City of New Orleans
City Planning Commision: Master Plan
City Planning Commission
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2

Volume 2 Strategies and Actions

2.13

Chapter 13 Land Use Plan

Overview
Chapter Overview
Goals Policies for Decision Makers (Strategies)
Neighborhoods
1 Promote smart growth land use patterns in New Orleans and the region
1.A. Preserve the overall character of existing residential areas
1.B. Promote walkable, mixed-use environments and transitoriented development
1.C. Preserve existing, and create new parks and public spaces
1.D. Preserve and protect environmentally sensitive land and coastal areas
1.E. Adopt sustainable land use and zoning practices
2 Promote development that can strengthen the city’s tax and job base while serving citizen needs and preserving city character
2.A. Preserve land for large employers
2.B. Preserve land for industrial uses where there are active and prosperous industrial uses
2.C. Promote clustering of neighborhood retail and services and avoid long corridors of low-density commercial development
2.D. Make downtown a vibrant 24-hour neighborhood and commercial/ entertainment district
3 Strengthen the city’s public realm and urban design character
3.A. Provide guidance on desired characteristics of new development to property owners and the public
3.B. Promote sustainability
3.C. Create a strategic framework to guide investments in public art and civic design including new commissions, priority locations, and typologies appropriate to specific neighborhoods
3.D. Expand City’s public art program
3.E. Provide for a comprehensive review and study of all signage and billboard issues for the city
3.F. Conduct a review of the current Planning District boundaries
2.13.A
A

Introduction

New Orleans contains almost the entire continuum of contemporary land use environments—from a wildlife refuge and fishing camps, through suburban-style subdivisions and historic buildings, to modern high-rise buildings. In a broad sense, the city will continue to include these varied environments within its borders. In specific, however, there are many ways in which land use is likely to change over time.

The Land Use Plan sets forth the policy framework for the physical development of the city, providing a guide for city decision makers in directing the pattern, distribution, and intensity of land uses that will, over time, best achieve the goals for livability, opportunity, and sustainability expressed throughout the Master Plan and provide sufficient land to meet demand for various land uses in the future.

  • Equity. The Land Use Plan is the underlay for the regulatory, economic, and social pattern of the City of New Orleans development. For a city whose overall form is as recognizable as its world renown districts, the orderly use of land for private and public purpose is a critical expression of equity. The extent to which individual buildings and developments are both functional and aesthetic enhancements in all communities of our city is a direct result of both how land-use regulations are adopted toward balancing individual rights with the public good and of how they are enforced and interpreted. In New Orleans we are committed to reaching the optimal outcome within these objectives across neighborhoods of all incomes, locations and aesthetic.
  • Resilience. One of the most critical considerations that resilient Land-Use plans must address in cities like New Orleans is finding a comprehensive approach for recovery and reoccupation of neighborhoods, retail districts, and institutional settings post-disaster. As a responsible plan for such recovery, the Land Use element of the Master Plan shall incorporate critical infrastructure systems, housing, economic investments, and public health services. The plan will also set forth a sustainable recovery management framework to increase predictability and stability in the use of resources and ensure a resilience-oriented decision-making process, as the allocation of post-recovery resources is determined and communities return to vibrancy.

The focus of this part of the Master Plan is the Future Land Use Map, which shows the categories of land uses desired over time, and their intensities. The map reflects the land uses that correspond to the long term vision, goals and policies expressed elsewhere in the plan, and it constitutes the most direct link between the Master Plan and the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance. It is important to note, however, that the Future Land Use Map is not a zoning map and it does not govern design or function. Highlights of the Future Land Use Map include:

  • No change in the overall existing footprint of the city. New Orleans represents the heart of a much larger region, and focusing regional growth in the city makes sense from the perspective of environmental efficiency and smart growth.
  • Preservation of neighborhood residential character. Prevailing character, in terms of scale and massing, are reinforced so that infill development must be compatible with existing patterns, while allowing flexibility to provide housing of different types and levels of affordability. Community facilities, such as schools and houses of worship, are included within residential neighborhoods,and corner businesses that meet criteria can continue to operate.
  • Mixed-use land use designations for greater flexibility in areas that would benefit. Underutilized commercial and industrial areas and similar sites are designated as neighborhood centers and main street corridors for medium- to higher-density mixed-use areas that encourage compact, walkable, and transit-oriented development. A downtown mixed-use category sets the stage for tailoring future zoning to preserve andenhance theunique character ofdifferentparts ofdowntown.Larger parcels would require a site master plan, design guidelines and community process to ensure high quality development.

The Land Use Plan and the “Force of Law”

The Land Use Plan is the foundation on which the City will implement the “force of law” provisions of the 2008 amendment to the City Charter:

  • All land use actions must be consistent with, or at a minimum, not interfere with, the goals, policies and strategies ofthe Land Use element of the Master Plan and any future amendments to the Master Plan. This includes the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance and any other land development regulations and amendments, including preliminary or final approval of a subdivision plan, site plan, approval of a planned unit development, or a similar site-specific developmentplan.
  • The Master Plan may not be amended more than once a year and the amendment processes by the CPC and the City Council must include opportunities for public comment.
  • The City Council is required to provide funding for activities designed to ensure consistency between the Master Plan, zoning and land use actions.

Is every idea in the Master Plan subject to “Force of Law?”

“Force of law” for the Master Plan means that land use actions must be consistent with, or not interfere with, the Land Use Plan included in this Master Plan (Chapter 13). That said, some of the ideas in Chapters 5 through 12 of the Master Plan (covering topics like Transportation, Neighborhoods and Housing and Green Infrastructure) may require actions that must be consistent with the Land Use Plan. Others would call for strategies and actions that go well beyond land use actions. Such ideas - the ones that go beyond land use actions -- are in the Master Plan as recommendations, not certainties or directives.

Administration of the Land Use Plan

1. Interpretation of Land Use Plan Language
The City Charter mandates that land use actions have the “force of law” – that they further, or at least not interfere with, the goals, policies, and guidelines of the Land Use Element, and that they be compatible with the proposed future land uses, densities, and intensities designated in the Land Use Element. Accordingly, the language of the Land Use Plan shall be interpreted in accordance with the “Interpretation of Laws” elements of the Louisiana Civil Code:

  • When a law is clear and unambiguous and its application does not lead to absurd consequences, the law shall be applied as written and no further interpretation may be made in search of the intent of the Legislature. La. Civ. Code Art. 9.
  • When the language of a law is susceptible of different meanings, it must be interpreted as having the meaning that best conforms to the purpose of the law. La. Civ. Code Art. 10.
  • The words of a law must be given their generally prevailing meaning. Words of art and technical terms must be given their technical meaning when the law involves a technical matter. La. Civ. Code Art. 11.
  • When the words of a law are ambiguous, their meaning must be sought by examining the context in which they occur and the text of the law as a whole. La. Civ. Code Art. 12.
  • Laws on the same subject matter must be interpreted in reference to each other. La. Civ. Code Art. 13.

2. “Force of Law” Consistency Determinations
Louisiana Civil Code Article 13 – providing that laws on the same subject matter must be interpreted in reference to each other – is especially important with respect to consistency determinations. It may be tempting to pull out isolated passages from the Land Use Element in arguing that a particular proposal is consistent with the Master Plan. However, Article 13 makes clear that in order to be deemed consistent, a proposal must be evaluated against all of the relevant language of the Land Use Element. For example, relying on broad, non-specific language describing a land use goal cannot be sufficient to establish consistency if the proposal is not compatible with the specific language describing the Future Land Use Category that applies to the site.

In this respect, the Future Land Use Category descriptions – found in Section C of this Chapter – are probably the most important language in the Land Use Element for consistency determinations because they speak directly to the specific places in which projects will be proposed. Unlike the other provisions of the Land Use Element, the Future Land Use Category descriptions establish specific land use goals for each part of the city, delineate the specific uses permitted in these areas, and define the desired development character for each category. In short, the Future Land Use Category descriptions essentially define what consistency means for each category. As a general rule of thumb, if a proposal is not compatible with the Future Land Use Category description for a specific location, the proposal is not consistent with the Master Plan.

The Urban Design Framework in the Land Use Plan

The Land Use Plan in Volume 2 includes a set of general urban design principles to guide future development in the city. These principles are intended to provide property owners and the public guidance on desired characteristics of new development. They focus on the “public realm,” the streets and other public spaces in the city, and on the aspects of private development that affect our experience of the public realm — for example, how parking is located in relation to pedestrians and building façades. According to the 2008 charter amendment, land use actions must be generally consistent with these urban design principles. Consistent themes within these urban design principles include:

  • Design public spaces and the interface between private and public spaces to be pedestrian-friendly.
  • Manage the impacts of parking on public streets and surrounding neighborhoods.
  • Encourage lively ground-floor uses in downtown and commercial districts.
  • Establish gradual transitions between small-scale and larger-scale development.
  • Ensure harmonious infill by strategies such as respecting scale and massing; maintaining the street wall or setbacks; complementing established rhythms of windows, doors, porches, baywindows, or similar elements.
  • Design new neighborhoods by integrating them into existing street grids; establishing transitions in scale and density from surrounding areas; providing usable open space; providing clusters of ground floor retail; establishing development-specific guidelines about building appearance, streetscape, signage, utilities, parking , landscape, sustainability, and materials.

General Zoning Principles in the Land Use Plan

The Land Use Plan in Volume 2 contains a set of objectives and principles connecting the themes in the Master Plan to the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance (CZO). Three overall zoning objectives are:

  • Reinforce the physical character of New Orleans while striking a balance between the need to preserve and the need to innovate and grow. The CZO is divided into “places” based on the existing or desired character for an area.
  • The purpose and intent of each zoning district makes clear what type of development would be expected, consistent with the master plan policies and future land use map, setting standards for location, size, shape and character of new development and how developments fit together.
  • The CZO should be maintained as predictable, understandable andenforceable.
Summary

