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1. Intent. The community design principles are to be considered in every development proposal. The Town’s goal is to expedite the planning review process by clearly outlining the Town’s expectations for new development. The intent of this Article is to encourage the creation of viable neighborhoods that interconnect with each other and integrate new projects into the existing community, thereby strengthening the original town. The neighborhood layout should consider the street, lot, and block pattern of the original town, as well as solar orientation, topography, sensitive wildlife and vegetation, drainage patterns, and environmental and regional climate issues. Further, the edges of neighborhoods should be formed by features shared with adjacent neighborhoods such as major streets, changes in street pattern, greenways, or natural features such as streams and major drainage or riparian corridors. New streets, bikeways, sidewalks, paths, and trails should connect to existing adjacent neighborhoods.

2. Neighborhood structure. Following is a summary of essential elements to consider integrating into new neighborhoods:

a. Street, sidewalk and trail connections within new neighborhoods that connect to adjacent existing neighborhoods and strengthen the connection to the existing town.

b. Streets that encourage pedestrian activity by creating an inviting atmosphere through attention to the details of landscaping and tree locations, sidewalks, lighting, and building architecture.

c. A mixed-use neighborhood center located for easy access.

d. A variety of housing types, sizes, densities and price range that are well integrated.

e. A variety of land uses that are well-integrated and a transition of intensity. Nonresidential uses, larger buildings and attached multi-family housing should be encouraged to be located near commercial centers with a transition to smaller buildings closer to low density neighborhoods.

f. Pedestrian and bike connections throughout all neighborhoods.

g. Parks, open space, public plaza, and greens that are well integrated into the neighborhood.

h. Street trees placed in new developments at regular intervals and placed directly adjacent to sidewalks. See Figure 2-8, Section 2.14.6(1)(a).

i. Architectural, landscaping, and site design elements of new developments as outlined in this Article.

j. Art in public places in coordination with the Frederick Arts Commission.

3. General provisions. The following principles are contained in the original "old town" of Frederick. The Comprehensive Plan identifies them as contributing to the community’s small-town character. Although the size of individual development proposals will vary, projects will be evaluated with consideration to these neighborhood design principles and the context within which a project is located. Failure to incorporate these design principles into a project may be cause for denial of the project by the Board of Trustees.

a. Each neighborhood has a center and an edge. It is important that every neighborhood have activity centers that draw people together. Use natural and man-made features such as a drainage way, major roadways, and ditches to define neighborhood edges. Buildings or other features located at gateways entering a neighborhood shall mark the transition into and out of the neighborhood in a distinct fashion using massing, additional height, contrasting materials, and/or architectural embellishments to obtain this effect.

b. Mix of types of dwelling units. A mix of dwelling unit types shall be distributed throughout the development. (Refer to Section 2.17 for additional housing requirements.)

c. Focal points. Focal points, or points of visual termination, shall generally be occupied by more prominent, monumental buildings and structures that employ enhanced height, massing, distinctive architectural treatments or other distinguishing features, as well as landscape features. See Figure 2-1.

Figure 2-1. Focal Points

d. Public space as development framework. Public space is used to organize blocks and circulation patterns and to enhance surrounding development. Public open space must be functional and easily accessible and shall be designed to organize the placement of buildings to create an identity for each neighborhood. Buildings should face public open space to allow for casual surveillance.

e. Design streets as public spaces.

4. Buildings shall define streets through the use of relatively uniform setbacks along each block. The streetscape shall also be reinforced by lines of shade trees planted in the right-of-way landscape strip and may be further reinforced by walls, hedges, landscaping, or fences which define front yards.

5. On a lot with multiple buildings, those located on the interior of the site shall relate to one another both functionally and visually. A building complex may be organized around features such as courtyards, greens, or quadrangles which encourage pedestrian activity and incidental social interaction. Smaller, individualized groupings of buildings are encouraged. Buildings shall be located to allow for adequate fire and emergency access.

a. Order rather than repetition. The orderly arrangement of design elements can unify a space even when the elements are not the same. The location of sidewalks relative to streets, building setbacks and orientation, and the placement of trees can all help create an overall impression of unity even though each home or building has a distinct character.

b. Use human proportion. Buildings shall be considered in terms of their relationship to the height and massing of adjacent buildings, as well as in relation to the human scale. (In a small town, this means generally one-, two- and three-story buildings.)

c. Define the transition between the public and private realm. Buildings shall be located to front towards and relate to public streets or parks, both functionally and visually, to the greatest extent possible. Wherever possible, buildings shall not be oriented to front towards a parking lot.

d. Encourage walking and bicycling. Sites shall be designed to minimize conflicts between vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians. Pedestrian and bicycle access and connections shall be designed to make it safe and easy to get around on foot and by bicycle.

e. Neighborhoods shall have a mix of activities available rather than a purely residential land use. Neighborhood residents shall have convenient access to parks, schools, open space, trails, and services.

f. Fit within the environment rather than on top of it. New developments shall be designed to respond to the natural environment, fit into the setting and protect scenic view corridors. Key design considerations shall include a site layout that responds to natural features both on- and off-site, the size of structures and materials used in the development, and the transition between the development and the surrounding landscape.

g. Encourage a variety of dwelling types in every neighborhood. Housing types and the size of lots shall be varied to enable people to remain in the neighborhood as their needs change.

h. Housing types and styles that reflect the architecture of the region. Familiar architectural styles shall play an important role in developing an architectural identity for neighborhood dwellings. New homes shall be designed consistent with the architectural principles outlined in Section 2.17 of this Article.

6. The Planning Commission and Board of Trustees will evaluate each proposal based on these principles and the context within which a project is located. The principles are intended to be specific enough to guide development, but not to preclude creative design solutions. Applicants must substantially conform to the design principles unless it can be demonstrated that an acceptable alternative meets one (1) or more of the following conditions:

a. The alternative better achieves the stated intent;

b. The intent will not be achieved by application of the principle in this circumstance;

c. The effect of other principles will be improved by not applying the principle; and/or

d. Strict application or unique site features make the principle impractical.