Title
Update on Phase 2 of the Town Center Study Initiative (Kevin Spath and Scott Polikov) (60 minutes)
Summary
MEETING DATE: September 26, 2011 - City Council Work Session
DEPARTMENT: Development Services - Planning Department
CONTACT: Kevin Spath, AICP, Assistant Director of Planning
Jennifer Arnold, Senior Planner
RECOMMENDED CITY COUNCIL ACTION:
· Discuss and provide feedback
ITEM SUMMARY:
· Based on the Next Steps articulated in Section 5 of the adopted Town Center Study Phase 1 Report, Staff and the consultant team began in 2009 an analysis of existing development regulations (zoning and subdivision ordinances) in the historic Town Center to better understand how existing development codes were lacking/conflicting and could better facilitate the implementation of the adopted Town Center vision.
· In January 2010, as the 2010 Bond Package was being prepared, Staff and the consultant team presented to City Council a brief summary of the critical importance of synchronizing the City's public capital investments ("carrots") and the City's development regulations ("sticks") in order to maximize leveraging and attract additional private investment in the historic Town Center over time.
· In May 2010, Staff and the consultant team presented to City Council a brief summary of the analysis of existing development regulations and also outlined the approach and process by which a set of proposed form-based development regulations would be created to specifically implement the Town Center vision.
· In January 2011, Staff and the consultant team presented to City Council a brief update on the early progress of the drafting of the proposed form-based development regulations.
· Since January, Staff and the consultant team have made substantial progress on drafting proposed development regulations for the historic Town Center. Today's presentation will provide an update, including discussion of the following:
· An overview of the substantially complete draft of the proposed form-based McKinney Town Center (MTC) development code (and the associated character districts and regulating plan). This draft is currently under internal review and has not yet been made public until now.
· An overview of the substantially complete draft of the proposed consolidation and improvement of the Historic Preservation (H) overlay zoning district. This draft is currently under internal review and has not yet been made public until now.
· Status of the creation of a coordinated Business Plan specifically for the historic Town Center (and associated incentives policies).
· Remaining steps and timeline for the refinement, review, and approval of proposed code improvements.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Town Center Study Initiative: Phase 2
· The Town Center Study Initiative is currently in Phase 2. The purpose of Phase 2 is to analyze, select, relate and phase the appropriate implementation components (e.g. policies, ordinances, fiscal tools) into a comprehensive action plan that will truly allow the Vision and revitalization of the Town Center to be achieved and sustained over the long-term.
· As such, since early 2009, Staff and the consultant team have been working on several components of Phase 2, including:
· Inventory of existing land uses; quantification of physical buildout of the Phase 1 Vision (100% complete)
· Market Feasibility Analysis (100% complete)
· Comprehensive Parking Analysis (100% complete), including:
· existing supply/demand
· future supply/demand
· parking management strategies (existing/future)
· feasibility of a paid parking system
· site feasibility for a parking structure
· Analysis of and Proposed Improvements to Development Regulations in the Town Center (80% complete), including:
· zoning regulations
· subdivision regulations
· sign regulations
· Creation of a Town Center-specific Business Plan (60% complete), including:
· analysis/implementation of fiscal implementation tools such as tax increment reinvestment zones (TIRZ), public improvement districts (PID), property tax abatements
· establishing a coordinated incentives policy between City/MEDC/MCDC/TIRZ for Town Center-specific redevelopment
· seeking opportunities to leverage City assets and establish public-private partnerships for catalyst projects (NCTCOG Sustainable Developments grants; EPA Brownfields grant; 2010 Bond Package, proactive and strategic land assembly/disposition, RFP for City-owned property, future City Hall complex)
· As work on these components has progressed, Staff and the consultant team have presented updates for discussion/direction at the following:
· July 20, 2009: City Council Work Session
· August 11, 2009: Planning and Zoning Commission Work Session
· November 2, 2009: City Council Work Session
· January 25, 2010: City Council Work Session
· March 8, 2010: Stakeholders Public Meeting
· May 24, 2010: City Council Work Session
· August 2, 2010: City Council Work Session
· September 11, 2010: Stakeholders Public Meeting
· January 24, 2011: City Council Work Session
Town Center Study Initiative: Phase 1
· The Town Center Study Initiative is a sector study of the oldest part of McKinney, called for as part of the 2004 Comprehensive Plan. McKinney's historic Town Center contains neighborhoods and commercial districts that are well established, eclectic and historic. These places collectively form the core of the City and include some of the oldest developments in McKinney.
· However, like many city centers, the challenge facing McKinney's historic Town Center is learning how to create a renewed emphasis on the authentic form and character of the area while still embracing growth and planning for the future. As a proactive step towards addressing these challenges, the City of McKinney launched the Town Center Study Initiative in 2006 to better address the specific needs of the Town Center.
· The entire initiative has embraced a unique planning approach that moves away from the "one-size-fits-all" mentality and welcomes a more interdisciplinary approach. During Phase 1 (August 2006 through March 2008), City staff, the consultant team and more than 300 stakeholders, residents and property owners worked together to establish a bold, community-based vision for how McKinney's Town Center should look, feel and function over the long term.
· Phase 1 consisted of a series of multi-day public design workshops that encouraged informed stakeholder participation. The format called on participants to interact with the different consultant teams and generate critical discussions about particular areas of the Town Center (i.e. the downtown, transit village and major corridors). The result was a truly innovative process that captured valuable public input and capitalized on the professional expertise of City Officials and hired consultant teams.
· Although each workshop had a single focus area, the discussions and ideas generated during this time were not lost as focus areas changed. Instead, the discussions and ideas were carried over from each workshop and served as building blocks for capturing a more comprehensive view and cohesive ultimate vision for the Town Center.
· The vision includes a number of preferred concepts such as encouraging mixed-use and urban-residential growth, improving pedestrian connectivity, creating compatible physical scales and transitions, and fostering long-term economic development through the concept of place-making. The vision acknowledges that market forces will play a critical role in shaping the Town Center's future and allows for a certain level of flexibility to accommodate this vision.
· In March 2008, the Town Center Study Phase 1 Report, Shared Vision, and Illustrative Master Plan were approved and adopted by reference into the Comprehensive Plan and serve as a meaningful policy guide for city officials, staff, property owners, and private developers when considering decisions in the Town Center. They serve as an illustrative road map for the future by outlining preferred concepts to insure that future choices are consistent with the vision and provide a stepping stone for moving forward into Phase 2 of the Initiative.
· The Town Center Study Initiative was honored by the Center of Development Excellence at the North Central Texas Council of Governments as a recipient of the 2009 Celebrating Leadership in Development Excellence (CLIDE) Award in the Public Planning and Policy category.