When I first started playing with this site almost 10 years ago, I used an Access database and html table cells to show the location of various shopping centers along Rockville Pike. It was clumsy but pretty cool given the state of Internet technology in 1998. Several years later, I turned it into a Flash map, when Flash 4, the first version that could communicate with a database, came out. I've finally started on a third version of the map, using Flash 8 and the wonderful object-oriented programming powers of actionscript. My inspiration was the zoning map I saw displayed at the second Zoning Forum at Glenview Mansion. It seemed like a perfect thing to make work interactively, so I bashed away over the holidays tracing out the zone boundaries over a map I'd already started on for use at this site. (Thanks to Katie Mencarini of the Planning Dept, I now have the beautiful big map that she created to work from).

The result can be seen here. You can see all zones and find out about each one as you mouse over it, or hide all the zones and turn them on individually to see which parts of Rockville are zoned Mixed Use Business, eg. Of course, I have a zillion plans for additions to the map, but while the zoning discussion is underway, it's a zoning map. Here's what I learned about the new zoning ordinance from Jim Wasilak, City Planner, and John Tyner from the Zoning Ordinance Review Committee at our Woodley Gardens West Civic Association meeting last Monday:

Most of the new zones are based on the ones in the existing zoning ordinance (created in 1975 and modified 200+ times since then), with changes to accommodate Rockville's current state. With most land already developed, the changes are aimed at redevelopment to support mixed uses (especially residential and commercial), to improve pedestrian friendliness, to control 'mansionization', to enhance the environment, and to keep our park and open space. It includes things like wider sidewalk requirements, specification of paved surface percentage allowed on a lot, and in addition to building dimension and height specifications, adds a specification for the transition in height between commercial and adjoining residential areas. The new proposed zoning ordinance also replaces the 9 processes previously required for site review to a single site review process, with the inclusion of different reviewers (City council, City staff, Planning Commission) dependent on the scale of the proposed project.

The zoning ordinance works in conjunction with two other City processes already in place: the Comprehensive Transportation Review (CTR), which examines the traffic impact of any proposed developments, and the APFO, which looks at schools, EMS, utilities and other infrastructure needs associated with new development. Regulation of home businesses based on their impact on the neighborhood is also included in the ordinance. For a look at the actual Zoning Ordinance Draft and information about the process, see the City website.