The Fayetteville City Council at its Feb. 25 retreat got a glimpse of what could be the future of approximately 200 acres adjacent to Pinewood Atlanta Studios. Project manager Jim Pace told council members the current plan for a portion of the area on the east side of Veterans Parkway would be to develop a New Urbanist community modeled after, yet exceeding, the upscale Gulf Coast resort community of Seaside, Fla.
Pace’s comments on the idea behind the mixed-use development came after council members asked for an update on projects in the immediate area of Pinewood Atlanta Studios.
Pace referenced the property totaling approximately 200 acres on the east side of Veterans Parkway. The property is included in the 1,200 acres annexed in September and will be part of the proposed zoning district now being considered by the council that would include a mix of both residential, mixed-use and business development.
Pace said plans include creating something along the lines of the development of Seaside, Fla.
Seaside was arguably the nation’s first full-scale mixed-use development to utilize the New Urbanism concept, one that incorporates walkable neighborhoods containing a range of housing and job types. At its inception in the early 1980s, Seaside began with an 80-acre development.
Pace described the potential development as, “Seaside on steroids,” explaining that it is envisioned as being “cooler and more up to date.”
Commenting further, Pace described the vision for the development as one which would become a “residential community on the order of Seaside” with business and community amenities such as a grocery store, park and amphitheater.
Pace said potential plans for the development include bringing in architectural talent familiar with SmartCode projects to “incorporate new ideas.”
The new zoning district for the recently annexed 1,200 acres on the city’ west side currently under consideration by the council is called transect zoning. Designed to replace conventional separated-use zoning that leads to urban sprawl, the transect zoning approach being proposed provides for lower density around the perimeter of the annexed acreage. The residential and business density, along with the height of the buildings, increases in proximity to Piedmont Fayette Hospital which is located in the center of the annexed property.
SmartCode is a transect-based planning and zoning model based on environmental analysis. It addresses all scales of planning, from the region to the community to the block and building, according to SmartCodeCentral.org
While Pace offered no specific details about the project, he said movement on the project might be initiated this summer.
