Spring Mill Station
Quality Apartment Development in planning area: 1) Density should be encouraged in the planning area, as high as 30 units per acre. 2) An apartment community of less than 200 units is not conducive due to economies of scale. 3) Heights of buildings should be limited by number of stories, not actual height, in order to encourage flexibility in design. 4) Buildings should be allowed to be constructed on the street and have on-street parking. Parking should be hidden and out of sight as much as possible. 5) Building location should encourage informal human interaction and allow for pocket park development. 6) Pedestrian walkways should provide easy and safe access to other areas within the overall plan. Concept A 1) Lacks a sense of arrival when driving through the planning area. 2) Visibility is poor on the intersections when inside the planning area. 3) Design is suitable for achieving many of the quality apartment design objectives. 4) Street layout allows for safer pedestrian access which will in turn help all businesses in planning area. 5) Cost of the street network would be too great for any one developer and would require additional development support from a funding source like Tax Increment Financing. Concept B 1) Established a sense of arrival when driving through planning area. 2) The village green on the corner creates a non-traditional intersection that is unique. 3) Retailers will react better to this design concept over design concept A. 4) More roundabouts could be incorporated to slow traffic thru planning area and also add more public space. 5)Additional flexibility should be considered for buffer areas. Surrounding land uses should dictate buffer distance. Could be a benefit for a reduced buffer distance to the baseball fields on west side of planning area. 6) The preliminary layout of the apartment buildings are not very conducive for creative design or for achieving the critical mass of apartments that is desirable.
Spring Mill Station
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