-based codes,” which regulate what activities can occur on a parcel of land, but don’t address how a new building or renovation fits in with local character.
Form-based codes encourage mixed-use development, focusing instead on building facades, the scale and types of streets and blocks, and ensuring that development enhances the public realm. They can lead to more walk-friendly, livable communities with better integration of local services.
In contrast, use-based codes segregate land uses into oversimplified retail, residential and commercial pods. For example, they tend to restrict small businesses from operating in a residential neighborhood or manufacturing facilities from moving downtown, neglecting how a place looks and feels and whether or not if fits the character of the community.
These traditional codes have contributed to suburban sprawl, making it more likely that people need to drive to work and stores.
The regulations in use-based codes are typically based on abstract and disconnected parameters like dwellings per acre, setbacks and parking ratios. The regulations and standards in form-based codes are tied to diagrams and words that designate the appropriate form and character of development, as determined by the community through a public process, such as our Heart & Soul Community Planning initiative.
Form-based codes allow a community to be proactive about the kinds of development that occur by clearly communicating to landowners and developers what type of place is desired. In exchange for building in a way that respects the larger vision, developers are rewarded with a faster and less combative review process because they already know what the public wants.
Developers also tend to prefer form-based codes because the regulations are simpler and clearer and they have more flexibility in terms of what they do inside their buildings.
Ultimately, a form-based code is a tool; the quality of development outcomes depends on the quality and objectives of the community plan it’s based on. Form-based codes may not be appropriate for all situations or all areas of town.
Acknowledging this, Town Manager Greg Zinser said, “If the town should decide to adopt form-based codes, it would be as an amendment or addition to current Land Use Ordinance, and would specify exactly to which geographic areas they would apply.”
A DPAC subcommittee, working in collaboration with the town, is examining how and where form-based codes might be most appropriate. Piper Commons and some sections of Bus. Rt. 1 were identified as potential areas during the charrette process.
The board of selectmen is also carefully considering the larger implications of form-based codes and other report recommendations.
According to Chairman Dick McLean, “We are all closely examining the recommendations to ensure that future development will be consistent with the vision and values defined by the community.”
DPAC will host a series of neighborhood meetings over the next several months, at which the community can learn more about the charrette report and form-based codes and offer comments.
DPAC is also planning a series of public meetings on codes and ordinances as it continues to obtain community input and ensure that Damariscotta’s future is planned around the community’s values.
DPAC is a committee of the town of Damariscotta, appointed by the board of selectmen to lead a community-driven visioning process to make the Damariscotta region a better place to live, work and play, do business and visit.
For more information, or to view a copy of the Damariscotta Charrette Report, please visit www.damariscottame.com. A limited number of copies of the report are also available for loan from town hall and the library.