Summary of Land Use Strategies and Actions

Next Five Years
2016-2021
Medium Term
2022-2026
Long Term
2027-2035
Goal Strategy Actions
1. Promote smart growth land use patterns in New Orleans and the region1.A. Preserve the overall character of existing residential areas 1. Create an efficient residential land use pattern that addresses the location and intensity of residential development.
2. Ensure housing affordability and choice.
3. Maintain zoning districts that reflect the city’s established development patterns. Development patterns in areas built before World War II differ from those in areas developed after the war.
4. Continue to refine development standards into district regulations that preserve established building character in terms of scale, massing, and placement, but allow for housing of different types and levels of affordability.
5. Revitalize challenged neighborhoods with new development that contributes to character and new vitality.
6. Promote infill development on vacant lots in existing neighborhoods.
7. Ensure that infill buildings fit in harmoniously in existing neighborhoods, but do not require them to copy existing architecture.
8. Ensure that new housing built within established neighborhoods is compatible with the scale and character of existing development.
9. Establish appropriate transitions between high-impact, medium-impact, and low-impact development.
10. Ensure that multifamily housing is sensitive to neighborhood context
11. Create design and development standards for multifamily districts to assure compatibility with larger residential neighborhoods around them
12. Respect the scale and massing of buildings in historic areas and other areas where existing scale should be preserved
13. Coordinate zoning districts with local historic designations in order to eliminate conflicts and inconsistencies
14. In revitalization areas, extend the positive qualities of existing adjacent neighborhoods into new developments
1.B. Promote walkable, mixed-use environments and transitoriented development 1. Create land use categories that allow for a mixture of uses, including residential, retail, and office uses. (See Mixed-Use land use category descriptions and the Future Land Use map.)
2. Create zoning districts for mixed-use development of various scales from lower- to higherdensity development.
3. Preserve successful existing mixed-use commercial areas.
4. Convert suburban-style commercial strips and malls into walkable mixed-use centers.
5. Locate mixed-use neighborhood centers with higher-density housing, retail, and other uses on neighborhood edges to draw customers within walking and biking distance of residences.
6. Locate higher-density uses at existing and proposed transit stations and hubs for critical mass; locate new transit service to serve higher-density areas.
7. Design mixed-use neighborhood centers on large sites, such as underutilized or vacant retail or industrial parcels by allowing vacant or underutilized industrial property that is adjacent to open space and recreation future land use categories, residential future land use categories, or mixed use future land use categories to be developed into mixed-use and/or residential uses.
8. Integrate large mixed-use sites into the surrounding street grid.
9. Establish transitions in scale and density from surrounding areas.
10. Provide areas with clusters of ground-floor retail and service uses with residential uses above in mixeduse centers.
11. For large mixed-use sites, create development-specific design guidelines that address building appearance, streetscape, signage and utilities, parking design, landscape, sustainability, and materials.
12. Provide usable and well-designed open space in mixed-use areas.
13. Take advantage of opportunities for high density uses in developing vacant land on higher ground, and in areas where building can be flood resistant.
14. Diversify New Orleans’ housing stock by ensuring that zoning districts provide an appropriate amount of land area and locations to accommodate housing of different types and affordability levels.
15. Allow vacant or underutilized industrial property that is adjacent to open space and recreation future land use categories, residential future land use categories, or mixed-use future land use categories to be developed into mixed-use and/or residential uses.
1.C. Preserve existing, and create new parks and public spaces 1. Ensure that land use categories provide areas for parks and open space. (See Parkland and Open Space land use category description and the Future Land Use map.)
2. Provide for parkland and open spaces to meet the needs of residents. Ensure a balance of passive and active recreational uses in public spaces, regional parks and in the citywide park system.
3. Reclaim the river and lake waterfronts for lively public spaces.
4. Require, where appropriate, contributions to a network of open spaces through the developmentapproval process or requirements.
5. Accommodate riverfront open space to support the Reinventing the Crescent Plan.
6. Require usable open spaces on or off site for new residential units created downtown.
1.D. Preserve and protect environmentally sensitive land and coastal areas 1. Ensure a land use category that provides protection for environmentally sensitive and coastal land. (See Natural Areas land use category description and the Future Land Use map.)
2. Protect environmentally sensitive areas, such as wetlands, from adverse impacts to enhance the city’s water-storage capacity during storms and increase protection against storm surges.
3. Protect and provide open spaces appropriate to conserve the region’s natural resources and meet the needs of its residents.
4. Prohibit drainage of remaining wetlands for building except by special permit with mitigation that requires an opinion by the City Office of Coastal and Environmental Affairs, or establish a local wetlands ordinance to regulate impacts on wetlands.
5. Protect certain environmentally sensitive areas while still allowing limited residential, commercial or industrial uses with a review process.
1.E. Adopt sustainable land use and zoning practices 1. Promote the use of water conservation and innovative stormwater-management techniques in site planning and new construction.
2. Encourage, and in some cases require, sustainable stormwater-management practices, scaled to the size and character of the site. Current techniques include bioswales, green roofs, and landscaped islands in parking lots that are designed to absorb stormwater.
3. Avoid new development where it would require creation of new infrastructure.
4. Outside of existing residential areas, make residential uses a priority use for higher ground.
5. Preserve land for transportation and drainage rights of way where needed, including rail, multiuse paths (for biking and walking), and canals and water-storage opportunities.
6. Reduce greenhouse gas emissions by promoting the use of alternative energy systems (in the CZO) and increasing transportation choice.
7. Increase access to healthy food at a lower environmental cost by supporting the production, processing and distribution of locally grown food.
8. Allow community gardens and urban agriculture in appropriate locations.
9. Reduce the urban heat island effect by designing new development in ways that minimize reflective flat surfaces.
10. Continue to explore parking alternatives, such as shared lots, public parking lots near popular commercial areas, and parking space maximums, to reduce the amount of paved surface in new development.
11. Maintain standards that address the number of bicycles to be accommodated for various land use categories.
2. Promote development that can strengthen the city’s tax and job base while serving citizen needs and preserving city character2.A. Preserve land for large employers 1. Provide land use categories that encourage office development. (See General Commercial and Business Center land use categories descriptions and the Future Land Use map.)
2. Create new and strengthen existing districts that accommodate large office, medical, and educational employment centers, without significant impact on residential components.
3. Allow mixed-use development in campus districts.
4. Institute planned development review for larger new projects to better integrate them into their context.
5. Attract new employers by creating a positive image through appropriate development standards.
6. Include new landscaping standards to buffer incompatible uses, screen parking lots and outdoor storage areas, and improve the appearance of sites and street frontage.
7. Incorporate a design-review process that informs both the developer and the neighbors of community design standards and operational concerns.
2.B. Preserve land for industrial uses where there are active and prosperous industrial uses 1. Ensure that land use categories allow for industrial uses. (See Industrial land use category description and the Future Land Use map.)
2. Create a more stable investment climate by reducing conflicts both within industrial districts and between adjacent non-industrial districts
3. Refine the industrial-district-use lists so that uses appropriate to the desired intensity and market orientation of the industrial district are permitted, rather than requiring a conditional use or text amendment.
4. Provide appropriate locations for business and light industrial facilities in settings attractive and accessible to visitors and employees.
5. Accommodate a range of industrial development, including standards for research and light industrial/office parks.
6. Provide appropriate locations for warehousing, distribution, storage, and manufacturing.
7. Review performance standards for industry in establishing uses and evaluating impacts near residential areas.
2.C. Promote clustering of neighborhood retail and services and avoid long corridors of low-density commercial development 1. Apply a land use category that allows for and encourages smaller, neighborhood-oriented retail establishments. (See Neighborhood Commercial land use category description and the Future Land Use Map.)
2. Encourage small-scale neighborhood commercial uses within residential neighborhoods.
3. Tailor commercial zoning districts to the form, function, and use of various commercial areas.
4. Revise the current commercial district structure so that district standards are responsive to a district’s purpose and desired character.
5. Create a commercial district specifically designed to accommodate and encourage pedestrianoriented, walkable, shopping environments.
6. Create standards within the zoning ordinance for small local business districts located within predominantly residential areas.
2.D. Make downtown a vibrant 24-hour neighborhood and commercial/ entertainment district 1. Ensure that land use categories specific to downtown are used to encourage a 24-hour live, work, and play environment. (See Downtown land use categories descriptions and the Future Land Use map.)
2. Consolidate downtown zoning districts to better reflect the mix of places identified in the Master Plan.
3. Support downtown’s economic potential with a commercial district geared to the needs of business.
4. Support downtown’s vitality by creating a mixed-use district that encourages the reuse of existing structures and compatible infill construction and that is characterized by a mix of office, retail, institutional, and residential uses.
5. Support appropriate development adjacent to the Superdome and convention center.
6. Support the demand for mid- to high-rise residential development and make appropriate transitions to the surrounding neighborhoods.
7. Support clustered development of museums and cultural venues by creating a zoning district for these uses and supporting retail and visitor services that promote the arts.
8. Encourage higher-density development around a well-organized urban form.
9. Establish Poydras Street and Loyola Avenue as the “spine” of the CBD, serving as the corridors of highest- intensity development.
10. Create active, attractive street corridors that promote multimodal connections between different areas of the CBD, accommodate transportation access and parking demand, and promote a high level of pedestrian traffic and pedestrian amenity.
11. Create a modern wayfinding system that enhances the ability of visitors to find their way around downtown and is designed in a way that can be easily expanded throughout the City.
3. Strengthen the city’s public realm and urban design character3.A. Provide guidance on desired characteristics of new development to property owners and the public 1. Establish appropriate transitions between high-impact, medium-impact, and low-impact development.
2. Establish transitions and buffers from retail to surrounding residential areas.
3. Re-knit the urban fabric by introducing safe and attractive pedestrian and bicycle routes, better lighting, landscaping and public art to reduce barriers created by highways and arterial roads.
4. Expand New Orleans’ tradition of lively pedestrian streets to all neighborhoods.
5. Locate building entries to promote safe pedestrian movement across streets; to relate to crosswalks and pathways that lead to transit stops; and to encourage walking, biking and public transit use for employment and other travel around the city.
6. Provide for bicycle lanes, routes and parking.
7. In downtown, establish gradual transitions between small-scale and larger-scale buildings.
8. Limit extensive office uses on ground floors in favor of more lively uses, where feasible.
9. Manage the impacts of parking structures by lining their street-facing sides with active uses.
10. Manage the impacts of surface parking by screening and locating, where feasible, parking in the rear of developments.
11. Ensure compatibility of land use regulations in the places established by the Master Plan.
3.B. Promote sustainability 1. Include parkway tree-planting requirements.
2. Require parking lot landscaping that shades the surface with tree cover to reduce the heat-island.
3. Incorporate building elements that improve energy efficiency.
4. Incorporate passive heating and cooling mechanisms into the design of building wherever possible.
5. On buildings that are raised for flood-protection purposes, clad areas below floor level to create a consistent street wall.
6. Create building-siting guidelines for larger developments to allow for passive solar systems.
3.C. Create a strategic framework to guide investments in public art and civic design including new commissions, priority locations, and typologies appropriate to specific neighborhoods 1. Adopt an Artwork Donation Policy for the city that sets specific policies and procedures for all aspects of accepting, installing and maintaining public art
2. Establish expanded maintenance criteria by encouraging placement of donated public art according to the City’s “Policy Guidelines for Donations of Artwork,” involving the Donation Process Review Committee as identified in the Arts Donation Policy.
3. Establish a Master plan for Public Art and Civic Design.
3.D. Expand City’s public art program 1. Explore potential amendments to improve the Percent for Art Ordinance.
2. Streamline processes and tools necessary for identifying, planning and implementing new public art and civic design projects, and for reviewing and approving projects proposed by developers that are instigated through percent for art requirement.
3. Strengthen the relationship between the City and the arts and cultural community to help secure additional funding for public art, and to provide opportunities to access and participate in artistic and cultural events and offerings.
3.E. Provide for a comprehensive review and study of all signage and billboard issues for the city 1. Utilize results of the study to inform revisions to the CZO to see to reduce visual intrusions to the urban landscape and to ensure design compatibility
3.F. Conduct a review of the current Planning District boundaries 1. Determine if the current Planning District boundaries should be modified to better represent the communities within their borders.
2.13.B
B

Setting the Direction for Future Land Use: Guidelines and Placemaking Principles

The Future Land Use Map was created to reflect the vision, principles, goals, policies and recommendations of the Plan for the 21st Century: New Orleans 2030. It shows a distribution and geographical pattern of land uses that balances the desired persistence of many existing land uses with land use changes that express the smart growth goals of the Master Plan.

Future Land Use General Guidelines
Preserve
Preserve the overall character of existing residential areas.
Preserve environmentally sensitive areas, such as wetlands, from adverse impacts to enhance the city’s water storage capacity during storms and increase protection against storm surge.
Preserve existing successful mixed-use commercial areas.
Preserve land for transportation and drainage rights of way where needed, including rail, multiuse paths (for biking and walking), and canals and water storage opportunities.
Preserve and expand parks and public spaces and ensure a balance of passive and active uses.
Preserve land for industrial uses where there are active and prospective industrial uses.
Promote
Promote infill development on vacant lots in existing neighborhoods.
Promote redevelopment of commercial strips into walkable mixed-use centers.
Prioritize higher ground for new residential uses outside of existing residential areas.
Cluster higher-density new development near transit stations.
Promote clustering of neighborhood retail and services rather than long, low-density commercial corridors.
Diversify New Orleans’ housing stock in new residential development.
Promote affordable housing choices.
Locate
Establish appropriate transitions between high impact, medium impact and low impact development.
Locate mixed-use neighborhood centers on neighborhood edges to draw customers within walking and biking distance of residences.
Avoid long corridors of low-density commercial development.
Locate higher density land uses and affordable housing near transit stops.

Placemaking and Land Use

Cities are a series of places—neighborhoods, shopping districts, employment centers—each with a mix of land use, physical forms, and connective tissue that creates a unique character and identity. Along with the Master Plan vision of livability, opportunity and sustainability, these places create the context, first for future land use policy, and second, for the designation of zoning districts. How well this Master Plan and two of its most powerful implementation tools, the zoning ordinance and the capital improvement program, are used to make the kinds of places that New Orleanians want to either preserve into the future or create new for the future, will be one measure of the plan’s success.

Placemaking informs land use and zoning by using policies and future public investments to organize land uses, their form and character; to infuse them with cultural values; and to provide for economic opportunity—all in the service of achieving desired places. This approach is particularly well-suited to the opportunities and challenges in this Master Plan:

  • Many neighborhoods with well defined and complex physical character that residents wish to preserve
  • The need for appropriate guidance for the opportunity sites, so they can express their own time in new development yet fit gracefully into older contexts
  • Clarity about what kinds of investments are appropriate in use, form and location, so that neighbors and the development community have a stronger foundation to reach agreement
  • Creating the conditions for walkability, integrated land use and transportation, and sustainability
  • Providing the context for application of the master plan’s urban design principles.

Places are distinguished by their infrastructure skeleton—transportation routes, water and sewer lines— the land use pattern that hangs on the skeleton, and the blend of building types and forms that flesh it out. The way places are configured and designed creates an environment that encourages or discourages certain kinds of human action. Design can promote a variety of activities and options, or it can constrain and channel activities. A place without sidewalks or paths has few walkers. Every desired place is a synthesis of its land use pattern with that pattern of physical development that, today, is conditioned by zoning. Using land use and zoning to create place organizes components of the master plan to attain the community’s vision at a citywide and neighborhood scale.

While a “sense of place” is more than the “form of the place,” if the form of place is not well managed, the sense of place will never occur. Consider the types of places found in any community—a center, neighborhoods, a commercial highway, or an industrial park. Thoughtful linkage between planning and zoning can establish or potentially transform the character of each of these places to reflect desired scale of development, pattern of property ownership, function and modes of travel.

Each of the places that makes New Orleans today and is desired in the future includes a group of land uses, building types, and formal character working together to accommodate a variety of life’s daily functions— living, working, playing, learning—in a manner which reflects the local culture, historical form, attitudes and values of that place. For example, one type of place is made up of a mix of one-, two- and up to four-unit residences often commingled with adjacent commercial uses, either as corner stores or small shopping blocks. Such places also have limited off-street parking opportunities, often contain buildings located close to the street and have limited private open space. The future land use and associated zoning of the New Orleans Master Plan is designed to integrate form and use, scale and massing, defining the way that the realm of private property owners frames the public realm of streets, parks and other public spaces so that this public realm becomes a desirable place for people to be and to gather.

2.13.C
C

Future Land Use Categories

— See Future Land Use maps at the end of this chapter »

Residential

Residential Semi-RuralResidential Single-family Semi-rural

Goal: Provide for single-family residential development that preserves existing semi-rural character in areas like Lower Algiers (Planning District 13).

Range of Uses: Single-family dwellings, agricultural and stormwater managment uses are allowed. Cluster development that preserves open space is preferred. Supporting public recreational and community facilities are also allowed.

Development Character: Large-lot single-family new development should have a minimum lot area of 2 acres per dwelling unit. Cluster development may result in increased densities on individual lots, but when taken with preserved open space, the overall density should not exceed one dwelling unit per 2 acres. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Residential Single-Family Pre-warResidential Single-family Pre-war

Goal: Preserve the existing character and scale of pre-war (WWII) single-family residential areas of the city and allow for compatible infill development.

Range of Uses: Single-family dwellings, agriculture, stormwater management, and supporting public recreational and community facilities allowed (e.g. schools and places of worship).  Neighborhood-serving businesses and traditional corner stores may be allowed where current or former use is verified.  Conversion to multifamily, neighborhood-serving commercial, or mixed used may be allowed for historical institutional or other non-residential structures. 

Development Character: New development will fit the character and scale of surrounding single-family residential areas where structures are typically located on smaller lots and have small front and side setbacks. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Residential Single-Family Post-warResidential Single-family Post-war

Goal: Preserve the existing character and scale of low density single-family residential in post-war (WWII) areas of the city and allow for compatible infill development.

Range of Uses: Single-family dwellings, agriculture, stormwater management, and supporting public recreational and community facilities allowed (e.g. schools and places of worship).  Neighborhood-serving businesses and traditional corner stores may be allowed where current or former use is verified.  Conversion to multifamily, neighborhood-serving commercial, or mixed used may be allowed for historical institutional or other non-residential structures. 

Development Character: New development will fit with the character and scale of surrounding neighborhoods where single- and two-family residential structures are typically set back away from the street on larger lots than in older, pre-war neighborhoods. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Residential Low Density Pre-warResidential Low Density Pre-war

Goal: Preserve the scale and character of pre-war (WWII) residential neighborhoods of lower density where the predominant use is single and two-family residential and allow for compatible infill development. Discourage the development of additional multifamily housing that is out of scale with existing character.

Range of Uses: New development generally limited to single, two-family, and new or existing multi-family dwellings that are compatible with the scale and character of the surrounding residential neighborhood, especially when located in proximity to major transportation corridors.  Businesses, traditional corner stores, and mixed use may be allowed where current or former commercial use is verified.  Agriculture, storm water management, and supporting recreational and community facilities (e.g. schools and places of worship) also allowed.  Conversion to multifamily, neighborhood-serving commercial or mixed-use may be allowed for historical institutional or other non-residential structures.

Development Character: New development will fit with the character and scale of surrounding residential neighborhoods where structures are typically located on smaller lots and have minimal front and side setbacks. Allow the adaptive reuse of historic non-residential structures with densities higher than the surrounding neighborhood through the planned development process. Allow higher residential densities when a project is providing significant public benefits such as long-term affordable housing. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Residential Low Density Post-warResidential Low Density Post-war

Goal: Preserve the scale and character of post-war (WWII) residential neighborhoods of lower density where the predominant use is single and two-family residential lots and allow for compatible infill development.

Range of Uses: New development includes single-family, two-family, town home, and multi-family dwellings that are compatible with the scale and character of the surrounding residential neighborhood, especially when located in proximity to major transportation corridors.  Commercial developments may be allowed where current or former commercial use is verified.  Agriculture, storm water management, and supporting recreational and community facilities (e.g. schools and places of worship) also allowed.  New two-family and town home developments may be allowed in planned communities.  Conversion to multifamily, neighborhood-serving commercial or mixed-use may be allowed for historical institutional or other non-residential structures.

Development Character: New development will fit with the character and scale of surrounding neighborhoods where residential structures are typically set back away from the street on larger lots than in older, pre-war neighborhoods. Allow the adaptive reuse of historic non-residential structures with densities higher than the surrounding neighborhood through the planned development process. Allow higher residential densities when a project is providing significant public benefits such as long-term affordable housing. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Residential Medium Density Pre-warResidential Medium Density Pre-war

Goal: Preserve the character and scale of pre-war (WWII) residential areas that currently have a variety of housing types and sizes and allow for compatible infill development.

