SETBACKS Setbacks are the amount of space between a building and its property line. The placement of buildings can significantly affect the character of an area, including sense of enclosure, visual interest along the streetscape, and walkability. For example, a business situated close to the sidewalk becomes far more welcoming and accessible to a pedestrian than one set far back from the property line with a front-loaded parking lot. At the other end of the spectrum, wide setbacks can be used to effectively separate incompatible or high activity uses, such as light industrial uses from residential properties. Key Recommendations | Incentivize businesses to situate new buildings at or near the property line to improve walkability, such as by requiring more landscaping if parking lots are located in front of buildings rather than to the rear/side. | Promote consistency in setbacks within commercial and residential areas to form desirable continuity in the streetwall, or the facades of buildings facing the street. | Encourage outparcel development with 360 architecture to “hold the corner” of commercial corridor development. | Ensure adequate setbacks of industrial or other high intensity uses to reduce potential sound or visual impacts on adjacent lower intensity uses. | Allow for flexibly in setbacks in Downtown where existing conditions prevent a consistent streetwall, while maintaining a close interface with the street (e.g., utility, landscaping, and/or topography challenges).
PARKING LOTS Parking lots are a key component for vehicular access; however, surface parking lots can detract from the character and walkability of an area if there is a parking surplus and/or if they are poorly designed. To create more welcoming environments for pedestrians while continuing to accommodate essential auto access, the following should be considered: Key Recommendations | For existing front-loaded surface parking lots, encourage property owners to improve their character with perimeter and interior landscaping, and/or decorative walls and fencing. | Require off-street parking to be located to the side or rear of the primary building. | Encourage shared parking agreements where neighboring uses with different peak parking demand times can use the same parking lot, reducing the need for additional parking lots.
| Reevaluate minimum parking standards and consider implementing maximum parking standards to reduce excessive requirements. | Monitor parking supply and strategically encourage structured or underground parking in higher density areas if needed, such as in Downtown, TOD, and activity center areas, to reduce the amount of land dedicated to surface parking. | Consider offering incentives for structured parking, such as density bonuses, allowable lot coverage increases, and height limit increases. | Encourage the integration of structured parking into multifamily buildings to minimize surface parking lots. | Encourage North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s (NCDEQ) Stormwater Nitrogen and Phosphorus (SNAP) nutrient-reducing practices, such as permeable surfaces, that allow water infiltration in parking lots to improve stormwater drainage and water quality. | Encourage the provision of pedestrian walkways in parking lots to enhance connectivity and safety to businesses.
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Promote Better Parking Lots Encourage cross access between parking lots Locate parking behind the building Require pedestrian walkways Encourage shared parking between buildings 1 2 3 4
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COMMUNITY PLAN | TOWN OF WAKE FOREST
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