Chapter 2 Zoning Districts Part 7 Planned Development Districts Traditional Neighborhood Zoning District Page 1 of 2

2.7.4 TRADITIONAL NEIGHBORHOOD ZONING DISTRICT

Note: Uses and design standards applicable in this zoning district are to be found in the Plan Reports adopted for each TNZD, not in this section of the LDC. See the Appendix of chapter 2 for plan reports.

GENERAL STANDARDS

Relationship to the Comprehensive Plan.

The Traditional Neighborhood Zoning District (TNZD), implements the community form strategy of the Comprehensive Plan. In particular, the TNZD implements Goal C1 of the Comprehensive Plan by providing standards which preserve and enhance existing traditional neighborhoods which are eligible for the TNZD zoning classification in order to ensure that development and redevelopment in such neighborhoods is compatible with the organization and pattern of the Traditional Neighborhood Form and of the district; Goal J1 by providing a means to integrate and reuse community facilities; and Guideline 5, Policy 2, by providing for land use regulations which encourage preservation and reuse of historic buildings and other features in distinctive areas.
Purpose of the District.

The TNZD is an urban residential zone established pursuant to KRS 100.201(3). The TNZD is designed to recognize historic or long-established traditional neighborhoods and to protect them as a distinct pattern of development. TNZD’s occur in developed areas that experience redevelopment and infill development. Traditional neighborhoods are broadly characterized as communities having an identifiable boundary, a predominance of residential uses and open space such as parks and playgrounds, a connected street and alley pattern, buildings that are close to or at the sidewalk, and, in some cases, a well-defined center or transition area that contains a mixture of uses.

The TNZD is designed to promote diversity and integration of uses and structures in an existing traditional neighborhood through flexible design standards that:
1. Regulate the use of structures on a structure-by-structure basis which stabilizes and protects the urban residential character of the area;
2. Maintain traditional neighborhoods that are livable, diverse, and sustainable;
3. Promote uses of land that are appropriate to the distinctive characteristics of existing traditional neighborhoods;
4. Respect and reinforce existing traditional neighborhoods, integrating new development with existing development to ensure compatibility;
5. Provide flexibility to meet changing needs, technologies, economics, and consumer preferences;
6. Promote development patterns and land uses which reduce transportation needs and which conserve energy and natural resources;
7. Protect and enhance historic and natural resources;
8. Encourage the provision of adequate parks and open spaces to serve the needs of residents of traditional neighborhoods.
9. Encourage a variety of compatible architectural styles, building forms, and building relationships within existing traditional neighborhoods.
Applicability of Other Ordinances.

Unless otherwise specifically provided in this Section or in the TNZD Plan, all provisions of the Land Development Code shall be applicable to the TNZD, except to the extent that they conflict with an approved provision of this zone.

Note: Chapter 11, Part 4 of the LDC is not intended to be applicable to the TNZD District unless otherwise specified.

DEVELOPMENT GUIDELINES AND STANDARDS

Traditional Pattern.

The TNZD pattern is generally characterized by these features:
1. A variety of housing types. This allows younger and older people, singles and families, and people with a wide range of incomes to have places to live. Examples include detached houses on small, standard, or large lots, duplexes, row houses, and apartment buildings;
2. A network of connected streets and walkways. Traditional neighborhood streets provide a variety of transportation routes and disperse traffic. Streets are relatively narrow and most are tree lined to create a pleasant environment;
3. Civic or institutional buildings such as schools, libraries, museums, meeting halls, places of worship, and day care facilities may occupy prominent places in the traditional neighborhood. Civic or institutional uses should be encouraged to use buildings originally designed for those uses to assure their preservation as Part of the community fabric and may have public open space around the buildings. Civic buildings have a distinctive form to differentiate their role from that of other buildings;
4. A human building scale described by a variety of many separate buildings on small lots to generate a cohesive pattern that allows streets to be civic places. Building heights vary, with one to four story structures typical in the TNZD. Buildings in the Traditional Neighborhood Center should generally be four stories and placed close to the sidewalk, creating a strong sense of spatial definition, while buildings in the Traditional Neighborhood General are usually set back from the sidewalk reflecting the predominant setback pattern along the block face. Buildings in the Traditional Neighborhood Transition--Center should also reflect the predominant setback pattern along the block face.
5. Open space and natural features, such as trees of high quality and significant tree stands, wetlands, streams, and steep slopes, are retained, linked where possible and incorporated into the traditional neighborhood pattern; and
6. Cultural resources, such as historic buildings, districts and landscapes, are preserved and reused in the TNZD.

TNZD Components.