Range of Uses: Single and two-family residences, townhomes, and multifamily dwellings that are compatible with the scale and character of the surrounding residential neighborhood, especially when located in proximity to major transportation corridors.  Businesses, traditional corner stores and mixed use developments may be allowed where current or former commercial use is verified.  Agriculture, storm water management, and supporting recreational and community facilities (e.g. schools and places of worship) also allowed.  New two-family and town home developments may be allowed in planned communities.  Conversion to multifamily, neighborhood-serving commercial or mixed-use may be allowed for historical institutional or other non-residential structures.

Development Character: New development will conform to the general character and scale of surrounding neighborhoods. These areas are primarily located along major roadways, often with bus or streetcar service—existing or planned—that can support higher densities. Allow the adaptive reuse of historic non-residential structures with densities higher than the surrounding neighborhood through the planned development process. Allow higher residential densities when a project is providing significant public benefits such as long-term affordable housing. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Residential Multi-Family Pre-warResidential Multifamily Pre-war

Goal: Preserve the character and scale of existing multifamily residential areas in older areas of the city and encourage new multifamily development at nodes along transit routes that can support greater densities.

Range of Uses: Multifamily residential structures allowed. Limited neighborhood-serving commercial uses on the ground floor allowed. Agricultural, stormwater management, and supporting public recreational and community facilities allowed (e.g., schools and places of worship). Conversion to multifamily, neighborhood-serving commercial, or mixed use may be allowed for certain existing historical institutional or other non-residential buildings.

Development Character: Taller high-rise structures could be allowed where appropriate with design guidelines. Allow the adaptive reuse of historic non-residential structures with densities higher than the surrounding neighborhood through the planned development process. Allow higher residential densities when a project is providing significant public benefits such as long-term affordable housing. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Residential Multi-Family Post-warResidential Multifamily Post-war

Goal: Preserve the character and scale of existing suburban multifamily residential areas and encourage new multifamily development at nodes along potential mass transit routes or major city roadways that can support greater densities.

Range of Uses: Mixed single- and two-family units, and multifamily residential structures allowed. Limited neighborhood-serving commercial uses on the ground floor allowed.  Agricultural, stormwater management, and supporting recreational and community facilities allowed (e.g., schools and places of worship). Conversion to multifamily, neighborhood-serving, commercial, or mixed use may be allowed for certain existing historical institutional or other non-residential buildings.

Development Character: Design guidelines and landscaping requirements required to encourage walkability and allow for proper transition to surrounding single-family and low density neighborhoods. Allow the adaptive reuse of historic non-residential structures with densities higher than the surrounding neighborhood through the planned development process. Allow higher residential densities when a project is providing significant public benefits such as long-term affordable housing. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Residential Hisctoric CoreResidential Historic Core

Goal: Preserve the character and scale of 18th through mid-20th century residential areas and allow for compatible infill development.

Range of Uses: Single and two-family residences, townhomes, and small multifamily structures, neighborhood-serving businesses, traditional corner stores, mixed use developments may be allowed where current or former commercial use is verified.  Conversion to multifamily, neighborhood-serving commercial or mixed-use may be allowed for historical institutional or other non-residential structures. Agriculture, storm water management, and supporting recreational and community facilities (e.g. schools, cultural facilities and places of worship) also allowed.

Development Character: The density, height, and mass of new development will be consistent with the character and tout ensemble of the surrounding historic neighborhood. A variety of types and sizes of development may be appropriate. Allow the adaptive reuse of historic non-residential structures with densities higher than the surrounding neighborhood through the planned development process. Allow higher residential densities when a project is providing significant public benefits such as long-term affordable housing. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Commercial

Neighborhood CommercialNeighborhood Commercial

Goal: Provide areas for small-scale, neighborhood-oriented commercial development that enhances the pedestrian character and convenience of neighborhoods by allowing commercial establishments in select locations within walking distance to surrounding residential areas.

Range of Uses: Retail and professional service establishments serving local neighborhood area residents. Single and two-family dwellings are allowed. Agricultural, stormwater management, and supporting public recreational and community facilities are allowed. Common uses include small groceries, restaurants, barber shops/salons, clothing boutiques, banks, pharmacies, and small health professional offices. Conversion to multifamily, commercial, or mixed use may be allowed for certain existing historical institutional or other non-residential buildings.

Development Character: Buildings are oriented to the sidewalk (parking in rear where possible) with maximum heights related to the character of the street. Landscaping is required for parking lots facing the street. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

General CommercialGeneral Commercial

Goal: Increase the availability of retail services and amenities (and increase retail tax base) within the City of New Orleans, especially in areas that are currently underserved by retail, with existing and new medium- and large-scale commercial establishments and shopping centers.

Range of Uses: Larger commercial structures including shopping and entertainment centers typically anchored by large supermarkets, department stores or big-box style establishments with supportive retail, services, offices, surface or structured parking, and limited dwellings above the ground floor. Agricultural, stormwater management, and supporting public recreational and community facilities are allowed. Transit and transportation facilities are allowed.

Development Character: Structures oriented to the street where possible to encourage both pedestrian and automobile traffic. Sites are limited to accessible locations along major city roadways or highways with minimal negative impact on surrounding residential areas, often in proximity to transit. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Downtown ExpositionDOWNTOWN EXPOSITION

Goal: To provide areas of downtown that will house and support high-volume visitor traffic at major trade and spectator venues including the Convention Center and Superdome.

Range of Uses: Convention center, sports/entertainment arenas/complexes and supporting uses such as hotels, and office space within the CBD. Transit and transportation facilities are allowed. Residential, agricultural, and stormwater management uses are also allowed.

Development Character: The scale (height and massing) of new development will vary depending on location and proximity to historic districts. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Business CenterBUSINESS CENTER

Goal: Provide areas to serve as regional employment centers outside of the Central Business District.

Range of Uses: Professional office and/or light industrial parks (warehouse, distribution and storage centers). Large retail centers are not permitted but supportive retail and services are allowed. Transit and transportation facilities, agricultural, and stormwater management uses are allowed.

Development Character: Structures often in “business park” settings, typically with surface parking. Landscaping and buffers required, particularly when proximate to residential areas. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

IndustrialINDUSTRIAL

Goal: Retain land to further strengthen port activity, maritime-related activities, manufacturing and other uses that provide jobs and opportunities for New Orleans’ residents.

Range of Uses: Heavy manufacturing, maritime uses, water treatment and transfer, large warehousing/distribution facilities, stormwater management, and limited commercial uses are allowed. Transit and transportation facilities are allowed. Urban mixed use developments are allowed.

Development Character: Often located near rail and highway infrastructure, massing and bulk will vary depending on location, however, proper buffers/standards required, particularly when abutting residential neighborhoods. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Mixed-Use

Mixed-Use MaritimeMIXED-USE MARITIME

Goal: Preserve and provide areas for maritime-related residential and commercial uses east of Chef Pass on properties adjacent to Chef Menteur Highway in Lake St. Catherine (Planning District 11), along a certain portion of the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet near Interstate 510, and around harbors along Lake Pontchartrain.

Range of Uses: Single-family residential, fishing camps and boathouses, marinas, yacht clubs, maritime associations, community sailing, maritime-related businesses and supporting commercial uses. Transit and transportation facilities, agricultural, and stormwater management uses are allowed. New development shall only be permissible in accordance with State regulations.

Development Character: Scale (height and massing) and allowed uses to match existing character of surrounding areas. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Mixed-Use Low DensityMIXED-USE LOW DENSITY

Goal: Increase neighborhood convenience and walkability within and along edges of neighborhoods with low density residential and neighborhood-serving retail/commercial establishments.

Range of Uses: Low-density single-family, two-family and multifamily residential and neighborhood business; typically businesses in residential scale buildings interspersed with residences. Uses can be combined horizontally or vertically (ground floor retail required in certain areas). Limited light-industrial uses (small food manufacturers, craft and value added industry and passive warehousing and storage) may be allowed in some areas. Agricultural, stormwater management, and supporting public recreational and community facilities are allowed. Transit and transportation facilities are allowed.

Development Character: Height, mass and density of new development varied depending on surrounding neighborhood character. Allow the adaptive reuse of historic non-residential structures with densities higher than the surrounding neighborhood through the planned development process. Allow higher residential densities when a project is providing significant public benefits such as long-term affordable housing. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Mixed-Use Medium DensityMIXED-USE MEDIUM DENSITY

Goal: Create medium-density neighborhood centers to enhance walkability and serve as focal points within neighborhoods. Proximity to transit encouraged.

Range of Uses: Medium-density single-family, two-family and multifamily residential and commercial uses. Limited light industrial uses (small food manufacturers, craft and value added industry and passive warehousing and storage) may be allowed in some areas. Agricultural, stormwater management, and supporting public recreational and community facilities are allowed. Transit and transportation facilities are allowed.

Development Character: Height, mass and density of new development varied to ensure proper transitions to surrounding lower density residential neighborhoods. Many structures will feature ground floor retail with residences on upper floors. Allow the adaptive reuse of historic non-residential structures with densities higher than the surrounding neighborhood through the planned development process. Allow higher residential densities when a project is providing significant public benefits such as long-term affordable housing. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Mixed-Use High DensityMIXED-USE HIGH DENSITY

Goal: Encourage compact, walkable, transit-oriented (or transit-ready) neighborhood centers with medium-to-high density multifamily residential, office, and commercial services at key, underutilized, centrally located parcels within neighborhoods and along edges.

Range of Uses: Medium- to high-density multifamily residential, office, hotel and commercial retail. Limited light industrial uses (small food manufacturers, craft and value added industry and passive warehousing and storage) may be allowed in some areas. Agricultural, stormwater management, and supporting public recreational and community facilities are allowed. Transit and transportation facilities are allowed.

Development Character: These areas will provide proper transitions to surrounding areas with lower densities/heights. Many structures will require ground-floor retail with residences or offices or both on upper floors. Allow the adaptive reuse of historic non-residential structures with densities higher than the surrounding neighborhood through the planned development process. Allow higher residential densities when a project is providing significant public benefits such as long-term affordable housing. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Downtown Mixed-UseMIXED-USE DOWNTOWN

Goal: Support and encourage a vibrant, 24-hour live-work-play environment in the Central Business District, and provide areas to support a high density office corridor.

Range of Uses: High density office, multifamily residential, hotel, government, institutional entertainment and retail uses. No new heavy or light industrial uses allowed. Agricultural, stormwater management, and supporting public recreational and community facilities are allowed. Transit and transportation facilities are allowed.

Development Character: The scale of new development will vary depending on location within the CBD and will be determined by appropriate height and massing, particularly near historic districts. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Downtown Core Neighborhood Mixed-UseMIXED USE DOWNTOWN CORE NEIGHBORHOOD

Goal: Encourage and support a compact, walkable, transit-oriented, mixed-use neighborhood at the core of the city.

Range of Uses: A mix of residential, office, commercial, hotel, retail, and service uses. Agricultural, stormwater management, and supporting public recreational and community facilities are allowed. Transit and transportation facilities are allowed.

Development Character: The scale of new development will vary depending on location, with taller development generally encouraged along the edges of the CBD and new development that is sensitive to the scale of the neighborhood encouraged within the interior of the area.  Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Mixed-Use Historic CoreMIXED-USE HISTORIC CORE

Goal: Increase convenience and walkability for neighborhood residents and visitors within and along edges of historic core neighborhoods.

Range of Uses: A mixture of residential, neighborhood business, and visitor-oriented businesses. Uses may be combined horizontally or vertically, and some structures may require ground floor retail with residences or offices on upper floors. In some areas where current or former industrial use is verified, existing buildings may be appropriate for craft and value added industry. Agricultural, stormwater management, and supporting public recreational and community facilities are allowed. Transit and transportation facilities are allowed.

Development Character: The density, height, and mass of new development will be consistent with the character and tout ensemble of the surrounding historic neighborhood. Appropriate transitions will be provided to surrounding residential areas. Allow the adaptive reuse of historic non-residential structures with densities higher than the surrounding neighborhood through the planned development process. Allow higher residential densities when a project is providing significant public benefits such as long-term affordable housing. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Mixed-Use Health/Life SciencesMIXED-USE HEALTH/LIFE SCIENCES NEIGHBORHOOD

Goal: Provide areas for hospitals, offices, supportive retail and residential uses to create a vibrant neighborhood center with job growth in the medical care and research sectors.

Range of Uses: Hospitals, offices, residential (single-family, two-family, and multifamily along major corridors), and supporting neighborhood retail/services. Agricultural, stormwater management, and supporting public recreational and community facilities are allowed.

Development Character: The scale of new development will vary depending on location and will be determined by the appropriate height and massing. Special attention needed to ensure appropriate transitions from higher density corridors (i.e., Tulane Avenue) to surrounding historic, low density neighborhoods. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Planned Development AreaPLANNED DEVELOPMENT AREA

Goal: Allow for the potential development of large underutilized or underdeveloped parcels that are completely within the external levee protection system and only in areas that do not contain sensitive wetland environments.

Range of Uses: Single-family, two-family and multifamily residential; recreational, commercial or industrial uses dependent on formal planning process. Cluster development that preserves open space is preferred. Agricultural, stormwater management, and public recreational and community facilities are allowed. Transit and transportation facilities are allowed.

Development Character: The type and scale of new development would be determined through a multitiered planned development process that would require community input and city approval. Large-scale, coordinated development with appropriate transitions to surrounding uses and neighborhoods is preferred. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Institutional

InstitutionalINSTITUTIONAL

Goal: Preserve and enhance existing large-scale institutions such as health care, education (colleges and universities), detention centers and other facilities.

Range of Uses: Hospitals, colleges, universities, military and public detention facilities with large campus-like facilities. Smaller-scale, local houses of worship, public and private schools, police and fire stations, emergency and community centers are included in residential, commercial and mixed-use areas, as they are essential components of neighborhood life. Transit and transportation facilities, agricultural, and stormwater management uses are allowed.

Development Character: Large-scale, coordinated campus development with appropriate transitions to surrounding uses and neighborhoods. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

Open Space and Recreation

Natural AreaNATURAL AREAS

Goal: Increase, retain and preserve coastal land, natural areas, woodlands, ecologically sensitive habitats, and wetlands resources by conserving, improving, and/or restoring these areas for the purposes of aesthetic value, biodiversity, natural disaster resilience, natural resource and wildlife conservation, and nature-oriented recreation.

Range of Uses: Ecological management, green infrastructure (non-structural flood protection and stormwater management), and passive nature-based recreation that does not have adverse impacts on sensitive ecological and natural areas that are the conservation/preservation aim in any particular designated Natural Area. (Other uses may be allowed with conditional permit and restoration requirements.)

Development Character: No structures except those necessary to support specific conservation aims or low-impact amenities consistent with permitted passive recreational activities (e.g. trails, trailheads, overlooks, rest areas, and interpretive signage).

Parkland and Open SpacePARKLAND AND OPEN SPACE

Goal: Provide areas for parks, recreational facilities and open space networks owned by public or semi-public entities while offering the opportunity to utilize such spaces for stormwater management measures.

Range of Uses: Parks, playgrounds, recreation facilities and athletic fields; neutral grounds and passive open spaces, agricultural uses, rain gardens, bioswales and other stormwater management measures. In large parks, a variety of passive and active recreation facilities, cultural facilities, and supportive commercial uses may be allowed.

