Design First, Codify Second: Germany Offers Lessons for

travel lanes, sidewalks, bicycle lanes, and
the location of transit lines, as applicable.
Type ofbztildinguse. The type of building
use refers to the traditional definition of
"use" in the U.S.: residential, commercial,
or industrial. There are just lOuse districts
in Germany defined by the BauGB, far
fewer than in most American cities. The
German use districts include small-scale
residential, restricted residential, general
residential, special residential, village area,
mixed use area, town or city, commercial
area, and industrial area.
Although the use districts have a predominant
use, a mix of these uses is allowed
in most of them. For example, in the
restricted residential (Reine Wolmgebiete)
district, residential buildings are allowed
by right and conditional uses include retail
and restaurants that serve the daily needs
of residents; workshops; small hotels; and
religious, cultural, health, and sports facilities.
The "daily needs" test is seen as a way
to encourage shops and services, such as
a bakelY or drug store, to locate within
walking distance of customers; however,
the size of such businesses is limited.
The general residential (Allgemeine
Wohngebiete) district allows all the permitted
and conditional uses of the restricted
residential disu·ict as well as conditional
uses such as hotels, non-disturbing industry,
gas stations, and office buildings. In
contrast to the U.S., where very restrictive
single-family districts predominate,
in Germany the most conunon residential
district is general residential.
Degree of building Zlse. The degree of
building use refers to height and bulk
standards. It is regulated by floor-area
ratio or maximum number of units per
lot; the number of stories, expressed as a
range or a maximum; construction type;
and building setbacks. The consullction
type is either "open," allowing a fi:eestanding
building, or "closed," requiring a party
wall. Setbacks are regulated by build-within
lipes and build-to lines that are drawn
on the B-plan. The amount of land to be
built on is regulated by the lot coverage
ratio, an important concern to plamlers
uying to minimize impervious surface
coverage.
Text nquirements. The text requirements
spell out other standards, which
may include building height, parking location
or quantity, required u·ees, green
roofs, and window placement. The text
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may restrict inappropriate uses such as gas
stations, and in general this section of the
B-plan acts as a catch-all for any other special
resu·ictions.
B-plan process
B-plans are prepared by the municipality,
usually in anticipation of future development.
However, the development conununity
has initiated much of that pI arming in
recent years.
"There are mal1y requests by investors
who propose developJIlent ideas to the
municipality," says Nicole Baumueller, a
plalmer for the city of Stuttgart. "Therefore,
the Vorbabenbezogener Bebauungsplan,
which creates a B-plan for the special proposal
of an investor, has gained in importance,"
Baumueller adds.
The B-plan approval process starts
with a review by a subcommittee of the
city council and includes one or more
public comment periods. Final adoption is
ultimately a city council decision, and the
B-plan becomes legally binding when it
is armounced in the local press. As in the
U.S., the approval process for a development
project is not always a smooth one
and there are sometimes vocal opponents,
Baunmeller says. "In areas of the city with
highly educate1 people, if a protest occurs,
it is usually well-organized."
Since B-plans are created for future
development, some areas of a city do not
have one. In these areas, small-scale new
development generally is allowed if it is
similar to the current context according to
a "matching" principle.
B-plans are provided on the interactive
GIS websites of larger German municipalities,
offering a clickable link from
a city map of all B-plans to a legible image
of the particular plan being sought. A
property owner can view the applicable
zoning requirements quickly and see all
pertinent information in one document.
American comparisons
The two elements of American zoning
that most resemble German zoningplamled
unit developments and formbased
codes-were compared by Donald
Elliott, FAICP, in his new book, A Better Way
to Zone. "Unlike PUDs and performance
zoning, which were created to make Euclidean
zoning more flexible, form-based
zoning was aimed at a different failing:
that earlier tools were not producing the
types of neighborhoods people wanted,"
he writes. Elliott argues for holistic zoning
reforms that would allow for more flexibility-deemphasizing
use, reemphasizing
scale, and improving administration. In
the quest for solutions, the German system
offers new ideas toward how we think
about zoning.
Although they are flexible, the unique
nature of each PUD and the plans used
The German B-plan must include text, the
regulating plan, and a key. B-plan notation is
standardized throughout the country.
for regulation can result in more complicated
and time-consuming zoning adminisu·ation.
PUDs are regulated by a
Master Development Plan, which is usually
composed of a set of plans similar to
a preliminary plat submittal. Although a
plan showing location, height, and square
footage is clearly relevant to zoning, the
documents do not typically distinguish
legally mandated elements from other information,
such as the location of shrubs
and peremuals.
Instead of a quick reference to the zoning
code for standard districts, PUD zoning
verification takes more time. Furthermore,
the "unit" aspect of a PUD, often
a result of property ownerslup bowldaries
prior to development, does not always lend
itself easily to a change for a single property.
"FAR and setbacks are determined
for the entire PUD, not for each parcel,
which makes it more challenging to determine
the allowable zoning for an individual
property owner," says Jeff Thomson, a
plalmer in Mllmetonka, Mllmesota.
Incorporating the Gennan concept of
a single regulating plan into PUD ordinances
could improve zoning adnunistra-