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Commission rewrites mixed‑use language to require business frontage while protecting accessibility
Summary
Commissioners revised draft mixed-use language to emphasize commercial frontage on public streets while discussing options to allow accessible ground‑floor dwelling units with side or rear access. The goal is to keep active street frontage without imposing costly development requirements that would block mixed‑use projects.
Commissioners focused on wording that preserves pedestrian‑oriented commercial frontage without unduly restricting accessible ground‑floor housing. In discussion they proposed replacing a prescriptive sentence that banned dwelling units on the first floor with phrasing such as: "mixed-use buildings with businesses fronting on the public street," allowing residential units to occupy street‑level space so long as business frontage is preserved at the street face. One member summarized the intent: "we want to have commercial businesses fronting on the public street."
The discussion also addressed accessibility and building economics: members noted that requiring all residential units to be above the first floor could force elevators and higher construction costs that lessen feasibility for smaller developers. The commission instructed staff to reword the mixed‑use sections to require business frontage while permitting ground‑floor dwellings with design accommodations (side/rear access, accessible entry) so that the rule achieves placemaking objectives without creating unnecessary barriers to development.
