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Aberdeen amends UDO to broaden downtown advisory board and ease downtown parking rules
Summary
The Town Board adopted UDO Text Amendment TA‑25‑05 to expand Downtown Aberdeen Advisory Board membership eligibility and exempt Central Business District properties from vehicle‑backing and minimum off‑street parking requirements, aiming to support downtown revitalization and infill development.
The Aberdeen Town Board adopted a text amendment to the town's Unified Development Ordinance on Nov. 24 that broadens participation on the Downtown Aberdeen Advisory Board (DAAB) and relaxes certain downtown parking and vehicle‑backing requirements.
Planner Lindy Lamielle said staff recommended changes to Chapters 2 and 5 of the UDO to distribute downtown revitalization workload and to ease infill development constraints in the Central Business (CB) district. The changes expand DAAB eligibility so that membership need not be limited to downtown property or business owners and define "Downtown Stakeholder" and "At‑Large" seats. The DAAB will have seven regular seats and two alternates, staggered two‑year terms, and four standing committees (Organization, Economic Vitality, Design and Promotion).
The amendment also exempts development within the CB district from the minimum off‑street parking requirements and from the vehicle‑backing rule that otherwise requires site layouts to avoid vehicles backing onto public streets. Lamielle and staff said the exemptions are intended to reduce barriers for reuse and small infill projects downtown where historic and lot‑line conditions make standard parking and circulation requirements impractical.
"Staff finds the proposed text amendment to be consistent with adopted plans of the Town," Lamielle told the Board, citing goals in the Comprehensive Land Development Plan to support historic preservation, citizen participation and infill development. The Board voted to adopt the ordinance and accompanying statement of consistency (motion by Commissioner Teressa Beavers; second by Commissioner Elease Goodwin; 4‑0; Commissioner Tim Helms was excused).
The Planning Department will update administrative forms and the UDO text and will publish the adopted ordinance. The amendment is intended to facilitate small‑scale downtown investment, promote greater public involvement in downtown planning, and give the DAAB a broader pool of stakeholders to help implement the downtown streetscape and marketing strategies.
The ordinance defines DAAB roles and board procedures, clarifies staff support responsibilities, and formalizes the four standing committees intended to coordinate promotion, design and economic vitality efforts for downtown.