Development Character: Ranges from programmatic parks and indoor and outdoor recreational areas to preserved open space, with the opportunity to provide for stormwater management measures. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

CemeteryCEMETERY

Goal: Preserve and provide areas for cemeteries.

Range of Uses: Cemeteries and stormwater management uses.

Development Character: Cemeteries and accessory buildings. Incorporate risk reduction and adaptation strategies in the built environment.

2.13.D
D

Future Land Use by District

— See Future Land Use maps at the end of this chapter »

The changes below highlight many of the land use classifications by planning district. Although category names have been modified since the 1999 adopted land use map, as mentioned earlier in this chapter, the vast majority of the city retains its existing land use and built character, scale and massing including nearly all existing single-family, and single- and two-family residential neighborhoods, established neighborhood and general commercial corridors and centers, and employment centers located in downtown and industrial areas. Modified land uses are largely found in underutilized, blighted or vacant areas of the city where change of use will enable the city to grow more sustainably (mixed-use, walkable, transit oriented/ready environments), and bring back an increased retail and business tax base.

Planning District 1A

Existing land uses within the Central Business District essentially remain, however new use categories were created to better define subarea priorities and purposes. These include:

  • Mixed-Use Downtown: High density, high-rise office, retail and residential districts in the CBD that balance economic growth, urban design and residential opportunity and further facilitate the creation of a vibrant, transit-oriented, 24-hour community. Particular concerns about height around Lafayette Square need to be resolved, and adaptive-reuse supportive building codes should be developed to facilitate rehabilitation of historic Canal Street structures.
  • Mixed-Use High Density: A high density residential, office and commercial district that continues to facilitate the evolution of the Warehouse District into a vibrant 24-hour residential, dining and cultural community, but restricts height of new development.
  • Downtown Exposition: Land uses to serve and support Convention Center and Superdome complexes.
  • Mixed Use Downtown Core Neighborhood: Supports a compact, walkable, transit-oriented, mixed-use neighborhood at the core of the city.

Planning District 1B

The district is designated with Mixed Use Historic Core and Residential Historic Core Future Land Use categories which have been applied to distinguish the varied character and scale of the area to better preserve its unique National and Local Historic District status.

  • Mixed Use Historic Core: Areas closest to Canal Street accommodate concentrations of mid-rise, mixed use structures. The area should increase convenience and walkability for neighborhood residents and visitors.
  • Residential Historic Core: preserves the character and scale of 18th  and 19th Century residential areas and allow for compatible infill development.

Planning District 2

Much of the district retains existing land use character (Residential Pre-War Low Density), however new residential and mixed-use designations better reflect the existing and desired future built environment. Most significant land use changes have been applied to two underutilized commercial and industrial areas to allow for a mixture of uses, including:

  • Mixed-Use High Density at South of the Convention Center area. With proximity to the CBD and Convention Center, large vacant industrial parcels, and  multifamily residential development , the area is poised to support a vibrant, high density riverfront community of housing, commercial and entertainment uses. Special attention must be paid to height, view corridors, and transitions to surrounding neighborhoods.
  • Mixed-Use High Density along O.C. Haley Boulevard: Building upon current Main Street and NORA initiatives, a medium-to-high density mix of office, neighborhood commercial, live/work space, and residential units will reestablish the O.C. Haley corridor as the core of the Central City neighborhood.

Other changes include:

  • Mixed-Use Medium Density along Saint Charles Avenue better reflects the existing character of the downriver section of the corridor, which consists of mid-rise multifamily housing, retail and office spaces.
  • Business Center north of Tchoupitoulas Street will encourage continued job creation in the entertainment/new media sectors by allowing for warehouse, soundstage and supportive office spaces.
  • Residential Pre-War Medium Density in Central City better reflects the overall residential character throughout much of the neighborhood, which historically has included side-by-side single, two-family and small apartment buildings.

Planning District 3

The majority of the district retains existing land uses (Residential Pre-War Low Density). The notable land use changes include:

  • Mixed-Use High Density at Carrollton Avenue and Palmetto Street: The area includes a big box retailer, existing multifamily residential structures, and neighboring Xavier University. Proposed transit connections (light rail from downtown to the airport, and Carrollton/Canal streetcar connection), and proximity to I-10 would support a transit-oriented centrally located, high-density residential, retail and office concentration with connections to the Carrollton and Mid-City neighborhoods.
  • Mixed-Use Low: Neighborhood-scale residential/commercial concentrations to support surrounding communities and encourage walkability:
    • Apple Street (between Leonidas Street and Carrollton Avenue)
    • Leonidas Street (between Oak Street and Spruce Street)
    • Tchoupitoulas (between Octavia and Valance Street)
    •  Claiborne Avenue and Calhoun Street

Planning District 4

While the majority of neighborhood residential and commercial areas retain existing character and scale (Residential Pre-War Low Density), several land use changes have been applied to portions of the district, particularly along the Canal Street and Tulane Avenue corridors.

  • Mixed-Use Health/Life Sciences Neighborhood: Large vacant and underutilized parcels and residential neighborhoods bounded by Claiborne Avenue, Canal Street, Galvez Street, South Rocheblave Street and Tulane Avenue, encompass a community of hospitals, residential homes and complexes, and supportive office and retail.
  • Mixed-Use High Density along Tulane Avenue: A medium-to-high density corridor of residential and ground-floor neighborhood retail to support the emerging medical district and Mid-City neighborhood. A Bus Rapid Transit route would expedite travel to and from the CBD.
  • Mixed-Use Medium Density:
    • Lindy Boggs site: With large parcels of underutilized industrial land, a successful multifamily residential reuse project (American Can), existing retail uses (Rouse Supermarket and Winn-Dixie,), proximity to City Park, and direct transit access to downtown and the medical district, the area is strategically situated to support a medium density Main Street area of residential, live/work and commercial uses. Additional green infrastructure (the Lafitte Greenway) stretches through the area. (Ideally, the area would be developed as one or more planned developments.)
    • Broad Street: Medium and  low density mixed-use strategic nodes at Canal Street, St. Peter Street, Bayou Road, and St. Bernard Avenue with neighborhood commercial and low density multifamily housing to encourage pedestrian-oriented neighborhoods.
  • General Commercial along Earhart Boulevard: Large vacant/underutilized light industrial parcels with strong neighborhood and highway connections would support national chain retail establishments for city residents and recapture lost retail tax revenue from neighboring parishes. Special attention must be paid to design standards and transitions to nearby residential development.

Planning District 5

Land use categories reflect the recently adopted, community-supported single-family residential zoning districts and neighborhood commercial corridor along Harrison Avenue. Changes include:

  • Mixed-Use Medium Density at Pontchartrain Boulevard and W. Robert E. Lee Boulevard: Underutilized shopping plaza adjacent to existing multifamily high-rise structures and underutilized commercial parcels abutting the waterfront would best be utilized as a medium density neighborhood oriented center with entertainment/dining/retail establishments to both support the Lake area and draw in tourism. New and improved transit connections (BRT) would provide better connectivity.
  • Mixed-Use Maritime: Allows for continued mixture of land uses including boat houses, restaurants, maritime industries/businesses, and supportive retail services around the Municipal Yacht Harbor/ Orleans Marina area.

Planning District 6

Significant areas of the district retain existing residential uses (Residential Post-War Low Density). Several notable land use changes include:

  • Mixed-Use Medium Density:
    • Gentilly Boulevard and Elysian Fields Avenue: Large, underutilized and poorly designed shopping center parcels at key intersection along a transit corridor (proposed for streetcar or BRT along Elysian Fields) would support a compact, pedestrian-oriented, medium density village of residential, commercial and office uses that would serve nearby Dillard University and surrounding single, two-family, and multi-family neighborhoods.
    • Chef Menteur Highway (west of Industrial Canal): The area’s large vacant and underutilized commercial and multifamily residential sites, its proximity to I-10 and the proposed BRT route to New Orleans East, make for a strategic urban village setting with medium to high density residential and commercial uses. (Ideally, the area would be developed as a PUD.)
  • Mixed-Use Low Density (Elysian Fields Avenue and Robert E. Lee Boulevard): Existing vacant and underutilized commercial parcels at the terminus of proposed Elysian Fields transit corridor (BRT/ Streetcar) would anchor a low density town center with multifamily residential and neighborhood supporting retail near the UNO campus.
  • Post-war Residential Single Family: Residential areas lakeside of Gentilly Boulevard are mostly designated as single-family. Existing doubles may remain.

Planning District 7

The majority of the planning district retains land uses compatible with existing conditions and previous plans. Changes within the district include:

  • Mixed-Use Medium Density and Mixed Use Historic Core:
    • ​St. Claude Avenue: These land use categories respects existing neighborhood character of interspersed neighborhood and residential uses, and would support new low to medium density development with the addition of the streetcar extension.
    • Elysian Fields Avenue at Decatur (at the river): Vacant and underutilized (including city owned) parcels to anchor Frenchmen Street and Decatur Street (French Quarter) corridors with medium density multifamily residential component and supportive neighborhood commercial. Development must respect existing historic neighborhood character and scale.
    • Marigny and Bywater Riverfront Areas: Between Elysian Fields Avenue and the Inner Harbor Navigaton Canal, there are large, historically industrial parcels with the Mixed Use Historic Core designation which would support more dense residential development on high ground with ground floor commercial uses for a lively pedestrian environment.
  • Residential Post-War Low Density: The Florida/Desire area is transitioning from multifamily to single-/two- family use category.

Planning District 8

The majority of the Holy Cross neighborhood retains its Residential Pre-War Low Density uses. Changes include:

  • Mixed-Use Low and Medium Density: Allows interspersed neighborhood commercial and existing residential uses along:
    • St. Claude Avenue
    • North Claiborne Avenue and Caffin Avenue
    • Reynes Street (Holy Cross High School): Former school site should be redeveloped into a low to medium density neighborhood center and could include the adaptive reuse of existing school structure.
  • Residential Post-War Low Density: With the vast majority of properties now vacant, a less dense residential development pattern would be best supported in areas between Claiborne Avenue and Florida Avenue.

Much of the planning district (outside of the Holy Cross neighborhood) is still vacant as a result of Hurricane Katrina. However, the area does include the Make-It-Right home development. This area remains in a more active recovery mode due to the extent of damage from Hurricane Katrina compared to other areas. Additional residential financial recovery assistance is needed.

Planning Districts 9 and 10

The vast area includes single, double and multifamily residential areas (now designated as Post-war), however the large vacant commercial areas along the I-10 corridor have been re-categorized as general commercial at varying densities. Land use changes in the districts include:

  • General Commercial: Redevelopment of blighted/vacant sites south of I-10 into commercial nodes to recapture retail tax revenues from neighboring Parishes.
    • Former Plaza at Lake Forest mall and adjacent retail centers to offer pedestrian-oriented, Main Street and big-box retail and office concentration, with potential BRT connection to downtown and the West Bank. (Ideally, the area would be developed as a PUD, or “Lifestyle Center”).
    • Crowder Boulevard at Lake Forest Boulevard: Redevelopment of former commercial and multifamily residential sites into residential neighborhoods and neighborhood scale commercial retail area. Proposed BRT would provide expedited access to downtown.
    • Chef Menteur Highway (Western Portions): Large vacant/underutilized light industrial parcels with direct connection to I-10 would support chain retail/grocery establishments to serve both neighborhood and city residents.
  • Neighborhood Commercial along Chef Menteur: Concentrated nodes of neighborhood commercial uses to support residential areas further east along Chef Menteur Highway.
  • Business Center—Large underutilized former industrial parcels south of Chef Menteur Highway would provide employment in office parks not suited for downtown areas. Light industrial warehouse and storage facilities would also be permitted, but not commercial retail centers.
  • Mixed-Use Medium Density along Chef Menteur at Village de l‘Est: Small mixed-use retail/office/ residential center as highlighted in neighborhood plan.
  • Planned Development Area: Large areas of undeveloped land that lie within the external levee protection system may potentially be developed, and would require a comprehensive planned development process, including a public outreach process to determine appropriate, environmentally responsible development.

Planning District 11

  • Mixed-Use Maritime: Single-family homes, fishing camps, marine-related businesses and supporting businesses east of Chef Pass only on parcels adjacent to Chef Menteur Highway in Lake St Catherine.

Planning District 12

The majority of the planning district retains existing residential densities. This includes Pre-war Low Density housing closer to Algiers Point, and Post-war Residential Single- and Multifamily areas closer to Lower Algiers (Planning District 13). Changes include:

  • Mixed-Use High Density: Planned office, residential and retail BRAC project along Mississippi River
  • Mixed-Use Medium Density:
    • General De Gaulle Drive at Holiday Drive: Encourage underutilized portions of Village Aurora shopping center and surrounding parcels, to be developed into a transit-ready compact, pedestrian- oriented, medium density neighborhood center development with residential, commercial and office uses. Proposed BRT routes would better connect and shorten travel times to the East Bank.
    • Woodland Highway at Woodland Drive: Redevelopment of vacated shopping center into a primarily residential center with supporting neighborhood commercial. Potential BRT connection would expedite travel to the East Bank.
  • Mixed-Use Low Density: Neighborhood-scale residential (including existing single-family, two-family residences) and commercial corridors to encourage walkability in surrounding communities.
    • Algiers Point
    • Newton Street
    • Opelousas Avenue
    • Joe Ellen Smith Medical Center site

Planning District 13

Minimal changes are recommended. Existing subdivisions and areas near the bridge are now designated Planned Development Area to remain single-family. Due to limited infrastructure (public water, but not sewer), the remainder of the district will require 2 acres per dwelling unit to maintain the unique rural character. Residential development at higher densities should be in the form of conservation subdivisions that cluster housing in order to allow significant open space.

2.13.E
E

Future Land Use and Zoning

The 2008 master plan charter amendment required consistency between Future Land Use Map categories and the zoning districts as well as inclusion of a table showing the correspondence. The Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance adopted in 2015 has applied zoning districts that are consistent with the Master Plan. The Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance Appendix contains the consistency table.

How do we know if zoning is consistent with the Master Plan? The 2008 master plan charter amendment provides that:

“A Land Use Action is consistent with the Master Plan if the Land Use Action:

  1. Furthers, or at least does not interfere with, the goals, policies, and guidelines, including design guidelines, that are contained in the Land Use Element of the Master Plan.
  2. Is compatible with the proposed future land uses, densities, and intensities designated in the Land Use Element of the Master Plan.”

In practice, there are several zoning districts that are consistent with individual land use categories that appear on the Future Land Use Map. It is possible to change zoning without amending the Future Land Use Map and the Master Plan as long as any zoning change is compatible with the parameters of the land use category on the map. Other zoning changes will require a master plan amendment.

2.13.F
F

Urban Design Framework

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Urban Design Framework

New Orleans is a city of special places with unique qualities. A towering skyscraper can enrich downtown if it meets the street with details and activities that delight, while a two-story building can diminish nearby Mid-City if it interrupts a street’s historic rhythm with a monotonous façade. While details will differ across the city, the core urban design principles should fundamentally promote more livable neighborhoods, greater economic opportunity for everyone, and enhanced sustainability.