The TNZD consists of one required component and two optional components: the Traditional Neighborhood General (required), the Traditional Neighborhood Transition—Center (optional), and/or the Traditional Neighborhood Center (optional). The TNZD Plan shall include the applicable components, which are described as follows:

Traditional Neighborhood General. The TNZD Neighborhood General is primarily one and two-family residential but allows a mixture of certain other uses where the building was originally designed for those uses and new development at a compatible scale, intensity and design where mapped. For example multi-family residential and certain commercial uses are permitted in mapped locations or where the original building use included multi-family residential or retail. The TNZD general also contains permanent open space, typically in the form of Parks, playgrounds, greens or courts.
Traditional Neighborhood Transition—Center. The Traditional Neighborhood Transition—Center includes a mixture of residential densities, commercial, and office uses, often containing civic uses and open space. The Traditional Neighborhood Transition—Center is located between the Traditional Neighborhood General and the Traditional Neighborhood Center and serves as a transition area between areas of different intensity patterns in the Traditional Neighborhood General and Traditional Neighborhood Center where historic patterns of original use have resulted in significant change in the intensity and diversity of uses. The specific size and location of the Traditional Neighborhood Transition—Center is intended to be flexible based on the context of the adjacent patterns of development and the presence of sensitive cultural or natural features.
Traditional Neighborhood Center. The Traditional Neighborhood Center serves as the focal point and informal gathering place of the district. It is made up of medium to high-density residential uses, neighborhood-serving shops and services, civic buildings, and may include formal open space such as plazas or squares. The Traditional Neighborhood Center should be compact and is usually located within a 5-to-10 minute walk (approximately 1,350 feet) of most neighborhood residents. It may also be located where it can intercept traffic coming and going from the neighborhood. To encourage a mixture of uses in the Traditional Neighborhood Center, the following guidelines shall apply:
1. Dwelling units are encouraged to be located in the TNZD Center (at least 10% of the total number of dwelling units in the TNZD is recommended but not required). Retail, office, and service uses should be sized in area and intensity to meet the needs of neighborhood residents.
2. Single retail uses with a building footprint of greater than 50,000 square feet are not allowed.

Land Use within TNZD. The table below is illustrative of the uses permitted within the TNZD. Permitted uses of structures, densities, and floor area ratios within a TNZD are regulated on a structure-by-structure basis. The TNZD shall contain a mixture of uses, including single-family and multi-family residential, retail, and service establishments. The regulation of usage of any structure within the TNZD shall be guided by the architecture, size, or traditional use of the building, and in accordance with the purposes and pattern of the district.

TNZD Land Use Table

‘P’ means the use is permitted, subject to design standards and location standards where noted. ‘P/M’ means the use is permitted where mapped. Mapped uses recognize historic uses of lots or, in the case of vacant development sites, an appropriate compatible use. ‘X’ means the use is not permitted. P/CU = Permitted as Conditional Use. No permitted use or use permitted where mapped shall be required to secure a conditional use permit.

Land Use Category	Neighborhood General	Neighborhood Transition-Center	Neighborhood Center
Residential Uses
Single Family Residential – One dwelling unit per lot*	P	P	X
Two-family Residential*	P	P	P
Multifamily Residential	P/M	P	P
Garages and Accessory Residential Units (Carriage Houses)	P	P	P
Home Occupations	P	P	P
Office Uses
Professional Office	X	P	P
General/Business Office	X	X	P
Institutional Uses
Churches & Synagogues	P.M	P	P/M
Community Centers, Cultural Centers, and Civic buildings	P/M	P	X
Clubs and Lodges	P/M	P/M	X
Fraternities and Sororities	X	X	X
Schools, public and private	P/M	P	X
Trade, business, or industrial schools	X	P	X
Colleges and Universities	X	P	X
Day Care Centers	X	P	X
Family Day Care Home	X	P	X
Commercial Uses
Corner Commercial Establishments	P/M	P/M	N/A
General Commercial	X	P**	P‡
Other Uses
Bed and Breakfast Establishments	P/CU	P/CU	P/CU
Original Use of Building	P	P	P
Storage sheds	P	P	P
Accessory Uses	P	P	P
Temporary Buildings and Uses	P	P	P
Historic House Museums	P/CU	P/CU	P/CU

* Plus one dwelling unit in the Accessory Structure Area

** Commercial uses in the Neighborhood Transition—Center, with or without residential, shall be limited to antique and collectibles shops; art galleries; cafes, tea rooms, and coffee houses; book stores; florists and sundry stores; restaurants and delis (no drive through service); beauty salons and barber shops; and, professional offices.

‡ Commercial uses in the Neighborhood Center, with or without residential, shall be limited to antique shops and interior decorating shops; bakeries and delicatessens, retail sales; art and craft galleries; barber and beauty shops; music and art stores; photographic studios and shops; music and art stores; photographic studios and shops; stationery stores; candy stores, retail sales; pharmacies; convenience grocery stores; coin laundries; dry-cleaning pick-up only; restaurants, where food and drink may be served or consumed outside or inside (no drive-through service); theaters; toy & hobby stores; other similar neighborhood serving retail uses as established by the Planning Commission; and professional offices.

N/A = Not applicable, since commercial uses are permitted by right in the Neighborhood Center Note: Building uses in effect prior to the adoption of these regulations and operating in a legal fashion according to the prior zoning classification of the property, including legal non-conforming uses, may continue to operate under the Traditional Neighborhood Zoning District. Legal non-conforming uses may not be expanded.

Civic Uses

Civic Uses should be encouraged to adapt and reuse existing Civic Buildings before considering alternative locations. New Civic Buildings should be located at important sites to reinforce community identity and should have a distinctive form to differentiate their role from that of other buildings and uses.

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