Chapter 26 - City of Punta Gorda

Section 7.3. Building Style
Buildings shall reflect the vernacular architecture of old Punta Gorda by
incorporating the elements of one of the following styles described in City of Punta
Gorda Historic District Design Guidelines Part II.
(a) Frame Vernacular
(b) Folk Victorian
(c) Craftsman
(d) Queen Anne [Revival]
(e) Colonial / Georgian Revival
(f) Neo-Classical Revival
(g) Mission Style
(h) Commercial Vernacular
Section 7.4. Building Principles
To perpetuate the unique building character of the City and its environs, and to
re-establish its local identity, development shall generally employ building styles that
are compatible with or complimentary to the historic architectural vocabulary of the
area in their massing and external treatment.
(a) General Building Principles.
(1) Along existing streets, new buildings shall respect the general spacing of
structures, building mass and scale, and street orientation and frontage
relationships of existing buildings.
(2) Adjacent buildings shall be architecturally compatible through the
following:
a. Similar silhouettes
b. Spacing between facades
c. Setbacks
d. Proportions and treatments
e. Exterior materials
f. Scale and massing.
g. New buildings which exceed the scale and volume of adjacent
buildings may demonstrate compatibility by varying the massing
of buildings to reduce perceived scale and volume.
(3) The front elevation of buildings shall:
a. face the street with overall massing being pedestrian in scale.
b. The site shall be organized so that buildings frame and reinforce
pedestrian circulation.
c. The site shall be designed so that pedestrians walk along building
fronts rather than along or through parking lots and driveways.
(4) The primary entrance shall be:
a. Both architecturally and functionally designed on the front facade
of the building facing the primary public street to convey their
prominence on the fronting facade.
b. The use of fire escapes or exit-only doors as primary entrances is
explicitly prohibited.
(5) All equipment, including but not limited to mechanical, generators, pool
equipment:
a. Shall be located to the rear or side yard and screened from off-site
view when viewed at grade, by creating an opaque landscape
screen or architecturally compatible fence materials or wall, or a
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