The purpose of this chapter is to establish urban design parameters and standards for all development within the city . (2001 Code § 89-6-301)

   A.   Character And Condition Of City : These principles are based on a shared understanding of the current character and condition of the city as follows:

      1.   The city reflects a diversity of architectural styles.

      2.   The city is a moderately sized city in the Salt Lake valley, with the potential to become one of the three (3) largest cities in the state .

      3.   The city has been developed largely in small pieces occupying a large land area. Despite its size, the separation of those pieces remains as a barrier to the goals of community and a higher quality of life. The city should seek to diminish these forces of separation in the form of the city by fostering an attitude of neighborliness within the urban fabric. Each development should enhance its neighborhood and relate to the city as a whole.

      4.   The city is currently oriented to vehicles that travel at an average speed of thirty five (35) miles per hour in the city limits. New development should foster the creation of environments with a priority for pedestrians. The average pedestrian moves at about four (4) miles per hour and views (and uses) the environment in a detailed fashion.

   B.   Context: Every development has a relationship to its setting. Positive relations can be achieved by examining the next largest (and smallest) context of the site. Ignoring the context can often assure poor relationships.

      1.   The size, character and setting of proposed projects should relate to their specific contexts and functions of adjacent streets and pedestrian networks. Buildings should be oriented to public rights of way as well as additional internal circulation systems.

      2.   New development should incorporate building materials and technology that are compatible with the arid setting and that are responsive to the climate of this region.

   C.   Amenity/Comfort: Urban conditions such as paved areas and buildings generating reflected heat create aridity and require mitigating design features which enhance habitability.

      1.   Promote human comfort by providing shaded areas, courtyards, colonnades, and other areas as site amenities.

      2.   Create developments for the ease of pedestrians both on and off the site.

      3.   Promote the creation of public and semipublic places at both large and small scales to encourage a sense of community.

      4.   Create a sense of place that respects nature and utilizes natural and manmade materials and devices.

      5.   Encourage separation of pedestrians and automobiles.

      6.   Promote nighttime uses of sites with secure, well lighted amenity zones and programmed activities.

   D.   Visual Interest: An environment that contains a harmonious balance of various forms and materials can be visually interesting. Too much variety or too much uniformity can lack visual interest. New development should seek to preserve and enhance this basic human need.

      1.   Incorporate architectural and landscape elements at the pedestrian level.

      2.   Maintain a pedestrian scale by creating variation of the urban form.

      3.   Recognize the interest created by both the repetition and changes in various project patterns from window openings to paving designs.

      4.   Promote a diversity of architectural styles.

      5.   Integrate arts and crafts creatively into the built environment.

      6.   When a project occurs in a visually rich context, its form, materials, orientation, and detailing should incorporate the assets offered by its setting.

      7.   When a project occurs in a setting devoid of visual interest, it should seek to provide a wide variety of forms and texture.

   E.   Activity: Environments that provide a variety of choices for people are generally active settings for people to gather. This fosters a sense of community when a visit can serve multiple needs in a setting that provides safety, security and activity.

      1.   Encourage mixed use developments so as to provide increased opportunities for informal and planned activities beyond the typical nine o'clock (9:00) A.M. to five o'clock (5:00) P.M. work hours.

      2.   Promote design that will increase opportunities for activities both within the project boundaries and between existing adjacent developments and neighborhoods.

      3.   Where feasible, encourage design of single usage facilities to accommodate retail and other uses at the pedestrian level to encourage activity and use .

   F.   Clarity And Convenience: An environment that is easy to understand will usually also be convenient for the people who use it. That is not to say complexity must be avoided. Complexity can offer excitement, but not at the expense of routine accessibility of the general public.

      1.   Environments should be created that are understandable and help orient the user and the general public.

      2.   Developments should be convenient to and accessible by persons with physical limitations and disabilities.

      3.   Developments should derive their basic order from the underlying geometry of city streets and the north/south, east/west orientation it implies. This will assist the ready comprehensibility of the city. Individual projects should relate to existing streets and canals, except where creative design establishes a more successful relationship to new streets, pedestrian walkways or major open spaces.

      4.   Sites should be planned to respect existing natural and manmade landmarks and to create landmarks for the ease of public recognition.

      5.   Protect major vistas and panoramas that give special emphasis to open space and mountains.

      6.   Design project signage and environmental graphics at a scale that provides clarity to the pedestrian as well as the automobile and does not result in visual clutter.

   G.   Character/Distinctiveness: Every project should strive to enhance the unique character of its neighborhood. Without limiting the creative opportunities for the specific project, the development should help make its neighborhood more distinctive.

      1.   Each development should contribute to the character identified for each project and the specific character for neighborhoods within each project.

      2.   Promote neighborhood identity by planning elements that reinforce the landscape and built character of the area.

      3.   The character and environments should be designed at a human scale as well as within its neighborhood identity.

   H.   Definition Of Space: Streets, parking lots, buildings and landscape are the major elements that define the special qualities of our environment. Organize them to foster a setting supportive to the pedestrian as well as the driver.

      1.   Relate the size, character and setting of proposed projects to the functions of adjacent streets and pedestrian networks. Buildings should be oriented to the public rights of way and close to pedestrian movement.

      2.   The areas immediately adjacent to buildings should be designed to integrate with surrounding landscape and pedestrian walkways. Shaded courtyards, cloisters, trellises, colonnades and public art are encouraged for consideration into the design to define space.

      3.   In an effort to create safe pedestrian walkways on highly traveled public rights of way, a buffer area should separate the sidewalk from the street curb.

      4.   On street parking should be encouraged in village core business areas to further protect the pedestrian zone from vehicular traffic.

   I.   Views: City dwellers and visitors alike appreciate being reminded of the beauty of their environment. Protecting views of the environment assist in fostering appreciation of our environment, as well as allowing the environment to aid in orienting people spatially within the city.

      1.   Protect major vistas and panoramas that give special emphasis to open space , mountains and special manmade or natural landmarks.

      2.   Promote the creation of views both from within a project and from the adjacent streets and neighborhoods into the project. Consider the access to views of both the project users and the general public.

      3.   Create opportunities for incorporating individual projects into the patterns and sequence of views that exist within an area, neighborhood or urban village.

      4.   Limit the use of sound walls or fences over eight feet (8') in height that diminish view corridors.

   J.   Variety/Contrast: Variety of site and building design helps to create interest within an urban area. Coupled with attention to creating environments for human activities, such variety fosters goals of creating identifiable neighborhoods and of encouraging creative development .

      1.   Promote variety and diversity of building and site design within a context of urban and architectural continuity.

      2.   Create environments that encourage a number of specific activities fronting the street , court or plaza at ground level to provide variety at a human scale .

   K.   Scale And Pattern: Ultimately, all developments must relate to the human scale . Patterns help humanize development .

      1.   A large structure should contain elements which transition to the human scale , particularly near the ground.

      2.   If a development is larger (or smaller) than its adjacent physical context, the design should provide transitional elements at the perimeter to integrate it with its surroundings.

      3.   The variation of scale, pattern and texture of building and landscaping elements is encouraged to create a more visually interesting project. The variety should be readable at the pedestrian scale as well as from a distance (skyline).

      4.   The proportion between the height of a building and the width of the street and setback determine the basic urban form. If the intent of the design is urban in character, the height should be greater and the setback less.

      5.   Buildings should be designed to reveal or express their primary patterns of use and entry. This will not only assist comprehensibility, but also achieve a desirable variety. (2001 Code § 89-6-302)