§ 10. Urban design elements.

The following urban design guidelines shall be considered when reviewing a proposed MRD and the associated request for relief from the underlying zoning district and development requirements.

(1)

Edges (natural such as waterways and ridgelines and manmade such as roadways and property lines) signaling transitions between adjoining land uses, landmarks and public art shall be used to define a sense of place for neighborhoods, commercial projects, the overlay districts and the city limits.

(2)

Streetscapes shall be enhanced with lighting, pedestrian amenities and landscaping in or within ten feet of the right-of-way.

(3)

All proposed development shall provide methods of physically and visually connecting to adjoining properties, land uses and secondary roadways. Ingress and egress strategies that draw traffic away from the major arterials, such as developing alternative access roadway systems and providing access from side streets and adjoining properties are required providing that such access is available and does not negatively impact surrounding neighborhoods.

(4)

Access management is necessary within the Manchester Road corridor to mitigate traffic congestion and roadway capacity problems. Shared utilization of points of ingress and egress, significant curb cut spacings and parking lot interconnections are required for multi-tenant developments and encouraged between separate but adjacent properties whenever possible. Where shared site access or parking lot interconnections are not possible, the dedication of cross access and/or driveway/parking lot vehicular interconnection easements dedicated to Ballwin may be required to facilitate future access or interconnection in accordance with the requirements of the C-1 district regulations.

(5)

The use of a multi-way(s), roadways placed parallel to Manchester Road but separated from the roadway by a landscaped pedestrian median, that provide parking and access to uses along the corridor while separating through traffic is recommended as the primary access management strategy for parcels of land fronting on Manchester Road. Multi-ways shall be designed for extension as redevelopment occurs on adjacent sites.

(6)

Multi-story construction in excess of the two-story requirement that fully utilizes the capacity of a site is encouraged.

(7)

The erection of landmark features, such as public art, gateways or other significant architectural or landscape elements at the locations designated on the future land use map of the comprehensive community plan is encouraged.

(8)

Clustering and stacking of residential, office, business and retail uses as an alternative to conventional strip-type development with large unlandscaped parking lots is encouraged.

(Ord. No. 09-03, § 1, 1-12-09)