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Urban Planning: Key Concepts
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Zoning
The division of a city or county by legislative regulations into areas, or zones, that specify allowable uses for real estate and size restrictions for buildings.
Urban Sprawl
The uncontrolled expansion of urban areas into the surrounding countryside, characterized by low-density residential and commercial development, automobile dependency, and a lack of planning.
Mixed-Use Development
A type of urban development that blends residential, commercial, cultural, institutional, or industrial uses, where those functions are physically and functionally integrated, and that provides pedestrian connections.
Infill Development
The process of developing vacant or under-used parcels within existing urban areas that are already largely developed.
Greenbelt
A policy and land use designation used in urban planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wild, or agricultural land surrounding or neighboring urban areas.
Smart Growth
An urban planning approach that focuses on sustainable development, preservation of open spaces, and the creation of walkable neighborhoods to create a better quality of life.
Gentrification
A process of urban renewal and economic change in which lower-income residents are displaced as the district becomes more affluent.
Floor Area Ratio (FAR)
A measure of the total floor area of a building in relation to the size of the plot of land that the building is located on, expressed as a ratio.
Transit-Oriented Development (TOD)
A type of urban development that maximizes the amount of residential, business, and leisure space within walking distance of public transport.
Urban Heat Island Effect
A metropolitan area which is significantly warmer than its surrounding rural areas due to human activities.
Walkability
A measure of how friendly an area is to walking, which can be affected by the presence or absence and quality of footpaths, sidewalks or other pedestrian rights-of-way, traffic and road conditions, land use patterns, building accessibility, and safety, among other factors.
New Urbanism
An urban design movement that promotes environmentally friendly habits by creating walkable neighborhoods containing a wide range of housing and job types.
Public Space
An area or place that is open and accessible to all citizens, regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, age, or socio-economic level.
Complete Streets
Streets designed and operated to enable safe access for all users, including pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists and transit riders of all ages and abilities.
Grid Plan
A type of city plan in which streets run at right angles to each other, forming a grid.
Land Use Planning
The process by which lands are evaluated and assessed to establish the most beneficial and sustainable use for those lands.
Brownfield Site
A property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant.
Upzoning
A change in zoning regulations that allows for more intense development than is currently permitted, such as higher buildings or a larger number of housing units.
Ecological Footprint
The calculated measure of the human impact on Earth's ecosystem and represents the amount of biologically productive land and water area required to supply the resources a human population consumes and to assimilate associated waste.
Density Bonus
A zoning incentive given by a city or county to a developer who agrees to build more affordable housing or to include certain features in the development such as a greater public benefit or to preserve space for public use.
Green Infrastructure
A network that provides the ingredients for solving urban and climatic challenges by building with nature, including the management of stormwater, the reduction of heat stress, increased biodiversity, food production, clean air, and more attractive green spaces.
Urban Renewal
A program of land redevelopment in cities, often where there is urban decay.
Urban Fabric
The physical form of towns and cities, which comprises the street patterns, lot sizes, building footprints, and the nature of their functions.
Form-Based Code
A means of regulating land development to achieve a specific urban form. It uses physical form (rather than separation of uses) as the organizing principle for the code.
Green Space
An area of grass, trees, or other vegetation set apart for recreational or aesthetic purposes in an otherwise urban environment.
Site Plan
A detailed architectural plan, landscape architecture document, and a detailed engineering drawing of proposed improvements to a given lot.
Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS)
A natural approach to managing drainage in and around properties and other developments, designed to reduce the potential impact of new and existing developments with respect to surface water drainage discharges.
Overlay Zone
A regulatory tool that creates a special zoning district, layered over the existing base zone(s), that identifies specific requirements for a defined geographic area within the base zone(s).
Planned Unit Development (PUD)
A type of development and regulatory process that is designed to be more flexible than traditional zoning by allowing a developer to negotiate with a city to deviate from its zoning requirements.
Affordable Housing
Housing that is deemed affordable to those with a median household income as rated by country, state, region, or municipality by a recognized Housing Affordability Index.
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