 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Better
Site Design
This section provides some basic information about better site design and why it's important. For more detailed information, you might want to read the "Introduction to Better Site Design" article (.pdf format), or visit our Stormwater Manager's Resource Center at www.stormwatercenter.net to see slideshows, additional articles and other better site design materials. As well, check out our Builders for the Bay project to see how the Center is helping to make better site design happen in the Chesapeake Bay region.
Few watershed management
practices simultaneously reduce pollutant loads, conserve natural areas, save
money, and increase property values. Indeed, if such “wonder practices” were
ever developed, they would certainly spread quickly across the nation. As
it turns out, these practices have existed for years. Collectively called
“better site design,” the techniques employ a variety of methods to reduce
total paved area, distribute and diffuse stormwater, and conserve natural
habitats.
Better
site design
is a fundamentally different approach to residential and commercial development.
It seeks to accomplish three goals at every development site: to reduce the
amount of impervious cover, to increase natural lands set aside for conservation,
and to use pervious areas for more effective stormwater treatment. To meet
these goals, designers must scrutinize every aspect of a site plan— its streets,
parking spaces, setbacks, lot sizes, driveways, and sidewalks— to see if any
of these elements can be reduced in scale. At the same time, creative grading
and drainage techniques reduce stormwater runoff and encourage more infiltration.
Why is it so difficult to implement better site design in so many communities? The primary reason is the outdated development rules that collectively govern the development process: a bewildering mix of subdivision codes, zoning regulations, parking and street standards, and drainage regulations that often work at cross-purposes with better site design. Few developers are willing to take risks to bend these rules with site plans that may take years to approve or that may never be approved at all. In 1997, a national site planning roundtable was convened to address ways to encourage better site design techniques in more communities. The participants represented the diverse mix of organizations that affect the development process and provided the technical and real-world experience to make better site design happen. After two years of discussion, the roundtable endorsed 22 better site design techniques that offer specific guidance that can help achieve one of the basic better site design goals. These techniques are grouped into three areas:
The techniques are not intended to be strict guidelines, and their actual application should be based on local conditions. Several communities in the Chesapeake Bay area have already completed a process known as a Local Site Planning Roundtable, in which local stakeholders and community leaders compared existing area development regulations to the model principles and recommended changes to promote more environmentally-sensitive development. You can read more about these local roundtables here.
Be sure to visit our Stormwater Manager's Resource Center website for more detailed technical information on this and other watershed protection practices.