Cultivate livability:

  • Preserve and enhance established neighborhoods and districts—wet or dry, historic or new, residential or mixed-use. These places should benefit from design standards that embody the spirit and address the qualities that define character.
  • Extend New Orleans’  “signature” qualities to its  new  districts  and  neighborhood  centers.  The Medical District, redeveloped shopping centers and other “opportunity sites,” and similar places should benefit from design standards that extend the walkability, tree-lined streets, lively façades on public sidewalks, mixed-use energy, and other qualities that mark the city’s historic neighborhoods.
  • Restore the  critical  mass  to  support  key  ingredients  of  livability.  Blight, smaller households, and changing lifestyles rob neighborhoods of the critical mass needed to support vibrant commercial districts, walkable streets, convenient transit, lively parks, and similar amenities. Restoring traditional densities and redeveloping opportunity sites will help all parts of the city regain this critical mass and attract a new array of housing and amenities to new and existing neighborhoods.
  • Advance healthy living. The Centers of for Disease Control has emphasized the essential importance to public health of neighborhoods that encourage walkability, provide access to healthy food, and include health clinics—all qualities of successful New Orleans’ neighborhoods.
  • Build community in the midst of diversity. The city can take advantage of the proximity in which people of different races, incomes, and ethnic backgrounds live—unusual among U.S. cities—to create a renewed sense of community.  Emphasizing walkable connections between neighborhoods that give people an opportunity simply to meet, making commercial districts more vital and providing well-programmed parks will draw New Orleans’ diverse residents together across lines of difference. Initiatives like Reinventing the Crescent can reinforce the riverfront’s critical role as the city’s common ground. Interpreting the city’s rich variety of architectural and cultural traditions can further the critical task of celebrating each other’s stories.
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This parking garage has retail at the street level.

Foster economic opportunity:

  • Offer the amenities that attract people to live, work, and invest. Preserving New Orleans’ historic character—embodied in its walkable streets, cultural richness, and mixed-use environments—and extending these qualities into new neighborhoods and districts is a critical ingredient in spurring growth.
  • Provide  the  education  and  services  that  move  people  out  of  poverty  and  into  the  workforce. In building a city whose neighborhoods stand as revitalized, safe, and visible symbols of social cohesion, no amount of physical intervention will match the value of aggressive efforts to extend opportunity to every resident.
  • Plan for change that is welcomed by neighbors. As the pace of economic transition quickens   across America, so does resistance to the larger floor plates, greater height, new industries, new types of housing, and other changes that a vital economy needs. Development that responds to the needs of a changing economy should respect the scale and character of nearby neighborhoods and should reflect the goals described above for new places.

Promote sustainability:

Work with nature to enhance resilience. No U.S. city is as conscious of the need to adapt to a changing environment as New Orleans. It can lead all American cities in exploring approaches to wetlands restoration, elevating and hardening buildings, managing storm water to slow subsidence, integrating levees into the landscape, including both gray and green infrastructure strategies, and other ways of working with nature to protect the city from rising seas and more frequent storms.

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New houses with harmonious designs make good neighbors.
  • Reduce the city’s carbon footprint. National policy is clearly heading in a direction to support funding of projects that further reduce carbon emissions. New Orleans’ per capita carbon footprint already ranks well nationally (#29 lowest metro area)1 due in part to its compact form, strong preservation values, and walkable neighborhoods. Expanding transit use, attracting more residents to reduce sprawl, adopting green techniques in construction of and operation of new buildings, reducing the leakage of treated water and overreliance on pumped drainage, and similar measures, will further position New Orleans as one of America’s greenest cities.
  1. Brooking Institute, “Shrinking the Carbon Footprint of Metropolitan Areas.” May 2008.
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  • Celebrate the city’s relationship to water. A new generation of landscaped canals, rain gardens, restored wetlands, and similar steps can add a 21st-century urban design signature that enriches life in New Orleans while protecting the city from rain-driven flooding. These elements can be distributed across the cityscape at various scales and linked by green-blue corridors that improve public understanding of water systems, promote active lifestyles and spur adjacent private-sector economic investment.

Urban Design Principles

The following urban design principles are intended to provide guidance on desired characteristics of new development to property owners and the public. Application of the principles can vary in specific contexts and creative variations should be encouraged, as long as the spirit and intent of the principles is respected. Area-specific urban design principles may be found in neighborhood and area plans, and more detailed design guidelines will be created for projects on large sites that require site master plans.

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The public realm of streets, sidewalks, plazas, parks, and other public spaces:

  • Reclaim the river and lake waterfronts for lively public spaces, providing safe access to water assets in all areas of the city.
  • Reclaim hidden water assets to beautify the city’s street grid and reduce street flooding by installing green infrastructure for water retention and infiltration in neutral grounds and along sidewalks and by daylighting canals where appropriate.
  • Reinforce New Orleans existing boulevards and use a boulevard approach to improve wide arterials that do not currently include neutral grounds, or street trees.
  • Re-knit the urban fabric by reducing barriers caused by highways and arterial roads, including by creating safe and attractive pedestrian and bicycle routes, improved lighting, landscaping and public art.
  • Take New Orleans’ tradition of lively pedestrian streets to all neighborhoods.
  • Locate building entries to promote safe pedestrian movement across streets; to relate to crosswalks and pathways that lead to transit stops; and to encourage walking, biking and public transit use for employment and other travel around the city.
  • Provide for bicycles—lanes, routes, parking, racks on streetcars and bike sharing infrastructure.
  • Encourage active, publicly-accessible uses on the ground floors of buildings in mixed use areas.
  • Screen and buffer service machinery and areas including mechanical systems on the roof or elsewhere; trash handling and storage; and loading docks.
  • Design outdoor lighting at a pedestrian scale to provide safety, comfort and adequate night vision while minimizing light pollution.
  • Ensure a balance of passive and active recreational uses in public spaces, regional parks and in the citywide park system.
  • Encourage placement of public art to enhance the city’s public landscape.

Surface and structured parking

  • Manage the impacts of surface parking by:
    • Locating parking to the rear of developments.
    • Planting shade trees and ground cover in parking lots as screens, shade at least 50% of the lot at maturity, and enhance stormwater management through plantings and pervious surfaces.
  • Manage the impacts of parking structures by lining the street side with active uses.
  • In areas with a concentration of retail and entertainment destinations, encourage centralized, iconic parking structures and circulation to and from parking structures by shuttle buses, pedicabs, and other appropriate means.

Downtown

  • In downtown, encourage building design with ground floor levels that are welcoming to pedestrians and avoid blank and fortress-like ground floors.
  • Limit extensive office uses on ground floors in favor of more lively uses, if feasible.
  • Use trees, canopies, colonnades or galleries for shade along pedestrian streets as well as green infrastructure and permeable pavers/pavement for stormwater management, where appropriate.
  • Establish gradual transitions between small-scale and larger-scale buildings.

Retail areas

  • Discourage strip shopping center or stand-alone retail with buildings at the rear and parking at the front by locating the buildings at the street edge and providing parking to the rear.
  • Establish transitions and buffers to surrounding residential areas.
  • Locate pedestrian entrances on public streets and at or near street corners wherever possible.
  • Maintain a consistent and minimal setback on commercial streets. Commercial structures should be built close to the street or with small setbacks to accommodate public spaces such as sidewalk cafes.
  • Design ground-floor facades with maximum transparency and permeability.
  • Maintain a consistent scale and character in signage and overhangs (e.g., awnings, balconies, etc.).

Neighborhood infill

  • Respect the scale and massing of buildings in historic areas and other areas where existing scale should be preserved while recognizing the city’s history of building elevation and the risk flooding poses to the city’s built environment.
  • Where vacant lots are not slated for development in the near term, enable them to serve as urban agriculture sites, community gardens, or water retention lots through public, private, or non-profit entities.
  • Design building facades to provide visual interest with articulations, materials, windows and other openings.
  • Ensure that infill buildings in neighborhoods fit in harmoniously though do not require copies of existing architecture. Indicators include:
    • Maintaining the street wall or façade line
    • Complementing the established rhythm of windows, doors or other openings
    • Activating the street by the use of bay windows, porches, stoops, or terraces

New neighborhoods

  • Extend the positive qualities of existing adjacent neighborhoods into new developments.
  • Design mixed-use neighborhood centers on large sites, such as underutilized or vacant retail or industrial sites by:
    • Integrating the sites into the surrounding street grid.
    • Establishing transitions in scale and density from surrounding areas.
    • Providing areas with clusters of ground floor retail and service uses with residential uses above
    • Providing usable and well-designed open space.
    • Creating development-specific design guidelines about building appearance, streetscape, signage and utilities, parking design, landscape, sustainability, and materials.

Promote sustainability

  • Clad areas below floor level on buildings that are raised for flood protection purposes to provide a consistent street wall, using flood vents when needed.
  • Incorporate building elements that improve energy efficiency and stormwater management, such as green roofs, rain gardens, solar panels, wind turbines, and others wherever possible. These elements should be scaled appropriately and incorporated seamlessly into the overall façade.
  • Incorporate passive heating and cooling mechanisms such as operable windows, sun shades, cross- ventilation, and adequate insulation into the design of buildings whenever possible.

— See Volume 2, Chapter 5, for design principles for neighborhood commercial districts »

2.13.G
G

General Zoning Principles

In the Master Plan, New Orleans built the framework for future land use decisions and a comprehensive zoning ordinance that was adopted in 2015. The success of the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance relies on the vision behind it. Through citywide forums, district meetings, and community leadership groups, translating the plan’s vision into reality through development regulations was part of the discussion. This input has been and through amendment processes will continue to be a vital aspect of future zoning revision processes.

Master Plan Zoning Ordinance
Defines the kinds of places that we value and want to see in the future Establishes districts with rules that support these places
Describes the qualities and characteristics of these places Establishes design standards that reinforce these qualities
Creates a land use map with the location of these places Refines the land use map into specific zoning districts

The Master Plan’s themes of How We Live, How We Prosper, Sustainable Systems and From Plan to Action have been tested with the citizens of New Orleans and there are three objectives that have been identified.

The first objective is that the  zoning ordinance reinforce the physical character of New Orleans and the important quality-of-life features reflected in its history, culture and public spaces while striking a balance between the need to preserve and the need to innovate and grow. To achieve this objective the new ordinance is divided into “places” based on the character of development found in that area or desired for that area.

The second objective is that for each zoning district, its purpose and intent clearly describes what type of development one would expect to find there consistent with the Master Plan policies and Land Use Map. The ordinance sets standards for 1) the size, shape, and character of new development, 2) how new developments fit together and 3) the location of new development.

The third objective is that the ordinance is predictable, understandable and enforceable. Simple adjustments, repairs or amendments to the previous 40-year-old ordinance were not enough. The ordinance is organized to be user-friendly, to suit the unique characteristics of New Orleans, and to reflect and implement the policies in the plan.

A Zoning Response to the Master Plan Theme: How We Live

A high quality of community life is essential to the success of every city in the 21st century. People want to live in places with high quality of life and where they feel invested in their local community. Quality of life is critical to protecting, attracting and maintaining a stable workforce that, in turn, brings investment, employment, and an image and identity that welcomes tourists and visitors.

A series of goals and policies are identified in the Master Plan that address the key ingredients of high quality-of-life goals for neighborhoods, housing, historic preservation, open space, education, health care and community services. The Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance helps achieve these goals by providing development standards that properly control the built environment—from the design of infill development to districts that encourage a variety of housing stock to the right mix of uses.

Residential Neighborhood Zoning Principles

  1. Ensure that new housing built within established neighborhoods is compatible with the scale and character of the existing development.
  • Zoning districts reflect the established development patterns in the City. Development patterns within the pre-World War II areas of the city are different from those that developed after the war.
  • The bulk and setback regulations within the residential districts reflect existing development characteristics. For example, in the pre-war areas of the City, the front setback requirements preserve the established variability, rather than enforce the previous 20- foot setback requirement. Maximum permitted heights preserve the   existing character.
  • Development standards are integrated into district regulations that preserve the established building character in terms of scale, massing, and placement. This benefits areas that do not have local historic district designation but want to ensure that their character is maintained.
  • Zoning districts are coordinated with local historic designations in order to eliminate conflicts and inconsistencies.
  • A riverfront overlay district is based upon the policies of the “Riverfront Vision” plan and reflects existing adjacent neighborhood character.
  1. Ensure that multifamily housing is sensitive to its neighborhood context.
  • Multifamily districts’ regulations reflect the desired character of multifamily development.
  • Design and development standards for the multifamily districts to assure compatibility with the larger residential neighborhood.
  1. Ensure an efficient residential land use pattern that addresses the location and intensity of residential development while ensuring housing affordability and choice.
  • Regulations to insure proper transitions from lower to higher density development.
  • Mixed-use Districts allow development of various scales. This includes vertical mixed-use (within one building) and mixed-use on the broader neighborhood level.
  • Development flexibilities in the Ordinance encourage adaptive reuse of historic structures. For example, in certain historic areas, it is not possible to accommodate regular parking and loading requirements. Rather than require variances, the Ordinance provides exemptions to encourage reuse.

Neighborhood Business District Zoning Principles

  1. Commercial districts are tailored to the form, function and use of various commercial areas.
  • The current commercial district standards are responsive to their purpose and desired character.
  • Commercial districts are specifically designed to accommodate and encourage pedestrian- oriented, walkable shopping environments.
  • Commercial districts where shoppers arrive primarily by auto are still pedestrian-friendly and functional, but parking is not the most prominent land use.
  • Shopping center district standards ensure a high quality of design and integration with other uses, as well as safety and comfort for pedestrians.
  • Commercial areas on the Zoning Map are based upon the Future Land Use Map and Master Plan policies, to create compact commercial and mixed-use development.
  • Design standards are included for each scale of commercial development. Districts like Magazine Street need different design approaches than commercial areas like the Bullard Avenue commercial corridor.
  • Mixed-use development on the Zoning Map is placed within or near commercial areas, on appropriate corridors, and at large redevelopment sites. Mixed-use development can function as a buffer between large-scale commercial development and adjacent neighborhoods.
  1. Encourage small-scale neighborhood commercial uses within residential neighborhoods.
  • The Ordinance includes standards for small local business districts located within a predominantly residential area. Standards within the Ordinance mitigate the impacts of these business districts and require a small-scale, pedestrian-oriented form.
  • The Ordinance includes controls on the reuse of historic nonconforming commercial uses, such as the “corner store,” so that compatibility with the neighborhood is maintained in areas where the continued existence of such uses is supported.

A Zoning Response to the Master Plan Theme: How We Prosper

The Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance is essential to conserving the best of what we have while creating opportunities to grow our economy. One way to achieve this is to ensure that people who want to invest in our community know where they can locate, what the rules are, and that those rules are consistently and predictable applied.

The master planning process identified a series of goals and policies addressing the key elements of How We Prosper: maintaining an economic base, education and workforce development, entrepreneurship and local small business development, neighborhood and commercial district revitalization, and enhancing economic opportunity. The Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance furthers these goals and helps create value for the whole community by:

  • Removing Obstacles: Eliminating or modifying rules that unnecessarily hinder economic development.
  • Setting Clear Standards: Developing and incorporating site design standards than enhance the appearance of the entire area.
  • Creating Incentives: Providing flexibilities which encourage business development.

