Consultants lay out zoning code rewrite to implement Forward Dallas, simplify districts and add housing tools

Camaros, the consultant team hired to draft Dallas's new development code, presented a code diagnostic to the Dallas City Planning Commission on June 12, reviewing how a rewritten code could implement Forward Dallas and simplify decades of piecemeal amendments to Chapter 51A.

The diagnostic, delivered by Arista Strungis, a principal at Camaros, lays out a multi-step approach: reorganize the code into a user-friendly development code (the consultants recommend a new Chapter 63), produce a global use matrix that lists all uses and districts in one place, consolidate many similar residential and multifamily districts, introduce gentle-density tools for duplexes through small multiplexes, and embed objective design standards where state law allows. "We're very happy to be here," Strungis said at the start of the presentation, adding the diagnostic is a "30,000-foot view" meant to spur public and Commission feedback.

Why it matters: Dallas planners and the consultant said the overhaul is intended to make the rules easier for residents and developers to use, reduce dependence on special approvals such as plan developments and frequent specific-use permits, and create clearer pathways for diverse housing including ADUs,…