Posted on August 28, 2018 at 2:37 PM by Ben Chmiel
Zoning determines what can be built in Aggieville; what kinds of uses, businesses, and buildings, how tall those buildings are and what they might look like. Aggieville's zoning (Currently the C-3 district) was last updated in Spring 2017 after the adoption of the Aggieville Community Vision (ACV) plan. Those updates restricted automobile-oriented uses and limited on-site parking. Through the UDO process, the City will be adapting and updating Aggieville's zoning (soon to be called the C-A district) and initiating the next round of changes for Aggieville zoning, as described in the ACV plan. Changes will include targeted building height increases, building design, setbacks and parking requirements. Check out this video describing the proposed changes in more detail and how they relate to the plan...
Posted on June 13, 2018 at 1:41 PM by Vivienne Uccello
If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve been to Aggieville in your lifetime. Chances are also good that you have a fairly high opinion of Aggieville. I can say that because according to a recent community survey, seven out of ten Manhattanites have a high or very high opinion of Aggieville, two out of ten have a neutral opinion, and one out of ten… well… we’ve all had those days. Continue Reading...
Posted on June 12, 2018 at 2:39 PM by Vivienne Uccello
Unlike most cities, Manhattan currently has very few landscaping or screening requirements. Some developers choose to landscape; some do not. To bring the same positive result to all development in the city, the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) project is introducing new landscaping and buffering requirements.
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Posted on June 11, 2018 at 3:16 PM by Vivienne Uccello
Cycling is becoming a bigger and bigger part of the Manhattan lifestyle. Over the last 10 years, the linear footage of designated bike routes within the City has more than tripled. In that same time, the number of citizens biking to work has nearly doubled. Currently, about 1 in 50 Manhattanites bike to work on a daily basis, which is over 3x the national average!
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Posted on April 6, 2018 at 1:25 PM by Vivienne Uccello
Not all nonconformities need to go away. Some are benign and unremarkable—it’s doubtful that anyone notices or is worried that most houses in the Wards are closer to the sidewalks than they are in postwar suburbs. Some may even be over the 35-foot height limit. Guess what? Despite these violations the world keeps chugging along.
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Posted on April 4, 2018 at 4:35 PM by Vivienne Uccello
We, in the Community Development Department, understand that Zoning and Subdivision Regulations are not things most people spend a lot of time thinking about. These policies and regulations don’t tend to be very exciting or are written in a way that makes you want to read them for entertainment.
However, these things significantly shape our neighborhoods, shopping centers and where we work and play.
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Posted on March 28, 2018 at 2:08 PM by Vivienne Uccello
Manhattan was incorporated in 1857. Like many other new towns at that time, it was platted. Meaning the layout, size, and names of the streets were predetermined, the land within the confines of those streets were divided, and certain areas were set aside for schools, parks, markets, and public squares.
Everything included in the original town plat was also within city limits. This created ease for the transaction of land, the provision of utilities, and provided a framework for the city’s development into the future. For the better part of Manhattan’s first 100 years, the city stayed snugly within the boundaries of this original plat. It wasn’t until after the Second World War that the city broke free from its crib and started toddling around in the hills of the western frontier. To this day, it is very easy to see where the original city plat was. If you look at any map of Manhattan, you’ll see a distinctive grid pattern to the streets around areas like Downtown, Aggieville, and everything in between. This gridded area generally marks the original town plat and original city limits.
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Posted on March 27, 2018 at 9:01 AM by Vivienne Uccello
One area of focus in the updated Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) is to provide a wider range of housing types to meet the needs of Manhattan residents. By allowing for more variety of homes (i.e. bigger, smaller, more units in appropriate locations), the demands of the housing market can be met, which should mean more affordable housing.
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