Central Business District Zoning Principles

Downtown is the most complex part of an urban center and downtown New Orleans is no exception. The area is a collection of diverse uses, mixed horizontally and vertically, each of which must be individually successful while contributing to a larger experience and identity. This complexity is magnified by the multiple ways in which people experience the place. Today’s downtown New Orleans simultaneously serves as a neighborhood, as the civic center of the city, as an economic center of the region, and as the image and identity projected to the world through visitors and the media.

The zoning ordinance encourages the development of distinctive downtown places through development standards which reinforce a sense of identity, while linking these places with a fine-grained mix of uses, transportation connections and transitions in the urban fabric. It encourages the right form in the right place so that place and connection is reinforced and will ensure, with clear and predictable rules, that every building enhances the quality of place and the quality of life for downtown residents, workers and visitors.

  1. The downtown zoning districts better reflect the mix of places identified in the Master Plan.

​Transform downtown from a series of individual destinations into a cohesive, interconnected, and well managed destination…—UNOP DISTRICT 1 REPORT 1.

What emerges in the Master Plan is a mixed-use downtown that should be zoned as five vibrant mixed-use area types. Each of these areas is a unique but connected place within the compact area of the Central Business District. Zoning shapes and guides the development of these areas to strengthen both their function and identity.

  • A Center of Business and Commerce: Support the economic potential of downtown with a commercial district geared to the needs of business. This district is characterized by a range of office, commercial, government and institutional uses with supporting services.
  • A Mixed-Use Marketplace: Support the vitality of downtown by creating a mixed-use district intended to encourage the reuse of existing structures and the compatible infill of new construction with a mix of small floor plate office, retail, institutional, and residential uses.
  • The World’s Meeting Place: Support appropriate development immediately adjacent to the Superdome and the Convention Center by creating a major venue zoning district.
  • A Great Urban Neighborhood: Support the demand for mid-high-rise residential development and the appropriate transition to the surrounding neighborhoods by creating a district that is primarily intended to accommodate higher intensity residential development and smaller-scale commercial uses on the lower floors, with residential uses above
  • A Crossroads of Cultural Tourism: Support the clustered development of museums and cultural venues by creating a district for these uses and supporting retail and visitor services that promote the arts.
  1. Encourage higher-density development organized around a well-organized urban form.

The Central Business District is different from development in other parts of the city because higher levels of building height and bulk are allowed. Uses are stacked vertically and clustered close together along the street. This “intensity” of use contributes to the vitality of the area, and the organization of uses within the zoning ordinance does not change that. Development standards fit the size and scale of new development to the purpose of the district, the character of the adjacent street, the existing historically significant buildings, and the adjacent districts.

  • Reinforces a recognizable image of downtown and compatible edges with the surrounding neighborhoods by establishing coordinated height and bulk standards for the Central Business Districts.
  • Discourages new structures of less than three stories.
  • Establishes Poydras Street and Loyola Avenue as the “spine” of the CBD, serving as the corridors of highest intensity development.
  • Encourages height and massing to step down from Poydras to a mix of low- to mid-rise-scaled buildings, gradually making a transition into the Mid-City neighborhood.
  • Encourages height and massing to step down downriver from Poydras to the mid-rise, mixed-use character of Canal Street and the low-rise character of the Vieux Carré.
  1. Create active and attractive street corridors that promote multimodal connections between different areas of the CBD, accommodate transportation access and parking demand, and encourage a high level of pedestrian traffic and pedestrian amenity.
  • Establishes a system of primary streets with design standards that are characterized by continuous zero-lot-line street wall, active ground-floor uses, transparency (portion of the building frontage with windows) and permeability (building frontage with doors opening on to the street).
  • Establishes a system of secondary streets with design standards that provide for the service side of buildings, auto-oriented uses like drive-through windows and gas stations and car washes, and parking structures.
  • Encourages the provision of parking in an amount, location and design that meets the operational needs of the CBD and supports the urban design goals for the streetscape by permitting non-accessory parking only consistent with a parking plan and setting maximum accessory parking ratios for all uses to limit non-accessory parking in the wrong places.
  1. Conserve the character of historic and special places.

Approximately 70 percent of Planning District 1 is within a local or national historic district. These are the Vieux Carré Historic District, Canal Street Historic District, Picayune Place Historic District, Lafayette Square Historic District and the Warehouse Historic District.

  • Establishes a coordinated set of development regulations with the Central Business District’s Historic Guidelines to create a clear and transparent approval process.
  • Supports historic investments by removing unnecessary obstacles to the rehabilitation of existing buildings. These include the calculation of parking requirements and the expansion of nonconforming uses.
  1. Create a green and sustainable environment.
  • Require usable open spaces on or off site for new residential units created downtown.
  • Require, where appropriate, contributions to a network of open spaces through the development approval process or requirements.
  • Accommodate riverfront open space to address the Reinvesting the Crescent Plan.

Employment Center Zoning District Principles

  1. Create a more stable investment climate by reducing conflicts both within industrial districts and between adjacent non-industrial districts.
  • Provides appropriate locations for business and light industrial facilities in settings attractive and accessible to visitors and employees and make available employment opportunities near residential areas.
  • Provides appropriate locations for warehousing, distribution, storage and manufacturing characterized by activities outside an enclosed building, 24 hour operations and/or high volume truck movements.
  • Refines the industrial district use lists so that uses appropriate to the desired intensity and market orientation of the industrial district are permitted, rather than requiring a conditional use or text amendment. The current use structure of the industrial districts does not create a predictable development environment for potential new industries. Numerous uses typical to an industrial district are not permitted by-right.
  • Refines the industrial district structure to accommodate a range of industrial development including standards for research and light industrial/office parks.
  • Includes design standards for both buildings and the larger design of the site for industrial, business, and research parks. Design standards will help to mitigate impacts and assure a desired aesthetic image.
  • Maintains performance standards for industry in establishing uses and evaluating impacts near residential areas.
  1. Zoning districts accommodate large office, medical and educational employment centers, without significant impact on residential components.
  • Zoning districts accommodate the variety of campus uses within New Orleans, such as educational institutions, the new Medical District, and the proposed bio-medical corridor along Tulane Avenue. Specific zoning for such developments facilitates a more orderly and efficient regulation process. Specific district development regulations should clearly indicate the scope of each development, requirements for transitions between campus activities ​and adjacent neighborhoods, and procedures for addressing concerns raised between the institution, the City and adjacent neighborhoods.
  • Allows mixed-use development in campus districts.
  • Crafts appropriate boundary transitions between major uses and the surrounding neighborhood to ensure good neighbor compatibility.
  • Institutes planned development review for larger projects to better integrate new projects into their context. While this is especially appropriate for campus-like developments, this can be beneficial in numerous types of other non-residential development.
  1. Attract new employers by creating a positive image through appropriate development standards.
  • Includes new landscaping standards to buffer incompatible uses, screen parking lots and outdoor storage areas, and improve the appearance of the site and street frontage.
  • Tailors sign standards to the nature of the district, both in terms of the types of signs allowed as well as the size. The regulations work to achieve a coordinated appearance within a commercial area or along commercial corridors.
  • Incorporates a design review process that informs both the developer and the neighbor of community design standards and operational concerns.

A Zoning Response to the Master Plan Theme: Sustainable Systems

Zoning for sustainability helps shape development that is energy and resource-efficient, minimizes the impact of human land uses, and promotes compatibility with local climate and environmental systems. Although most of New Orleans continues to need the structural protection of its levee systems, there are many additional ways in which the City can enhance its environmental sustainability and safety to become a “green” leader among the world’s river delta cities.

The master planning process has identified a series of goals and policies that broadly define the qualities of a sustainable city in terms of community facilities and services, transportation, environmental quality and hazard mitigation.

Zoning supports and encourages sustainable development by eliminating or revising existing rules that unnecessarily hinder sustainable development, incentivizing sustainable design techniques, and requiring basic sustainable development standards which address landscape, building materials, building siting, and relate the location of use types and densities to properly scaled transit access.

  1. Protect and provide for open spaces appropriate to conserving the regions natural resources and meeting the needs of its residents.
  • ​Provides appropriate locations for open spaces and public recreational areas.
  • Distinguishes between areas of preservation and areas of recreation.
  1. Promote the use of water conservation and innovative stormwater management techniques in site planning and new construction.
  • Promotes the use of semi-pervious paving materials, especially for large paved areas.
  • Encourages, and in some cases requires, sustainable stormwater management practices, scaled to the size and character of the site. Current techniques include bioswales, green roofs, and parking lot landscaped islands that are designed to absorb stormwater.
  • Prohibit drainage of remaining wetlands for building except by special permit with mitigation that requires an opinion by the City Office of Coastal and Environmental Affairs, or establish a local wetlands ordinance to regulate impacts on wetlands.
  1. Increase access to healthy food at a lower environmental cost by supporting the production, processing and distribution of locally grown food.
  • Allows community gardens and urban agriculture in appropriate locations.
  • Permits temporary farmers markets in certain districts, subject to regulations, so that locally- grown produce can be sold within the community.
  • Allows small-scale food processing in certain commercial districts.
  1. Reduce the urban heat island impact through design of new development which minimizes reflective flat surfaces.
  • Requires parking lot landscaping that shades the surface with tree cover to reduce the heat island impact.
  • Includes parking alternatives, such as shared parking lots and parking space maximums, to reduce the amount of paved surface in a new development.
  • Include tree planting requirements.
  1. Reduce the rate of greenhouse gas emissions by promoting the use of alternative energy systems and increasing transportation choice.
  • ​Permits solar collectors as an accessory use.
  • Creates building siting guidelines for larger developments to allow for passive solar systems.
  • Allows small-scale wind energy systems, subject to standards that regulate noise levels at the property line.
  • Requires bicycle parking facilities for certain types of new development, as well as bicycle storage facilities in larger residential development.
  • Establishes standards that address the number of bicycles to be accommodated for various land use categories.
  • Requires setback maximums or build-to standards to establish the desired scale of development within areas where a pedestrian-orientation is desired.
  • Requires a landscape separation between the pedestrian and the auto in the site design of new developments.
  • Provides attractive and safe pedestrian walkways across vehicular areas and through parking lots.
  • Requires pedestrian cross-access connections between sites and to adjacent developments, to create a larger, walkable environment.
  • Includes provisions to encourage cross-access easements between adjacent parking areas for different businesses which can encourage shared parking areas and reduce curb cuts.
  • Regulates the spacing of curb cuts to preserve sidewalk continuity for pedestrians and preserve on-street parking spaces.

A Zoning Response to the Master Plan Theme: From Plan to Action

The master planning process has identified a series of goals and policies addressing the key elements of putting the plan to work: land use, citizen participation and modern implementation systems. As the Charter amendment has given the Master Plan the force of law, future zoning decisions must be consistent with the goals and policies of the Land Use element of the Master Plan.

A modern zoning ordinance should be more than just requirements and mandates. It should make it easy to do the right thing. Obstacles that stand in the way of desirable development practices should be removed, and the connection to the land use policies of the Plan should be evident in the both the text and the zoning map.

  1. Ensure that planning and zoning work together.
  • Districts and regulations in the Ordinance use land use tools to see the Master Plan vision come to fruition.
  • The Zoning Ordinance is consistent with the Master Plan through remapping based upon the future land use map. As districts are revised or new districts drafted in the future, connection to the Plan’s land use policy must be clear in the mapping of these districts.
  • Provides for systematic neighborhood and citizen input into proposed zoning changes.
  • Provides easy access to zoning information by making the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance, Zoning Map and application procedures easily available on the CPC website.
  • Use structures are tailored to the intent of each district, but are flexible enough to respond to emerging uses.
  1. Simplify and streamline the ordinance
  • Standards are in place whenever possible to make the ordinance consistent and predictable in development decisions.
  • Administrative provisions are consistent, predictable and understandable for Ordinance users whether they are a developer, City staff person or interested resident.
  • The ordinance easier to understand by modernizing terms, using appropriate illustrations, tables, matrices and charts.
  • The ordinance reduces obstacles to development by deregulating routine matters, minimizing nonconformities, and eliminating unnecessary and redundant regulations.
2.13.H
H

Opportunity Sites

The planning team identified several large “opportunity sites” across the city that could support significant redevelopment. Located along existing or proposed transit routes, these vacant or underutilized light- industrial and commercial areas offer New Orleans a unique opportunity to build vibrant, contemporary, transit-oriented neighborhoods, main streets, and commercial centers. Of varying densities, these new developments could incorporate the best qualities of existing historic neighborhoods. Housing and commercial market analyses suggest that sufficient demand will exist to assure the success of redevelopment on these sites. The results of the market analyses shaped the recommendations for each of these sites, which collectively would bring New Orleans broadened housing choices, expanded retail offerings, increased sales tax revenues, and new jobs.

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2.13.H.1

Opportunity Site 1

New Orleans East

Existing Site
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Future Land Use
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New Orleans East has played a key role in the city’s recent history, offering thousands of residents an opportunity to live in gracious suburban-like neighborhoods without leaving the city they love and becoming in the process an emblem of growing  African-American affluence. More residents are returning to “the East” to live, affirming their commitment to their neighborhoods and to  New  Orleans…and  taking  advantage of extensive infrastructure for protecting neighborhoods from rain-driven flooding and increased protection from storm-driven floods. Redevelopment of the former Plaza at Lake Forest mall is still needed to play a critical role in enhancing livability. The Renaissance Plan, which the community prepared in 2004 may still act as a guide. Residents continue to voice a strong desire for a wide variety of shopping and services, together with the newly opened hospital and other uses that offer tangible improvements in quality of life. While the Renaissance Plan proposed additional housing, residents have a strong desire for substantial home ownership and indicated concern that this housing might not maintain its value. Participants stressed that all redevelopment should achieve higher quality and design standards.

The planning team conducted market research to determine demand for important opportunity sites. The results for the plaza site indicate substantial potential for high-quality re-development, assuming community-based planning to ensure that the plaza is not redeveloped in piece-meal fashion.

Housing Potential:

In 2009, an analysis of residential market potential in the plaza are, conducted by Zimmerman/Volk Associates, found demand over the next five to seven years for roughly 1,000 units of housing. This demand includes a wide variety of ages, household types, and backgrounds; market-rate demand includes both ownership and rental units.

Office Potential:

W-ZHA also identified demand for new office space if the plaza area is redeveloped to a high level of quality with a variety of retail, restaurants, and similar amenities for office workers. Offices would probably not represent an early use, but the plaza area represents New Orleans’ best opportunity to attract the kinds of employers that traditionally locate in office parks; they increasingly seek attractive mixed use environments with highway visibility.

Retail Market Potential:

A retail market analysis prepared by W-ZHA for the New Orleans East trade area (the area in which the majority of customer sales originate) concluded that by in 2013:

  • Residents will hold approximately $686 million in spending potential.
  • The trade area could support one of the following options:
    • A large super-community “neighborhood center” of 500,000–800,000 square feet that would include a general merchandise store (e.g., Wal-Mart), a large supermarket, big-box retailers, a movie theater complex, supportive chain retail, and eating and drinking establishments. (Under this option, the super center should be incorporated into a “town center” setting near one of the I-10 interchanges, and target needs of local residents, not a regional population.)
    • Up to three neighborhood-serving retail centers of approximately 60,000–80,000 sf, each anchored by a medium sized supermarket, drug store and smaller service establishments. (Under this option, these neighborhood centers should be dispersed  within the trade area.)

