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NEIGHBORHOOD ENHANCEMENT

URBAN DESIGN ELEMENT

PRINCIPLES

Urban design influences the physical form of the City and how residents experience the public realm such as streets, parks, plazas, and other open spaces. The goals, objectives and policies set forth in this element strive to reflect the vision for the present and future development of our public realm. Some of the vital elements to this plan include the key principles: Livability, Sustainability and Resiliency, all of which contribute to the identity of our urban environment. Emphasis is placed on these principles not only to promote a social and pedestrian friendly urban environment, but to also encourage adaptable urban design practices that will help retain the unique value and functionality of our City’s public realm over time.

As Fort Lauderdale continues to develop and redevelop its built environment, a framework of distinctive neighborhood qualities, development patterns and architectural design expressions have contributed to what we recognize as a Sense of Place. The Urban Design Element, incorporates a framework of key goals, objectives and supporting policies, which will help to guide and address multi-modal connectivity, quality of building and street design, open space balance, life safety issues—i.e. Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) changes in technology and resiliency.

A strong sense of place yields a distinct identity felt by residents and visitors. Therefore, focus on the creation of place is a fundamental goal of this element, incorporated through building design, street design, and other unique elements contribute to the urban design of the City of Fort Lauderdale.6

URBAN DESIGN ELEMENT

GOALS, POLICIES, AND EVALUATION MEASURES

GOAL 1: The City of Fort Lauderdale shall promote high-quality and sustainable building design elements which complement the public realm.

OBJECTIVE UD 1.1: Design Guidelines

Strengthen the urban form throughout the City by building upon the character of the existing fabric of the built environment, while allowing for the addition of complementary new development through the application of urban design elements and design criteria that support an exceptional sense of place.

POLICY UD 1.1.1: In considering new design guidelines, the City shall incorporate criteria that address a safe, healthy, and attractive environment for people of all ages and abilities.

POLICY UD 1.1.2: Enhance the quality of development throughout the city over time through the review and application of design standards and guidelines. Update and implement design standards and guidelines to ensure the quality of development throughout the city is enhanced over time and is responsive to changing conditions.

POLICY UD 1.1.3: Base design standards and land development regulations on area context, with distinct characteristics considered for different areas, i.e. regional activity centers, transit-oriented corridors, lower density neighborhoods, etc.

POLICY UD 1.1.4: In considering new design guidelines, incorporate the following elements:

1. Street design focused on multi-modal connectivity and interconnectivity with surrounding development.
2. Context-sensitive building design, considering mass, scale and form of buildings.
3. Quality of architecture with special emphasis on lasting design, building façade composition and articulation, ground level pedestrian experience, window transparency, and quality building materials.
4. Climate-oriented design and alternative energy generation (i.e. solar).
5. Context-sensitive signage design and placement.
6. Flexibility to support design accommodations for various uses over time.

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High quality building design, illumination features, and parking garage screening. Sources: awards.lighting.co.uk/winners-2018/ & www.pittsburghmagazine.com/downtown-plans-from-parking-garage-to-luxury-condos/ (rendering courtesy AE7 Pittsburgh LLC, 2017)

URBAN DESIGN ELEMENT

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"The Smart Growth Manual" (Andres Duany, Jeff Speck et al.) Source: hjeffherzer.com/transects-a-lot-of-modeling-over-little-area/x

POLICY UD 1.1.5: As redevelopment occurs ensure an appropriate building mass and scale through form-based design standards to address transition to adjacent lower-density residential areas.

POLICY UD 1.1.6: Where buildings engage the streets, promote high quality building design through the use of high-quality building materials and architectural treatments, incorporation of building façade features including sufficient windows for transparency purposes, high-quality parking garage treatments, and sustainable building illumination.

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Strategic Entrances. Source: www.plparchitecture.com/ corso-como-renovation.html

POLICY UD 1.1.7: Encourage the strategic placement of building entrances along active streets, adjoining public plaza spaces, and other open spaces.

POLICY UD 1.1.8: The City shall support public art considerations in the design of civic spaces and facilities and wherever possible to enhance the public realm and vitality of public spaces, as part of the planning and development review process.

OBJECTIVE UD 1.2: Resiliency in Design

Design for Sea Level Rise and Resiliency and ensure the incorporation of design specific approaches to address sea level rise and resiliency for the City's built environment.

POLICY UD 1.2.1: Promote adaptive building design (including first floor adaptability), through form based approaches, including first floor ceiling heights, maximum building heights, freeboard regulations, and flex use, which provide for physical modifications of buildings or easy change of use, to preserve utilization or adaptive re-use.

POLICY UD 1.2.2: Promote approaches to design that lead to the reduction of heat islands, including, but not limited to the incorporation of acceptable alternative construction materials allowable by Building Code or engineering, cool roofs, and increases in tree canopies within the City.

