HomeMy WebLinkAbout01. Zoning_Local_Business_Strategy_Sheet🏔🏔 One-Page Strategy Sheet **Zoning & Policy Tools to Support Local Business & Regional Entrepreneurs**
🎯🎯 Goal Strengthen local economic resilience by using zoning and land use policies to: - Prioritize small, locally-owned businesses. - Limit big national chains and formula retail. - Preserve community character and a sense of place.
✅ Key Zoning Actions
�� Formula Business Restrictions Define “formula businesses” (chain/franchise with standardized branding, menus, or design). Prohibit them outright in core commercial or historic districts OR require a Conditional Use Permit (CUP). Example: Carmel-by-the-Sea (CA), McCall (ID), Port Townsend (WA).
�� Retail Size Caps Cap maximum retail square footage in village cores (e.g., no single store over 2,500 –5,000 sq. ft.). Example: Aspen (CO) limits chain drugstores; Crested Butte (CO) uses tight downtown lot sizes.
�� Mixed-Use & Small-Scale Zoning Require small storefront widths (20–30 ft.) to support independent shops. Encourage or require ground-floor retail with housing/offices above. Reduce minimum parking for small businesses.
�� Local-Serving Business Incentives Allow micro-retail, pop-ups, mobile vendors, or shared “maker” spaces by right. Offer density or tax incentives for buildings that lease to local operators.
�� Design & Historic Standards Adopt design guidelines favoring walkable streetscapes, small facades, pedestrian orientation. Use façade preservation overlays to keep unique village character.
�� Incubator & Affordable Commercial Space Create overlay zones or incentives for local co-ops, food halls, or market halls. Allow adaptive reuse of garages, basements, or upper floors for low-cost startups.
�� Community Input Requirements Require community hearings for large retail proposals. Tie approvals to community benefit agreements favoring local hiring, local supply chains.
🗂🗂 Where to Learn More - ���� Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) – https://ilsr.org/formula-business-restrictions/ - ���� Small Town & Rural Multimodal Networks – https://www.railstotrails.org/resource-library/resources/small-town-and-rural-multimodal-networks/ - ���� ULI Resilient Downtowns – Urban Land Institute guides for mountain towns.
🏆🏆 Real-World Example McCall, Idaho - Prohibits formula businesses in its downtown core. - Uses small storefront design and mixed-use zoning. - Supports local co-op retail for crafts and food.
🚀🚀 First Steps for Your Community
� Convene stakeholders: Local planners, small biz owners, property owners.
� Pick priority tools: Start with one or two that fit your local goals.
� Draft local code: Use examples from ILSR or similar towns.
� Communicate: Show residents how this keeps local money circulating and protects your resort town’s unique feel.
��� Keep it Local. Keep it Vibrant.