Tucson’s Community Corridors Tool: What it is and why it’s essential to multi-modal transportation and vibrant streets for people
The City of Tucson is currently considering the adoption of something called the Community Corridors Tool Code Amendment—a zoning tool designed to encourage the development of certain underutilized properties along major and collector streets within the City. Since transportation and land use go hand in hand we wanted to share more about the tool and how it can encourage and support multi-modal transportation.
*Note: the City of Tucson has done a great job of putting together a website with tons of information and we encourage you to visit it. What you’ll find below is our attempt to try and pair things down as much as possible.
First…
As an organization that advocates for multi-modal transportation and safe, vibrant streets for people, we are eager to see this tool move forward.
As we see it, the Community Corridors Tool:
Aligns with and supports Living Streets Alliance’s Vision, Values & Strategic Goals, which have been informed and shaped by over a decade of work on the ground with communities in Tucson;
Encourages people-oriented development that permits moving through the city with dignity, ease and safety;
Addresses the existing housing shortage by allowing a diversity of housing types at a range of price points from affordable to market-rate (note: the interdependent relationship between housing and transportation came up often in our Strategic Planning process)
Identifies goals that are consistent with what we’ve heard from people in Tucson say they want and need when it comes to their transportation future
Focuses development on eligible parcels that are generally near existing transit service and public infrastructure (as is apparent via these maps);
Incentivize walkable, bikeable, transit-oriented development along major street corridors (as opposed to drive-thru features and stand alone parking fields).
You can scroll down to our FAQ for more information on what the CCT is, meantime, here’s a case study of sorts to help illustrate the difference a tool like this will make.
Have you ever wondered why drive-thru Starbucks are popping up all over Tucson?
Here are two aerial images of similarly sized parcels in Tucson—about 45,800 square feet each: (We’ve outlined the actual parcels in red.)
The [now complete] drive-thru Starbucks at 2350 N Campbell Avenue, occupying 45,784 square feet of land
The Monier development at 160 S Avenida del Convento, occupying 45,920 square feet of land
The image on the left is at the southeast corner of Campbell Avenue and Grant Road and shows the construction phase of the now-completed drive-thru-only Starbucks. The entire property hosts just 1 small drive-thru chain business.
The image on the right is of the Monier Apartments in the Mercado District, just west of Downtown Tucson. Here, roughly the same amount of land hosts 122 apartments and 12 local businesses.
Current zoning at Campbell and Grant is so restrictive that it resulted in the drive-thru Starbucks being one of the only viable options for interested developers.
In other words, drive-thrus like this are one of the few things that pencil-out from a financial standpoint under the current zoning. After factoring in setbacks, parking requirements, height limitations, and land use requirements, we’re really only left with drive-through franchises surrounded by a sea of parking. Without the CCT, drive-thru Starbucks are likely to keep popping up on corners in Tucson because they’re one of the only things that makes sense for all the empty parcels in the city — all in the middle of a housing crisis.
The CCT will provide an optional layer of zoning that will make more types of development financially viable.
It’s a way to offer carrots and use sticks to encourage things like affordable or mixed-rate housing, reduced parking minimums, people-oriented design, and a mix of businesses, all near current and future transit lines.
What now?
The City’s Planning & Development Services Department has been conducting an extensive community engagement process to share more about the Tool and gather feedback from the community over the past eighteen months. They’ve made multiple revisions along the way and on Tuesday, March 18th Tucson Mayor and Council will hold a Public Hearing on the proposed Community Corridors Tool and Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment code amendment. They’re like to adopt the CCT that evening, and it’s important that changes aren’t made to water it down at the last minute.
Get involved!
It’s important that the City of Tucson hear your support for the Tool. Here are three easy ways to get involved and we’ll keep updating this page with additional info + opportunities as they develop.
Fill out a comment form: https://bit.ly/4k5D6of
Show up! Speak at the Mayor & Council Public Hearing, on Tuesday, March 18 at 6:00 PM (fill out a speaker card and you’ll have the chance to address them directly)
Send an email to Mayor & Council sharing why you support the tool.
Community Corridors Tool [Brief] FAQ:
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Zoning affect our lives every day, though most of our eyes glaze over when we hear terms like overlay, setback, and building code. Zoning are the rules and regulations attached to a specific property that ultimately determine what that property can/will be used for.
Zoning is why the city around us looks and feels the way it does:
why we have retail in some places and not others;
why some structures are taller than others;
why certain buildings push right up to the edge of the sidewalk, while others are further away from the streets; and so on.
These things add up to affect so many of our daily choices and errands:
whether there’s a store close-by to get groceries vs. one we have to drive to;
if we can walk from the sidewalk straight to the front door of a business vs. having to cross a sea of parking;
and even whether we can find housing close to where we work vs. having to look far away.
*Note: there’s a great, simple index of basic zoning terms on the City’s website here.
Zoning is complicated and creating zoning code is even more complex, which is why it doesn’t change very often. Thankfully, Tucson is at a point where it needs new zoning tools in order to bring about the vision and goals so many Tucsonans have expressed through Tucson Resilient Together, One Water 2100 Plan, Move Tucson, Plan Tucson, and more. Enter the Community Corridors Tool…
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The Community Corridors Tool will add a new section to Tucson’s Unified Development Code (the City’s zoning code). The new section will be an optional zoning tool that would maintain the underlying zoning but provide more flexibility, allowing the development of pedestrian or transit-oriented sites that meet the location requirements.
The Tool is meant to encourage the development of underutilized sites/properties along commercial corridors, specifically arterial and collector streets. The CCT Code Amendment creates tools to help transform vacant lots, strip malls, or empty parking lots along major streets into vibrant, mixed-use destinations.
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Right now, the existing zoning in the areas on the map include a number of restrictive standards, including parking requirements, that limit the types of housing that can be built, drives up the cost of construction and contributes to the citywide housing shortage. As the City of Tucson puts it:
How and where we develop our city impacts our health, taxes, the environment, economic growth, and the availability of affordable housing. The Zoning Code defines what can be built and where. Our zoning along corridors does not align with the Tucson we have envisioned together. This project works to align our zoning standards with our adopted plans and policies.
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As defined by the City of Tucson, the goals are to:
Make infill development, especially affordable housing, simpler to build along corridors
Remove barriers to attainable housing
Promote transit-oriented infill development that supports climate action goals
Update zoning to make it easier to permit the full spectrum of housing types
Simplify redevelopment of underutilized building and vacant sites
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There are myriad ways this tool can support a vibrant, more sustainable, and inclusive community:
Allow diverse housing types including apartments, townhouses and small homes
Require transitions in form and scale to lower density neighborhoods
Right-size parking requirements, and regulate parking location and access
Create active and usable public spaces
Create safe, comfortable streets for walking and biking
Encourage climate-resilient and livable places
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No. The CCT is an overlay and it would only apply to eligible properties along major and collector streets in Tucson. Below is a zoomed out map of all of the properties that would be eligible to utilize the CCT. You can zoom in and see a Ward by Ward detail of the map here.