POLICY UD 1.2.3: Encourage the incorporation of resilient design elements in new development and adopt design guidelines to address sea level rise mitigation, coordinated with Florida Building Code requirements.

URBAN DESIGN ELEMENT

POLICY UD 1.2.3a: Design standards should focus on the City's local ecology, reinforcing the City's identity and relationship with water, promoting adaptation to rise of water levels, and considering the level of flood risk as an evaluation criterion in district-specific plans and the development review process.

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POLICY UD 1.2.3b: Incorporate guidelines for adapting transitions at the ground level with regards to flood prone areas, such as greater floor to ceiling heights, adaptive ground level floors and other adaptive design strategies.

POLICY UD 1.2.3c: Assess, identify, and implement innovative infrastructure for site drainage management, including innovative hard and natural systems, and incorporate these water management guidelines into design construction criteria.

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URBAN DESIGN ELEMENT

GOAL 2: Encourage urban design which responds to the climate and character of Fort Lauderdale, is pedestrian friendly, human-scaled and contains the infrastructure and amenities to create a vibrant public realm.

OBJECTIVE UD 2.1: Promoting Community Identity

Promote community identity through building and streetscape enhancements, with a focus on primary entrances and gateways to the City.

POLICY UD 2.1.1: Include aesthetic and functional considerations in the design and implementation of public improvement projects along gateway corridors to support and enhance the visual quality, livability and character of the City.

POLICY UD 2.1.1a: An appropriate sense of transition and arrival should be designed to make a strong and positive visual impact at each gateway through a combination of landscaping, streetscape amenities, signage, and a strong framing of the street with form-based building and street design standards.

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URBAN DESIGN ELEMENT

OBJECTIVE UD 2.2: Pedestrian Friendly Design

Enhance pedestrian mobility through design standards that focus on pedestrian safety, comfort, reduction of barriers, and amenities.

POLICY UD 2.2.1: Address design features along physical barriers such as major highways, rail corridors, arterial roadways, block sizes and waterways to optimize connectivity for pedestrian movement and promote a more connected built environment.

POLICY UD 2.2.2: Adopt design guidelines for amenities and street furnishings based on character and context of each area, considering life cycle, South Florida climate and maintenance costs.

POLICY UD 2.2.3: Promote coordinated wayfinding systems that address how people move and connect throughout the city.

POLICY UD 2.2.4: Encourage the incorporation of public art features in development and infrastructure projects to enhance the nature of our urban spaces.

POLICY UD 2.2.5: Public gathering spaces along waterfronts, including promenades, viewpoints, marine facilities, and parks should be designed to promote continuous public access and views to the waterfront.

POLICY UD 2.2.5a: Design treatments should promote a variety of experiences and vary based on context, i.e. "hardscape" plazas, passive open spaces more natural in character.

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Area of Respite/Public art. Source: foxlin.com/vanke-park-avenue-sculpture-design/

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Source: www.housing.uci.edu/communityLife/MC-Towers.html

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Source: www.nbbj.com/work/cambridge-crossing-transit-oriented-master-plan/

URBAN DESIGN ELEMENT

GOAL 3: Streetscape Design Elements - The City of Fort Lauderdale shall promote a complete mobility network and improve multimodal connectivity.

OBJECTIVE UD 3.1: Streetscape Design Standards

Encourage streetscape design which enhances connectivity, and incorporates technological advancements and improvements in mobility.

POLICY UD 3.1.1: Site and streetscape design standards shall encourage trips by walking, bicycle, transit and other non-motorized modes of transportation with a focus on the integration of future technologies into the existing urban fabric.

POLICY UD 3.1.2: The City shall encourage standards for the design of public space facilities, including building orientation and pedestrian and/ or bicycling pathways on site and through buildings, which provide for connections between different modes of travel, including walking, public transit, bicycling, and driving.

POLICY UD 3.1.3: Encourage pedestrian and transit-oriented developments with greater emphasis on sidewalk width accommodation of multi-modal transportation options, incorporation of street trees and shading devices, bicycle facilities.

POLICY UD 3.1.4: Continue to enhance and expand a connected network of pedestrian pathways, bicycle routes and greenways.

POLICY UD 3.1.4a: Focus improvements on high destination areas including regional activity centers and add connections to adjacent neighborhoods.

POLICY UD 3.1.4b: Find new opportunities along existing corridors in considering new greenways.

POLICY UD 3.1.4c: Take advantage of existing underutilized corridors such as FEC tracks that already connect local destination areas.

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Mobility Enhancements. Source: egconnectsv1.wordpress.com/vision/

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Urban Futuristic Living and Mobility. Source: xoio.de/en/daimler-future-urban-scenarios/

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The Underline, Miami, Florida. Image credit: Anna Baez

URBAN DESIGN ELEMENT

OBJECTIVE UD 3.2: Neighborhood Design Standards

Adopt design standards to promote strong, healthy, and beautiful neighborhoods that enhance the physical character and distinctive qualities of individual neighborhoods throughout the city.