For complete market analyses, see Volume 3, Appendix

Site Concept: Transit-Ready Neighborhood Center
2009
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2030
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2.13.H.2

Opportunity Site 2

Convention Center Development District

The large, vacant riverfront parcels—previously designated for a convention center expansion would offer a unique opportunity to develop a vibrant, pedestrian-friendly and transit-supported mixed-use urban center adjacent to the Warehouse District and CBD. The site and surrounding underutilized parcels could hold attractive high-rise and mid-rise buildings with neighborhood amenities that support both residents and visitors alike, including restaurants, cafes, supportive retail conveniences, and lodging for visitors. The site would also incorporate enhanced pedestrian-oriented design characteristics, where residents would walk, or take the riverfront streetcar, to work in the CBD and Medical District. New streets that integrate with the City’s existing street grid would connect surrounding neighborhood areas to the site’s multiple community amenities, including public plazas and a new connection to the future riverfront park while preserving views of the bridge and sky.

Existing Site
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Housing Potential:

  • The opportunity site could support up to 1,750 new units of mixed-income housing through 2014 (or 453 new units per year).
  • The majority of units could be market rate (at least 75 percent)
  • Potential households attracted to the area could include younger singles and childless couples (54 percent), urban families (29 percent) and empty nesters or retirees (17 percent).

Retail Market Analysis:

  • Approximately 58 percent of units be multifamily rentals (lofts and high rise apartments), and 42 percent owner-occupied multifamily, condos or co-ops, rowhouses and small lot single-family (detached and attached) homes.
  • Due to its proximity to the Central Business and Warehouse districts, the opportunity site will target residential uses, however small neighborhood convenience retail will be located on the ground floor of some residential structures. For complete residential and retail market analyses, see Volume 3, Appendix.
Site Concept: Riverfront Urban Village
2009
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2030
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2.13.H.3

Opportunity Site 3

Elysian Fields

The largely underutilized commercial parcels at the intersection of Elysian Fields Avenue andGentilly Boulevard could be transformed into a compact mixed-use, mixed-income urban village. The new development, which has been recommended in previous planning efforts, could serve as a pedestrian focused “Main Street” to serve residents in surrounding neighborhoods, and the students and faculty at nearby Dillard University. Parking could be hidden behind the numerous storefronts that are oriented to the street including a specialty grocery, ground floor retail (with apartments and condos above), restaurants and other convenience goods. A future street car or bus rapid transit route could shuttle residents quickly to downtown jobs and cultural institutions, and to recreational amenities along the lakefront.

Existing Site
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Future Land Use
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Housing Potential:

A 2009 analysis of residential market potential by Zimmerman/Volk Associates concluded the following:

  • The opportunity site could support up to 226 units of new mixed-income housing per year through 2014, for a total of 750 units.
  • Potential housholds attracted to the area could include younger singles and childless couples (61 percent), uban families (28 percent) and empty nesters or retirees (11 percent)
  • Approximately 58 percent of units could be multifamily rental units (lofts and apartments), with 42 percent owner-occupied, more than half of which would be in single-family homes (detached and attached). The remainder could be multifamily units (condos, co-op ownership).

Retail Market Potential:

A retail market analysis prepared by W-ZHA for the Elysian Fields Avenue trade area (the area in which the majority of customer sales originate) concluded that by 2013:

  • Residents in the trade area will hold approximately $450 million in spending potential.
  • Up to 100,000 square feet of retail space cpuld be supported at the site.
  • Neighborhood serving retail including a small grocery (30,000–50,000 sf), apparel and sundry shops, a hardware store, and take-out food establishments would offer the greatest opportunity at this location.
  • Retail establishments should target local customers in a pedestrian-friendly, mixed-use environment.

For complete residential and retail market analyses, see Volume 3, Appendix.

Site Concept: Mixed-Use, Transit-Ready Neighborhood Center
2009
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2030
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2.13.H.4

Opportunity Site 4

Earhart Boulevard

Currently a mix of light industrial parcels (many underutilized) and vacant lots adjacent to the B.W. Cooper housing redevelopment project, the area holds the potential to serve as a city-oriented, urban retail center made up of medium to large big-box stores, a large supermarket and supporting national retailers. Customers could arrive by foot from new housing built on the former B.W. Cooper site, or by car from neighborhoods within a short distance drive. Parking will be located in the rear on surface or in structured lots, allowing storefronts to face the boulevard along a wide, pedestrian sidewalk featuring comfortable street furniture and outdoor cafes.

Existing Site
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Future Land Use
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Housing Potential:

A 2009 analysis of residential market potential by Zimmerman/Volk Associates concluded the following:

  • Potential households attracted to the area could include younger singles and childless couples (57 percent), urban families (31 percent) and empty nesters or retirees (12 percent).
  • Approximately 69 percent of units could be multifamily rental units (lofts and apartment), and 31 percent owner-occupied single-family (detached and attached) and multifamily units (condos, co-op ownership).

Retail Market Potential:

A retail market analysis prepared by W-ZHA for the Earhart Boulevard trade area (the area in which the majority of customer sales originate) concluded that by 2013:

  • Trade area residents will hold approximately $2.3 billion in retail spending potential.
  • Up to 300,000 square feet of retail space could be supported at the site.
  • General merchandise, apparel, eating and drinking establishments, and food and beverage locations (supermarkets and groceries) would offer the greatest opportunity at this location.
  • A community retail center, not a regional supercenter, anchored by a general merchandise or food store (e.g., Target or Wal-Mart), along with medium sized big box national retailers would best serve the trade area.
  • The site would hold the potential to recapture up to $100 million of spending (and sales tax revenues) that New Orleanians currently spend in surrounding parishes.

For complete residential and retail market analyses, see Volume 3, Appendix.

Site Concept: Urban Bog Box Boulevard
2009
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2030
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2.13.H.5

Opportunity Site 5

Lindy Boggs/Mid-City

Redevelopment could transform the former Lindy Boggs Medical Center and collection of adjacent light industrial and commercial properties (many underutilized) into a vibrant, transit-oriented neighborhood center. Carrollton Avenue could serve as a pedestrian-oriented Main Street with a mix of medium-density, mixed-income housing above ground-floor retail (incorporating the existing supermarkets). Lower-density townhouse, two-family, and small lot single-family housing could be developed along the edges to transition into established residential neighborhood. New green space corridors lined with renewable energy wind turbines could connect to the Lafitte Greenway to create a unique green network for the entire Mid-City neighborhood.

Existing Site
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Future Land Use
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Housing Potential:

A 2009 analysis of residential market potential by Zimmerman/Volk Associates concluded the following:

  • The opportunity site could support up to 386 units of new mixed-income housing per year through 2014, for a total of 1,500 units.
  • Potential households attracted to the area could include younger singles and childless couples (41 percent), urban families (37 percent) and empty nesters or retirees (22 percent).
  • Approximately 68 percent of units could be multifamily rentals (lofts and apartments), and 32 percent owner-occupied single-family homes (detached and attached) and multifamily units (condos, co-op ownership).

Retail Market Potential:

A retail market analysis prepared by W-ZHA for the Lindy Boggs Mid City trade area (the area in which the majority of customer sales originate) concluded that by 2013:

  • Residents will hold approximately $1.8 billion in spending potential.
  • Up to 150,000 square feet of additional retail space could be accommodated on site.
  • Card shops, discount merchandisers, toy and hobby stores, affordable restaurants and neighborhood service locations (banks, beauty salons, barber shops) would offer the greatest opportunity.
  • Retail should target local customers, and not serve as a regional destination.
  • Initial development should cluster at Carrollton Avenue around the Rouse’s and grow incrementally as market demand increases.

For complete residential and retail market analyses, see Volume 3, Appendix.

Site Concept: Transit Oriented Developement Neighborhood.
2009
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2030
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2.13.H.6

Opportunity Site 6

Woodland Highway

Redevelopment of the former Schweggman’s supermarket site should be predominantly residential, with a mix of single-family, townhouse, and multifamily housing units in a pedestrian village-like setting with a town center of specialty retailers including a small market, wine shop, dry cleaner and other neighborhood conveniences to serve residents. With the addition of a new, express BRT line to downtown, the village could support additional convenience retail to serve commuters from neighboring communities.

Existing Site
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Future Land Use
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Housing Potential:

A 2009 analysis of residential market potential by Zimmerman/Volk Associates concluded the following:

  • The opportunity site could support up to 453 units of new mixed-income housing per year through 2014, for a total of 1,500 units.
  • Potential housholds attracted to the area could include younger singles and childless couples (40 percent), urban failies (36 percent) and empty nesters or retirees (24 percent)
  • Approximately 49 percent of units could be multifamily rentals (lofts and apartments), and 51 percent owner-occupied, primarily single-family homes (detached and attached, including townhouses), and some multifamily condominiums.

Retail Market Potential:

A retail market analysis prepared by W-ZHA for the Woodland Highway trade area (the area in which the majority of customer sales originate) concluded that by 2013:

  • Residents will hold approximately $253.7 million in spending potential.
  • Most of the Trade Area’s day-to-day shopping will continue to occur to the north in the vicinity of theintersection between General DeGaulle Drive and Behrman Highway.
  • The site’s redevelopment will not be driven by retail, but instead with residential development.
  • If high income households reside in new housing on the site, the opportunity exists for some specialty retail (approximately 40,000 square feet), most likely a card or gift ship, florist or wine store.

For complete residential and retail market analyses, see Volume 3, Appendix

Site Concept: Suburban Residential Center with Supporting Retail
2009
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2030
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2.13.H.7

Opportunity Site 7

Basin Street

Multiple developments with the potential for large-scale economic development, community revitalization, housing, cultural identity, and environmental responsibility have been proposed for the area between North Rampart Street and North Claiborne Avenue linking the Iberville and Tremé communities and surrounding neighborhoods. These include the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative Iberville Redevelopment, the Livable Claiborne Communities study, the North Rampart streetcar, the Lafitte Greenway, and the redevelopment of Armstrong Park. The level of attention and investment focused on this area necessitates significant community outreach to all stakeholders affected by the new development and a coordinated planning approach to weave these developments together. If properly coordinated, these developments can create a high-performing urban environment, remove physical barriers, and increase connections across multiple neighborhoods.

Existing Site
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Future Land Use
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The Following Concepts Should Serve as Guiding Principles for Future Planning and Development in This Area:

  • Study the connection of the Lafitte Greenway, Armstrong Park and the Basin Street neutral ground to extend the network of green space. The Lafitte Greenway could connect to the Basin Street neutral ground to reach Canal Street, Loyola Avenue, Duncan Plaza, and the streetcar network.
  • Promote walking, cycling, and public transportation as ways to increase access and enhance the number of visitors to the cultural, retail, entertainment, and recreational destinations in the area.
  • Provide adequate and appropriate parking that balances the needs of residents and visitors. Coordination of parking facilities should be encouraged in the planning and design of large developments, and opportunities for shared parking for complimentary uses should be explored. Preference should be given to structured parking garages rather than surface parking lots where possible.
  • Consider traffic-calming measures for Basin Street to increase safety and expand opportunities for pedestrian oriented retail.
  • Support the re-establishment of the historic street grid where appropriate in order to increase connectivity between Tremé, Iberville, the Vieux Carré, the Central Business District, and surrounding neighborhoods. Give preference to the removal of barriers and the establishment of street connections as part of all major development projects and plans for the area.
  • Study ways to enhance the amenities in Armstrong Park and to strengthen connections between the park and the surrounding communities.
  • Incorporate sustainable water features as both an amenity and a means to manage stormwater runoff.
  • Study ways to integrate the performance venues, museums, historic sites, recreational facilities, and other destinations in the area into a cohesive and identifiable cultural district. A nuanced approach to signage and other means of wayfinding should be considered. Evaluate the establishment of entertainment uses along Basin Street with consideration for the protection of residential quality of life in surrounding neighborhoods.
2012
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2030
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Renderings from City of New Orleans "Lafitte Corridor Revitalization Plan" and Lafitte Master Plan"
2.13.H.8

Opportunity Site 8

Brown’s Dairy/Central City

Brown’s Dairy announced in early 2016 that it would be closing its Central City milk processing plant and would move those operations to Hammond, LA. The decision to close the Central City facility will result in the elimination of 185 jobs and several squares of vacant facilities where the processing plant and ancillary facilities currently stand. The site is on most of the properties generally located between Oretha Castle Haley and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevards and Carondelet and Erato Streets. This site is a prime location for investment due to being centrally located and the Central City neighborhood’s rich with history and culture. Additionally, Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard has experienced a recent surge in development activity that will also soon include streetscape improvements slated to be complete in Spring 2017. The redevelopment of the former Brown’s Dairy site could build upon these redevelopments and should contribute to the Central City community and be responsive to its needs.

Existing Site
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Future Land Use
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Following Concepts Should Serve as Guiding Principles for Future Planning and Development in This Area:

  • Explore funding sources to attract new businesses that align with neighborhood needs and builds off of the public and private investment on Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard.
  • Explore the feasibility of reopening access to Thalia Street between Baronne and Carondelet Streets to reconnect the street grid and improve pedestrian access.
  • Explore funding for a planning process to inform economic development scenarios on the site, including affordable housing and commercial potential with a possible emphasis on cultural based and influences businesses and centers. Planning process should have a robust neighborhood engagement component.
  • Explore the redevelopment of Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard to prioritize walking and biking, and improved transit access; allowing it to be a strong connection from Saint Charles Avenue to Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard.
  • Develop a gateway project to better connect Downtown and O.C. Haley Boulevard. The Pontchartrain Expressway overpass present a barrier to drawing residents, workers, and visitors to O.C. Haley, and by extension this area as a whole, despite its close proximity to downtown. Certain beautification and enhancement projects can transform this barrier into a connection between the neighborhoods and even a destination in its own right.
2.13.H.9

Opportunity Site 9

Claiborne Corridor Food Manufacturing District at Poydras Row

New Orleans is known for its rich, cultural-gumbo-pot of food traditions and routinely leads the rankings as a great food city throughout the nation and the world. However, though New Orleanians own the restaurants and the recipes, the city lacks the infrastructure to capitalize on food production and distribution. This production gap is a missed opportunity to grow the local economy by sharing local foods with a wider clientele. At the apex between the CBD, Broad Street corridor, and Claiborne corrido, Poydras Row is a roughly 6-acre city-owned parcel of land in the neutral ground of Poydras Street between South Galvez Street and South Broad Street. With the right vision, the currently undeveloped parcel could spur a food manufacturing district, filling the current production gap while providing an attraction for both New Orleanians and tourists alike.

Existing Site
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Manufacturing Potential:

One of the few areas near the city center that are zoned as light industrial, the area is currently home to two food and beverage manufacturers: Cajun Spirits Distillery and Baker Maid. There are several vacant or for lease properties along the corridor that would make ideal locations for additional food manufacturers such as breweries, a food incubator, or industrial kitchen.

Retail Potential:

Cajun Spirits Distillery currently has a tasting room to showcase its products and Baker Maid has expressed interest in adding a retail component and doing tours, tastings, and cooking classes at its factory. As the corridor adds food manufacturers, the potential for successful ground-level retail and restaurants in properties that line Poydras Street increases. There is also opportunity to create food or product stalls as part of a development in the city-owned neutral ground.

