We know you care and love your community, neighborhood, and its members. After all, isn’t it the reason you agreed to be part of the community association board?
Unfortunately, your efforts may never bear fruits when there aren’t regulations governing how members relate to one another and the environment. Therefore, to ensure harmonious living, the city authority creates regulations like zoning ordinances to protect everyone.
In today’s post, we’ll uncover everything you need to know about zoning ordinances and how they may affect your neighborhood. So, let’s get to it!
What are Zoning Ordinances?
According to The World Bank Urban Regeneration, a zoning ordinance is a set of regulations that govern how land is used within certain jurisdictions in a city, town, or municipality.
What is the Purpose of Zoning Ordinances?
When coming up with a zoning ordinance, a consortium of built environment professionals led by town planners and the political class brainstorm a zoning plan. The zoning plan determines what goes into the zoning ordinance, including how development should take place.
Overall, the purpose of a zoning ordinance is to protect the built and natural environment by streamlining development to follow the right channels.
7 Common Zoning Ordinances for Neighborhoods
Below are the different types of zoning ordinances that may affect your neighborhood.
1. Building Height and Skyline Requirements
The building height and skyline regulations determine how high or low a structure should go. All jurisdictions within the city have different plot ratios depending on zoning density. While low-density areas have a low plot ratio for low skylines, high-density areas have high plot ratios for high skylines.
2. Building Line and Setbacks
A building line is the distance from the road reserve into a private property that determines where structures should be erected. On the other hand, a setback is a distance from the property edges where a structure should be erected. Setbacks ensure some portion of the plot is left for greening and natural lighting, especially where flats are involved.
3. Lighting Regulations
This regulation ensures everyone has a clear view of the sky and their immediate surrounding at night. Therefore, the regulation cautions against night light pollution such as erecting too bright street lighting.
4. Road Signage
Road signage ordinances determine the size, design, and height of signage. The signage should be of moderate size to prevent obstruction.
5. Open Space Protection
This regulation ensures open spaces are maintained accordingly. For example, when yards are neglected, they can harbor potentially dangerous animals like snakes. Therefore, the ordinance compels responsible individuals to up the game of managing these places accordingly.
6. Recreational Areas Planning
Recreational areas like swimming pools and children’s playgrounds should adhere to proper security standards. This regulation ensures these areas are safe for both children and adults.
7. Land Use Compatibility
Land use compatibility regulation prevents haphazard development by segregating non-compatible land uses like heavy industrial and residential. According to the zoning ordinance blueprint, the city is divided into blocks based on the highest and best use.
Neighborhood Zoning Ordinances | Wrapping Up
Zoning regulations are some ways the city authorities ensure harmonious growth and development. Thanks to zoning ordinances, all community association board members have access to a blueprint for easy decision-making.
Therefore, you can quickly approve or disapprove any proposal in the community that’s not in line with zoning ordinances. If you’d like to have your board enlightened more about zoning ordinances, that’s where RealManage comes in handy.
We’re a national Home Owners Association Management company and always ready at your service. So, feel free to contact us here today!
