More on Form-Based Codes:

Civic leaders and planning professionals are turning increasingly to New Urban development approaches to avoid the well-documented pitfalls of sprawl. Unfortunately most zoning regulations still mandate outcomes that innovative planners would like to avoid---isolated single-use pods, overly wide roads, too much parking and excessive setbacks from nearby streets and buildings. Because existing regulations are so out of step with desired growth patterns, many communities are reconsidering their zoning ordinances; still others are revising or recreating them altogether. In facing the realities of limited time and budget, a common strategy is to layer guidelines over the existing zoning to achieve greater design control.

But will these new rules create better places or will they simply create watered-down hybrid developments and add greater friction to an already overburdened development review process? Furthermore, will well-intentioned design guidelines actually increase the risk of legal challenges caused by inconsistencies with a community's underlying zoning?

Example of how a form-based code can specify different building types for each face of the block. By contrast, conventional zoning often assigns a single use/density category for an entire block or group of blocks.

One regulatory technique that is leading to successful outcomes across the country is form-based coding. This emerging approach recognizes that a community's physical form is its most intrinsic and enduring characteristic. The form referenced in the name includes not just buildings and blocks but other physical elements such as streets and squares; civic infrastructure such as bridges, rail lines and canals; and the relationship of manmade elements to natural features such as lakes, forests, riparian corridors and bluffs. The process of form-based coding works well with public participation. Because the codes are expressed visually in a way that's easily understandable to nonprofessionals, citizens are often more willing to accept higher density and/or greater intensity. And unlike the more vague, aesthetic-or style-based design guidelines that are sometimes mistaken for form-based codes, this new approach offers a level of precision and legal consistency that many believe will enhance their enforceability and reduce the need for discretionary design review.