About
The Design Dallas project is an initiative being undertaken by the Town to prepare a new unified development ordinance. The Unified Development Ordinance (or “UDO”) is the basic set of laws used by the Town to protect public health and safety as well as to protect property values and sensitive environmental resources. It includes the zoning provisions, the subdivision requirements, the standards for flood zones, and other development-related provisions.
The new Dallas UDO will establish basic rules for how land may be used, what kinds of land uses may be permitted in what locations, the process for gaining Town approval of a proposed land use or development activity, and how the Town will handle violations or complaints about potential violations of the development rules.
In September of 2022, the Town issued a request for qualifications in search of a consulting firm to assist the Town with creating a new unified development ordinance. The Town’s request indicates the desire for a new modern UDO to implement the Town’s new 2030 Comprehensive Land Use Plan and to better address the pace and amount of new growth coming to Town. The request for qualifications included the following guiding principles for the UDO project:
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Ensure the new UDO is user-friendly and predictable;
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Ensure consistency between the new UDO and the 2030 Comprehensive Plan;
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Ensure UDO consistency with NCGS and federal law (and applicable court precedent);
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Ensure consistent use of terminology and “voice” throughout the document along with avoidance of jargon;
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Remove redundancy and repetition in the regulations;
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Maximize the use of diagrams, illustrations, and graphics to promote understanding and predictability;
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Update the use table to identify new uses and desired zoning districts;
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Update and add definitions;
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Ensure the new UDO includes dynamic cross references, hyperlinks, is searchable, and is internet-ready;
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Utilize commonly-available software and document formatting that permits easy in-house editing; and
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Incorporate incentives and performance based approaches to promote higher quality development and increase the array of housing options and price points.
The Town’s request for qualifications is available under the Documents tab of this website.
The Town’s new 2030 Comprehensive Land Use Plan is a policy document adopted by the Town Board of Aldermen in June of 2022 that identifies the Town’s shared vision for the future, the goals for growth and development, and a set of recommendations for the Town to undertake in order to reach those goals. Page 46 of the plan identifies a series of main themes from public engagement with the community. These include:
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The ability to walk and bike throughout town;
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Investment in walking/biking infrastructure;
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Maintaining and celebrating Downtown’s history;
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Make downtown a desirable destination through retail, cultural amenities, and events;
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Attract and support small, local businesses;
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Investment in park facilities & recreational opportunities;
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Ensuring roads are safe and efficient;
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High-quality housing that augments community feel;
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A variety of housing types in the neighborhoods where appropriate;
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Maintaining the ‘small town feel’ through smart land use policies;
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Maintain high-quality infrastructure and community facilities (water and sewer, parks, roads, etc.); and
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Public safety & beautification.
In addition to the goals and objectives, the comprehensive land use plan also includes a new future land use map (on Page 64) that identifies the desired locations for land uses in the future.
The UDO is the primary means by which the Town will achieve many of the goals identified in 2030 comprehensive land use plan, including the appearance of new development, promoting desired forms of growth downtown, creating opportunities for more housing choices, more effective transportation systems, easier access to recreation, and support for new retail development.
The new UDO will utilize a new user-friendly page layout and numbering system, be highly illustrated, and include numerous navigational aids to make the document easier to use. In addition to structural improvements, the new UDO will focus on greater predictability through simple language, inclusion of more detail on purpose and intent, and clear descriptions of decision-making criteria. The new UDO will also promote a greater level of flexibility in pursuit of beneficial forms of development and redevelopment (in the Downtown). There will be incentives for preferred development forms, menu-based approaches to development standards that allow applicants to choose from among a range of options for meeting some development requirements, and various methods of alternative compliance.
Finally, the new UDO will be consistent with applicable State law, federal law, recent court precedent, and national best practices in land use regulation as a means of reducing legal exposure and protecting private property rights.