Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/133618
POLISH YOUR CRYSTAL BALL Laurel Park homeowners in downtown Sarasota have been especially wary of neighboring development. Photo by Norman Schimmel CITY COMMISSION EMBARKS ON A VISIONARY ZONING EXERCISE By Stan Zimmerman City Editor The Sarasota city commissioners Wednes- they-mingle districts. Euclidian zoning meant day afternoon, May 29, set off on a three-year residential areas of the city would never be "voyage" into planning the future of the city. bothered by an industry building a plant next door — or even a coffee shop. While a formal decision will be made next month, they agreed by consensus to open up a Residential meant residential. Industrial "design studio" where planners can work with meant industrial. Commercial — you get the stakeholders to create a form-based zoning idea. code for the city. Outside of the downtown area, Sarasota uses Huh? Euclidian zoning, which causes some problems, because various types of land use are REMEMBER EUCLID? not distinctly Euclidian. When Ron Burks Euclid was the Greek who invented geometry wanted to rezone 9 acres on School Avenue and caused problems for countless teenagers. to build residential towers with commercial His name was also applied to a cut-and-dried use mixed into the development, you might system of dividing up a city into never-shall- say Euclid was aghast; so were the neighbors.