POLICY UD 3.2.1: Improve the appearance and identity of the City's streets by applying uniform design and construction standards that promote an exceptional sense of place and include elements and street furniture that reflect the context and climate of the local environment, have a high-quality aesthetic, life-cycle and minimal maintenance requirements.

POLICY UD 3.2.2: The City shall ensure regular outreach to neighborhood groups to determine how urban design standards can be improved to enhance livability and sense of place in the City.

POLICY UD 3.2.3: Encourage universal design principles in new construction and retrofit projects to create physically accessible housing, extending from the individual unit to the community, and promote accessibility and visit-ability (ADA standards, lighting, etc.) throughout the City.

POLICY UD 3.2.3a: Address accessibility issues in design standards to meet the needs of older adults and people with disabilities, especially in centers, station areas, and other places that are proximate to services and transit.

POLICY UD 3.2.3b: Adopt design standards that provide for light and air provisions through design, placement and form of buildings based on context.

POLICY UD 3.2.4: Incorporate Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design standards to create and enhance a sense of safety and security throughout the built environment.

POLICY UD 3.2.5: Maintain an approved plants list derived from the Florida Friendly Landscaping program for usage for streetscaping.

POLICY UD 3.2.5a: Encourage xeriscaping through design standards to reduce the need for excessive water usage.

POLICY UD 3.2.6b: Encourage street trees, whether planted as part of a public project or associated with private redevelopment, provided the species and locations are appropriate based on context and approved by the agency with jurisdiction over the right-of-way.

⬚ figure Street Trees, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

⬚ figure Flagler Village. Source: GoogleMaps

⬚ figure Image credit: Rhodeside & Harwell Source: Fairfax County Virginia Office of Community Revitalization Urban Design Guidelines.

URBAN DESIGN ELEMENT

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OBJECTIVE UD 3.3: Utilities

Promote visually enhanced streetscapes by reducing overhead utilities and other obtrusive elements.

POLICY UD 3.3.1: Coordinate with local utility providers to identify priority areas for undergrounding or relocating overhead electrical and telephone/cable wires to remove visual clutter of existing infrastructure.

Crime Prevention techniques. Source: webcpm.com/Articles/2014/03/01/CPTED.aspx

OBJECTIVE UD 3.4: Wayfinding

Provide a comprehensive system of wayfinding to direct residents and visitors from Interstate-95 and the other major city gateways to local destinations and amenities within the City including the Downtown, Riverfront, Beaches, scenic viewpoints, major institutions, and other points of interest.

POLICY UD 3.4.1: Integrate gateway directional signage into a comprehensive city wayfinding sign system.

POLICY UD 3.4.2: Establish a sign amortization program to reduce the clutter of large signs and billboards along major streets.

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Gateway and Wayfinding Signage. Source: kudos.nyc/projects/bandung-city-wayfinding/ enhance the

GOAL 4: Enhance the existing built environment and elements unique to Fort Lauderdale, including waterways, bridges, tunnels and other traversable features.

OBJECTIVE UD 4.1: Waterfront Enhancement

Enhance the visual and functional characteristics of the waterfront areas and encourage redevelopment that preserves the public access and views of the water.

POLICY UD 4.1.1: Buildings and land uses on parcels abutting waterways in nonresidential districts and in multifamily districts shall be designed to enhance the character of the city and context in which they are located, harmonize with other development in the area, and protect and enhance the scenic quality and tranquility of the waterways. Site design, building placement and landscaping shall consider the relation to the waterway and other surrounding uses with the goal to enhance the public realm and overall sense of place.

URBAN DESIGN ELEMENT

POLICY UD 4.4.1a: Require a high standard of design for all waterfront projects, with an emphasis on public access, orientation toward the water, and the creation of new water-oriented public amenities.

POLICY UD 4.4.1b: Ensure that the design of each waterfront site responds to its unique natural qualities. New buildings should be carefully designed to consider their appearance from multiple vantage points, both in the site vicinity and at various points on the horizon.

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Miami Museum Park, Baywalk, Miami, Florida. Source: SavinoMiller

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Mangrove Planter. Source: floridalivingshorelines.com/project/flagler-mangrove-planter/

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Redhook Office Project, Brooklyn, New York Image credit: Visualhouse

URBAN DESIGN ELEMENT

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POLICY UD 4.1.2: The City shall continue to promote and preserve scenic and unique viewpoints in existing and promote new ones with redevelopment.

POLICY UD 4.1.3: The City shall protect and enhance river views in the design of buildings, bridges, and pedestrian walkways on or near waterfront sites. The scale, density and building form along the city's waterfronts should define the character of these areas as human-scale, pedestrian-oriented and should protect views for important sites.

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