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Receive an Update on the Blue Hill District Design Guidelines.
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Staff:
Department:
Ben Hitchings, Director
Planning and Development Services
John Richardson, Interim Operations Manager
Corey Liles, Senior Planner
Overview: In November 2017, the Town released a draft version of design guidelines for the Blue Hill District (formerly the Ephesus/Fordham District). The Planning staff has been meeting with the Planning Commission, Community Design Commission, and members of the community as part of the public review process. Tonight, staff seeks input and direction from the Council to inform development of the final draft. Staff anticipates the commencement of a process to enact text amendments and formally adopt the Blue Hill District Design Guidelines in March 2018.
Recommendation(s):
That the Council receive the presentation and provide feedback on the draft Blue Hill District Design Guidelines.
Decision Points:
* Reaffirm target for adopting the Design Guidelines by June 2018.
* Gauge interest and opportunity for several associated amendments to the Ephesus/Fordham Form-Based Code (LUMO Section 3.11).
Key Issues:
* The Community Design Commission expressed an interest in completing the project as expeditiously as possible, so the Guidelines can be used to evaluate upcoming applications.
* The CDC and Planning Commission would like to ensure that the Design Guidelines are actively applied to projects in a meaningful way, rather than serving simply as best practices. Staff has identified several text amendments that can help meet these interests, along with other amendments to the Form-Based Code that would complement the Design Guidelines. These are discussed in the Memorandum on Potential Text Amendments (see attachment). Staff will use Council feedback to develop recommended text amendment language.
Additional Context
* Design guidelines for the Blue Hill District will establish a common understanding of design principles that promote a wal...
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