Suburban Commercial Land serving the daily needs of surrounding residential neighborhoods. Suburban Commercial areas are typically located near high-volume roads and key intersections, and are designed to be accessible primarily by automobile. Buildings are set back from the road behind large surface parking lots, with little or no connectivity between adjacent businesses. Common types of Suburban Commercial in Fuquay-Varina include multi-tenant strip centers, big box stores, and outparcel buildings near big box stores. Larger properties may emphasize retail, dining, entertainment, hotel, and leisure uses in a single power center that draws visitors from southern Wake or northern Harnett Counties. New and redeveloped Suburban Commercial areas should include multiple buildings oriented toward a system of walkable internal streets. A central green and other public spaces throughout the development — pocket parks, public plazas, outdoor dining areas — encourage community gathering and people- watching. Iconic building architecture and unified project development standards reinforce a unique sense of place for the site. Cross-access between retail destinations should also be provided via internal roads with provisions for mobility access between buildings that support a park-once mentality (or walk-to, bike-to environment from surrounding residential neighborhoods). Redevelopment of existing shopping centers will require deliberate planning and phasing to keep the areas viable during their transition.
Transportation Considerations New or redeveloped commercial areas should accommodate safe and efficient pedestrian or bicycle movements throughout the site using a “park once” design concept for surface parking lots. Curb and gutter infrastructure and formal street tree planting are used in new Suburban Commercial areas. Building Types & Massing Buildings are generally one (1) to two (2) stories tall with small- to large-building footprints. A commercial area may include one or more large anchor tenants, several multi-tenant buildings, several small-format buildings, or outparcel buildings on the same site. Open Spaces & Natural Resources New or redeveloped commercial areas should include a common green and other public spaces throughout the development to encourage community gathering, outdoor dining, and people-watching.
Lot Size & Building Placement Lot size and building placement vary depending on development scale and land uses served. Most buildings are located behind large surface parking lots. Some larger developments may include smaller buildings on outparcels, which may, or may not, be platted as separate lots in the center. Buildings are encouraged to face the street when possible. It is imperative that a discernible center or corridor be included in a new or redeveloped Suburban Commercial area: a main street, park, square, or plaza. Often times an anchor business for the development — grocery store, bookstore, school, etc. — will front the center or corridor. Buildings should front the center or corridor on all sides and be pulled close to the street with wide sidewalks in front. Small-scale, compact businesses should radiate from the center or corridor and include public gathering places for the community in multiple locations. Larger building footprints in the commercial area should be broken up with alleyways or breezeways to facilitate shorter walking distances. Street & Block Pattern Surface parking lots are located between the street and existing buildings. Blocks are generally not discernible in the area. Most development functions as one (1) super block, or a limited number of very large blocks, defined by widely-spaced driveways, drive aisles in parking lots, or private access roads serving only the development. New and redeveloped Suburban Commercial areas should include a system of walkable internal streets easily identified in the development.
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Fuquay-Varina Land Use Plan
Chapter 3: Character Area Typology
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