The imperatives of TOD regulations: facilitating sustainability and predictability of built-form

ABSTRACT

Many U.S. cities are adopting form-based codes (FBCs) instead of conventional zoning codes (CZCs) to encourage sustainability and predictability of built-form outcomes in transit-oriented developments (TODs). This research used a multiple-case study method to examine the extent to which FBCs adopted for TODs differ from CZCs in facilitating sustainable design and in delineating the envisioned built-form. The results reveal that, although there is variation, FBCs adopted for TODs facilitate sustainable design to a greater extent and more effectively delineate the envisioned built-form than do CZCs. The study concludes with recommendations for emphasizing sustainability and predictability of built-form in TOD regulations.

KEYWORDS:

• TOD
• sustainable design
• envisioning built-form
• form-based codes
• conventional zoning

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Andrea Hoff, Cecilia Kim, Asiya Natekal, and Oscar Tsai for analytical coding of regulations.

Data availability

Tables that present additional details of findings summarized in Tables 5 and 6 are available from https://docs.google.com/document/d/1c_okcgvVclFbxQcbY0v9bd988UbxKDBb/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=110894619194323934897&rtpof=true&sd=true.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. In 2004, before SB 375 was enacted into state law, SCAG had adopted the Compass Blueprint to promote sustainable growth in the Southern California region by integrating land use and transportation planning and by encouraging infill development near transit stations. Some cities had adopted TOD Specific Plans at that time.

2. In California, Specific Plans adopted as FBCs or CZCs guide future physical development within geographically defined areas of the city.

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded, in part, by a grant from the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation, Los Angeles (CA).