Mixed Use Potential:

Already home to the 250-unit Marquis Apartments, the unique proximity of Poydras Row to the Superdome and the rest of downtown makes it an ideal location for overflow event parking, hotel development, and residential development. Poydras Row development should seek to make the area accessible by pedestrians, motorists, and bicyclists. Additionally, new residential developments should include a mix of affordable and market-rate units.

2.13.H.10

Opportunity Site 10

Claiborne Corridor Cultural Innovation District

The Claiborne Corridor Cultural Innovation District (CID) is a 19-block transformation of the space beneath the elevated I-10 expressway along Claiborne Avenue from Canal Street to St. Bernard Avenue. In order to heal what many view as an injurious structure, which cut a community off from itself and resulted in the disinvestment of an historical African-American commercial district, it must be truly “made over” into a welcoming bridge to the world for the people who live, work and celebrate around it every day. In addition to being secure, clean, safe for pedestrians, with abundant seating and all the other characteristics that mark great public spaces, it will be beautiful in ways that affirm the culture and identity of Claiborne Corridor residents.

Existing Site
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Future Land Use
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The diversity of people and interests the CID will welcome and support demands that a wide range of activities be possible. This place of spirited cultural exchange will be designed to accommodate socialization on every level, with a plethora of activities throughout the week. From shopping and dining to trainings and performances, activities will be planned to attract people of all ages and demographics. Built with green infrastructure, in addition to being a world-class market with arts, crafts, produce and seafood vendors, the CID will include classrooms and exhibit space, interactive technology and education demonstrations, and will be a site for youth programming, health, environmental, and social services, community projects, workshops, and special events for the residents of the Claiborne Corridor.

Residents will find that the CID does more than just pay homage to their cultural products, but supports them by providing economic opportunity for hundreds of artists, vendors, farmers, fishermen, food artists, and performers. The benefits of entrepreneurship have not been fully realized in our city, with the share of all receipts accruing to minority-owned businesses holding at only 2%. Similarly, indigenous culture bearers (musicians, Social Aid and Pleasure Club members and Mardi Gras Indian members) are not enjoying the economic successes that the City’s cultural economy at large, is experiencing.

The Claiborne Corridor is home to a critical mass of the City’s traditional culture bearers, who mostly live at or below the poverty line. With the capacity to support development of up to 160 micro-enterprises in three years, the Vendor Training and Incentive Program will be a defining component of the CID’s success.

Heavy on innovation, the CID will be a resident-governed effort focused on providing direct pathways to business ownership, workforce development, and community capacity building, through fulfilling the need for neighborhood serving retail and enhanced neighborhood services.

Housing Potential:

Primary draw areas for new and existing housing units in the LCC Study Area:

  • Households currently within the city: 48.2%
  • Jefferson, East Baton Rouge and St. Tammany Parishes: 17.5%
  • Dallas and Harris Counties, Texas: 6.7%
  • Balance of the U.S.: 27.6%

Annual potential market potential for new and existing housing units in the LCC Study Area:

  • Multi-family for rent: 61%
  • Multi-family for sale: 17%
  • Single-family attached for sale: 14%
  • Single-family detached for sale: 8%

Annual market potential by household income groups:

  • Incomes below 30% of Area Median Income (AMI): 17% of households
  • Incomes between 30% and 50% of AMI: 16% of households
  • Incomes between 50% and 80% of AMI: 18% of households
  • Incomes between 80% and 120% of AMI: 22 % of households
  • Incomes above 120% of AMI: 27% of households

Annual market potential by household type in the LCC Study Area:

  • Younger singles and childless couples: 61.8%
  • Empty nesters and retirees: 19.4%
  • A range of traditional and non-traditional families: 18.8%

Annual housing market potential over the next 5 to 7 years: 374 to 660 units:

  • Multifamily rental units: 230 units to 405 units, including households at all affordability levels
  • Multifamily for sale units: 63 units to 111 units, including households at all affordability levels
  • Single family attached for sale: 53 units to 94 units, including households at all affordability levels
  • Single family detached for sale: 28 units to 50 units, including households at all affordability levels
  • 61% of the housing potential is for rental housing
  • 51% of the target households have incomes below 80% of AMI, making them eligible for assisted housing
  • Potential unit numbers do not include public housing replacement units as housing potential but do include other assisted units (housing vouchers, Low-Income Housing Tax Credits and so on)
  • Given the large number of housing units already planned to be built by 2020 through the Choice Neighborhood Initiative as well as other programs, future analysis must evaluate the extent to which these units in pipeline will satisfy the estimated market potential.

Office Market Potential:

Near term increased demand for office space in the Central Business District and surrounding neighborhoods will be satisfied in existing, vacant Class A and Class B office space. By 2022, there will be demand for approximately 375,000 square feet of new office space in smaller office buildings, targeted to smaller tenants. New office development in Orleans Parish will likely occur in and around the Central Business District south of Claiborne Avenue given the presence of urban amenities. For planning purposes, it is not unreasonable to assume that the Study Area can capture 100,000 to 150,000 square feet of office space between Poydras Street and Canal Street by 2022. Because of relatively low land values, the Study Area may be well positioned for smaller, build‐to‐suit office buildings of 40,000 square feet or less. The most competitive locations in the near term are near Canal Street, Tulane Avenue and Poydras Street, south of Claiborne Avenue. These locations offer excellent access and urban amenities relatively close‐by. Longer term locations linked to hospital and BioDistrict development are Canal Street, Tulane Avenue and Poydras Street north of Claiborne Avenue.

Retail Market Potential:

Separate retail assessments were conducted for the Study Area upriver and downriver of the Pontchartrain Expressway. Claiborne Avenue upriver contains auto-oriented establishment, fast food/restaurants, and some retail. In the LCC area downriver of the expressway, most of the store space is located in the CBD or on Broad Street. Claiborne Avenue downriver has very little retail or service space. There is one limited assortment supermarket in the upriver portion of the Study Area: Sav-A-Lot at the corner of Claiborne and Toledano Street, with approximately 20,000 square feet. There is a Rouse’s supermarket down-town, but LCC area residents do not frequent it. Upriver of the Pontchartrain Expressway there is neighborhood retail potential for one large supermarket, two small supermarkets, a pharmacy, and ancillary retail, for a total of approximately 118,000 Sq. Ft. and about 300,000 Sq. Ft. in discount-oriented community retail/big box. The prime location for a large supermarket is the growing agglomeration of retail on South Claiborne Avenue between Toledano Street and Napoleon Avenue. This supermarket could then leverage ancillary retail such as restaurants, cleaners, banks, hair salon, and take‐out food. The planned Jack and Jake’s market at Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard will fill the potential for a small market, and another could be supported at South Claiborne and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, which would also be a prime location for a pharmacy/drug store and could draw another 2,000 square feet in neighborhood retail. Downriver of the Pontchartrain Expressway two small supermarkets and ancillary retail could total 80-90,000 square feet.

Mixed-use Potential:

Upriver of the Pontchartrain Expressway, the Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard commercial district is the most likely location for mixed use development. Most retail development on South Claiborne upriver of the Pontchartrain Expressway will likely be single purpose buildings. Downriver of the Expressway, mixed‐use development options are greater. Mixed use will be necessary to create the lively, urban pedestrian environment with neighborhood retail that the BioDistrict requires to succeed. Potential locations for mixed-use development are: Poydras Street, Tulane Street, Canal Street and their intersections with Claiborne Avenue and Galvez Street. There is also potential for mixed‐use on Broad Street and the future retail node at St. Bernard Avenue and Claiborne Avenue, though mixed use is not necessary for these locations to succeed.

2016
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2020
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2.13.I
I

Future Land Use Consistency Table

Table Specifying Relationship between Future Land Use Designations and Zoning Classifications
  Master Plan Future Land Use Map Designation Consistent Zoning District Classifications
Residential-Semi-Rural.JPG Residential Semi-rural Single-family (RSR) RRE Rural Residential Estate District
  Residential Historic Core (R-HC) HMR-1 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Residential District HMR-2 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Residential District HMR-3 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Residential District HMC-1 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Commercial District HMC-2 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Commercial District VCR-1 Vieux Carré Residential District VCR-2 Vieux Carré Residential District VCC-1 Vieux Carré Commercial District VCC-2 Vieux Carré Commercial District
  Residential Pre-war Single-family (RSF-PRE) HU-RS Single-Family Residential District
  Residential Post-war Single-family (RSF-POST) S-RS Single-Family Residential District S-LRS1 Lakeview Single-Family Residential District S-LRS2 Lake Vista and Lake Shore Single-Family Residential District S-LRS3 Lakewood and Country Club Gardens Single-Family Residential District
  Residential Pre-war Low Density (RLD-PRE) HU-RD1 Two-Family Residential District HU-RD2 Two-Family Residential District HU-RM1 Multi-Family Residential District HU-B1A Neighborhood Business District HU-B1 Neighborhood Business District HU-MU Neighborhood Mixed-Use District
  Residential Post-war Low Density (RLD-POST) S-RD Two-Family Residential District S-LRD1 Lake Vista Two-Family Residential District S-LRD2 Lakewood/Parkview Two-Family Residential District
  Residential Pre-war Medium Density (RMD-PRE) HU-RD2 Two-Family Residential District HU-RM1 Multi-Family Residential District HU-B1A Neighborhood Business District HU-B1 Neighborhood Business District HU-MU Neighborhood Mixed-Use District
  Residential Pre-war Multifamily (RMF-PRE) HU-RM1 Multi-Family Residential District HU-RM2 Multi-Family Residential District HU-B1A Neighborhood Business District HU-B1 Neighborhood Business District HU-MU Neighborhood Mixed-Use District
  Residential Post-war Multifamily (RMF-POST) S-RD Two-Family Residential District S-RM1 Multi-Family Residential District S-RM2 Multi-Family Residential District S-LRM1 Lake Area Low-Rise Multi-Family Residential District S-LRM2 Lake Area High-Rise Multi-Family Residential District
  Neighborhood Commercial (NC) HMC-1 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Commercial District HMC-2 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Commercial District HU-B1 Neighborhood Business District S-B1 Suburban Business District S-B2 Pedestrian-Oriented Corridor Business District S-LB1 Lake Area Neighborhood Business District S-LB2 Lake Area Neighborhood Business District C-1 General Commercial District
  General Commercial (GC) S-LC Lake Area General Commercial District C-1 General Commercial District C-2 Auto-Oriented Commercial District C-3 Heavy Commercial District
  Downtown Exposition (DE) CBD-4 Exposition District
  Business Center (BC) MU-2 High Intensity Mixed-Use District BIP Business Industrial Park District
  Industrial LI Light Industrial District HI Heavy Industrial District MI Maritime Industrial District
  Mixed-use Historic Core (MU-HC) HMR-1 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Residential District HMR-2 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Residential District HMR-3 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Residential District HMC-1 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Commercial District HMC-2 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Commercial District HM-MU Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Mixed-Use District VCR-1 Vieux Carré Residential District VCR-2 Vieux Carré Residential District VCC-1 Vieux Carré Commercial District VCC-2 Vieux Carré Commercial District VCE Vieux Carré Entertainment District VCE-1 Vieux Carré Entertainment District VCS Vieux Carré Service District VCS-1 Vieux Carré Service District
MARI.JPG Mixed-use Maritime (MARI) M-MU Maritime Mixed-Use District S-LM Lake Area Marina District
  Mixed-use Low Density (MUL) HMR-3 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Residential District HMC-1 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Commercial District HMC-2 Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Commercial District HM-MU Historic Marigny/Tremé/Bywater Mixed-Use District HU-RD1 Two-Family Residential District HU-RD2 Two-Family Residential District HU-RM1 Multi-Family Residential District HU-B1A Neighborhood Business District HU-B1 Neighborhood Business District HU-MU Neighborhood Mixed-Use District S-RD Two-Family Residential District S-RM1 Multi-Family Residential District S-B1 Suburban Business District S-B2 Pedestrian-Oriented Corridor Business District S-LB1 Lake Area Neighborhood Business District S-LB2 Lake Area Neighborhood Business District EC Educational Campus District MS Medical Service District
  Mixed-use Medium Density (MUM) HU-RD2 Two-Family Residential District HU-RM1 Multi-Family Residential District HU-RM2 Multi-Family Residential District HU-B1A Neighborhood Business District HU-B1 Neighborhood Business District HU-MU Neighborhood Mixed-Use District S-RM1 Multi-Family Residential District S-LRM1 Lake Area Low-Rise Multi-Family Residential District S-LRM2 Lake Area High-Rise Multi-Family Residential District S-B1 Suburban Business District S-B2 Pedestrian-Oriented Corridor Business District S-LB2 Lake Area Neighborhood Business District S-LC Lake Area General Commercial District C-1 General Commercial District MU-1 Medium Intensity Mixed-Use District EC Educational Campus District MC Medical Campus District MS Medical Service District
  Mixed-use High Density (MUH) HU-RM2 Multi-Family Residential District S-RM1 Multi-Family Residential District C-2 Auto-Oriented Commercial District C-3 Heavy Commercial District MU-2 High Intensity Mixed-Use District EC Educational Campus District MC Medical Campus District
  Mixed-use Downtown (DMU) CBD-1 Core Central Business District CBD-2 Historic Commercial and Mixed-Use District CBD-3 Cultural Arts District CBD-4 Exposition District CBD-5 Urban Core Neighborhood Lower Intensity Mixed-UseDistrict CBD-6 Urban Core Neighborhood Mixed-Use District CBD-7 Bio-Science District
  Mixed-use Downtown Core Neighborhood (DCNMU) CBD-3 Cultural Arts District CBD-5 Urban Core Neighborhood Lower Intensity Mixed-Use District CBD-6 Urban Core Neighborhood Mixed-Use District
  Mixed-use Health/life Sciences Neighborhood (MUHLS) LS Life Science Mixed-Use District CBD-7 Bio-Science District
  Planned Development Area (PDA) GPD General Planned Development District
  Institutional (INS) EC Educational Campus District MC Medical Campus District MS Medical Service District HU-MU Neighborhood Mixed-Use District MU-1 Medium Intensity Mixed-Use District MU-2 High Intensity Mixed-Use District OS-R Regional Open Space District S-LC Lake Area General Commercial District C1 General Commercial District LI Light Industrial District
  Natural Areas (NA) NA Natural Areas District
  Parkland and Open Space (P) OS-N Neighborhood Open Space District OS-G Greenway Open Space District OS-R Regional Open Space District NA Natural Areas District VCP Vieux Carré Park District S-LP Lake Area Neighborhood Park District
cemetery-(1).JPG Cemetery (CEM) OS-N Neighborhood Open Space District
2.13.I.Maps

Planning District Future Land Use Maps

Disclaimer: These maps were created by The City of New Orleans; City Planning Commission from The City of New Orleans Enterprise Geodatabase and were compiled from the most authentic information available. These products are for informational purposes and may not have been prepared for, or be suitable for legal, engineering, or surveying purposes. The City is not responsible for any errors or omissions contained hereon.

Planning District 1A Future Land Use Map
Planning District 1A Future Land Use Map
Planning District 1B Future Land Use Map
Planning District 1B Future Land Use Map
Planning District 2 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 2 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 3 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 3 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 4 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 4 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 5 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 5 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 6 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 6 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 7 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 7 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 8 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 8 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 9 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 9 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 10 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 10 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 11 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 11 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 12 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 12 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 13 Future Land Use Map
Planning District 13 Future Land Use Map
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