Current Issues

July 2008
Urban Wind Turbines
Thanks to a range of new and smaller wind energy conversion systems, some property owners are now harnessing wind power in urban and suburban settings. The July issue of Zoning Practice gives an overview of the benefits and impacts of these small systems and offers strategies to help local governments prepare development standards for their use.

Author Erica Heller is an associate with Clarion Associates based in Denver, Colorado. She has six years of experience working on community and neighborhood plans, development codes, and airport land use plans.

June 2008
Better Foliage Through Zoning
Despite their popularity as an urban amenity, trees don't always get the respect they deserve in local development regulations. This issue of Zoning Practice outlines why urban forestry is important and highlights some local regulatory approaches to tree preservation and propagation.

Author James Schwab, AICP, is a senior research associate for APA, as well as coeditor of Zoning Practice and manager of APA's Hazards Planning Research Center. He was project manager for APA's Planning for Urban and Community Forestry project. Author Carrie Fesperman is an APA program development associate and was a member of the Urban and Community Forestry project team.

May 2008
The Five Steps to a Hybrid Code
Hybrid zoning codes combine traditional zoning controls with form-based regulations. Integrating form-based controls into traditional zoning ordinances allows a community to better realize desired building forms without having to write a whole new code. This issue of Zoning Practice takes a step-by-step approach to hybrid zoning and cites a number of communities currently using hybrid codes.

Author Arista Strungys, AICP, is a senior associate at Camiros, Ltd., where she has worked with communities across the country to create hybrid ordinances.

April 2008
Looking Ahead: Regulating Digital Signs and Billboards
Digital video displays represent the latest, and perhaps most compelling, challenge to communities trying to keep pace with signage technology. This issue of Zoning Practice recaps the latest research on the effects of digital signage on traffic safety and includes a list of ordinance provisions for effective regulation.

Author Marya Morris, AICP, is a senior associate at Duncan Associates, a planning consulting firm specializing in land development regulations and infrastructure finance.

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