Interim Downtown Framework
Status as of June 27, 2008:
Adopted unanimously on 6/17/2008 by the Raleigh City Council.
Introduction:
The IDF is a supplement the body of existing plans, policies, and guidelines that are already in place until the new Comprehensive Plan is adopted in 2009. The IDF addresses three critical needs: the designation of retail streets, public realm improvements, and parking structure design.
Why do we need an Interim Downtown Framework?
Downtown Raleigh is growing. Over the last few years, approximately 400,000 square feet of commercial development and 315 housing units have been built. An additional 1,000,000 square feet of commercial space and approximately 2,220 residential units are under construction or in the development pipeline. During this same period of intensive private investment, the City and County have invested millions of dollars in numerous publicly-funded projects including: the rejuvenation of Fayetteville Street, the Glenwood South streetscape improvements, and the new convention center. By 2012, the combined public and private developments total over $2.5 billion in Downtown reinvestment.
While the renewed focus on Downtown is a welcome sign of the beginning of the renaissance of Downtown Raleigh, the speed and location of some new development has resulted in some unintended effects. This renewed focus, and corollary policy gaps, have been examined. The Interim Downtown Framework (IDF) is targeted specifically to address these unintended effects to help the community achieve its long-term vision for Downtown.
Policy Summary - This document provides a very short synopsis of the process used to develop the IDF and a complete listing of the adopted policy language.
Background Report - This report provides a higher level of detail and justification for each of the policy bundles included within the IDF, a section that addresses development trends downtown, an inventory a description of the existing comprehensive planning documents for downtown, and a complete listing of the adopted policy language.
Appendix - This document is a best practices report for the issues addressed by the IDF. It is a compendium of research from municipalities across the country.
Study Area Boundary Map – A visual representation of the local area researched during the development of the IDF.
Retail Streets Map – A visual depiction of the Primary and Secondary Retail streets as introduced by the IDF.
Public Realm Improvements Map – A visual depiction of the Pedestrian Priority and Green Streets as introduced by the IDF.
Parking Policies Map – A visual depiction of the downtown streets on which new parking structures are subjected to a higher level of architectural finish.
While the new Comprehensive Plan will be substantially updated, City Planning has been working diligently to make sure that relevant policy guidance in the existing Plan is carried forward into the new Plan. To this end, a Policy Audit has been created by extracting every policy statement from current adopted plans into a spreadsheet for sorting and analysis. The policy audit, containing over 5,000 policy statements, is now available for download.
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