Kenosha State of Downtown Report.indd - The Lakota Group

SECTION 2: LAND USE AND PHYSICAL CONDITIONS
B-4 Mixed- Use
This zoning district was designed to include commercial and
multi-family uses that are consistent with a neighborhood or
site development plan. It includes height regulations which
range from a minimum of 25 feet to a maximum of 50 feet,
and incorporates building and spatial guidelines to encourage
pedestrian activity and open space. The parking regulations
in this district also allow for a 50% reduction in parking for
commercial and institutional uses. District regulations also
allow 10% of the required off-street parking to be on the street,
and require bike racks every 50 spaces. Multiple family parking
regulations are reduced to one space for one bedroom units and
two spaces for two or more units.
There is only one parcel in the Downtown zoned B-4 (red block).
Business District Analysis
The B-2 Community District is generally appropriate and the
concept of a B-3 Central Business District and a B-4 Mixed
Use district are also appropriate. The regulations for the B-3
Central Business District in their current form however are
not necessarily appropriate for an urban downtown center. The
list of commercial uses is very broad, showing little distinction
between the downtown core and the B-2 district. The use
list should be evaluated to actually determine which types of
commercial uses are actually desired and appropriate for the
Village core.
The multi-family regulations in the B-3 Central
Business District have not and are not likely to result
in an appropriate type of multi-family residential
development for the Downtown.
The generous height requirement coupled with limited density
and the graduated setback requirements, result in an actual
product type that is either unfeasible to build, or result in an
unattractive building type, that does not fit within the context
of the Downtown. The community should determine whether
multi-family above commercial beyond the existing structures
is desirable for the downtown core, and/or if the 100 foot
height requirement is appropriate for multi-family use. Overall
the B-3 regulations should be adjusted to a community vision
for what it would like to see Downtown, and the regulations
crafted in a way that results in the uses and building types that
will be not only be compatible with the existing fabric of the
Downtown, but can actually be built.
In addition, the B-3 Zoning District incorporates a significantly
large area of the Downtown, limiting its effectiveness as a
district designed for the Downtown core. Some of the uses that
are currently zoned B-3 may be more appropriately zoned for a
B-2, B-4 or an RM-2 Multifamily zoning classification.
The B-4 Mixed-Use district encompasses zoning, design and
parking regulations that emphasize a density and pedestrian
oriented approach, which is very desirable for areas around the
Downtown core, but it is plan based and site plan derived, and
to date, only one site in the study area has been built in this
Zoning District. Consideration should be given to expanding
the use of the B-4 district in what is now the B-3 District based
on a community planning effort.
t
eet
Street
11th Avenue
53rd Street
10th Avenue
10th Avenue
Sheridan Road
54th Street 54th Street
58th Street
55th Street
8th Avenue
59th Street
56th Street
57th Street
7th Avenue
6th Avenue
h Avenue 'A'
5th Avenue
59th Street
Downtown parking regulations area (red outline)
4th Avenue
58th Street
3rd Avenue
57th Street
2nd Avenue
Wolfenbuel
1s
20
CITY OF KENOSHA, WISCONSIN
KENOSHA DOWNTOWN STRATEGIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN: STATE OF THE DOWNTOWN
LAND USE AND PHYSICAL CONDITIONS