Many local residents feel caught off guard by the changes proposed in the zoning code currently pending before City Council, especially the Pedestrian Residential District. Why might that be?
Searching the BG Independent News site for the term “zoning code,” I found that the earliest result is a March 2020 article mentioning walkable centers in each neighborhood and a strong downtown. A February 2022 article announced a meeting of City Council and the Planning Commission to hear an update from ZoneCo. Few details about the proposal appeared in either article.
June 2022 brings an item titled “BG zoning code update touches on controversial neighborhood topics.” This is the first mention that the new code includes “commercial neighborhood” and “pedestrian residential” zoning, allowing businesses to open next-door to homes. The article includes no indication of where these zones would be located.
The Planning Commission soon began holding meetings and accepting comments. Links to webpages and the zoning code document were posted online. Yes, some citizens may have caught the headlines, and a few may have even followed the links and read the 100+ page document. But I suspect most were only slowly becoming aware that major changes were being proposed to their neighborhood.
The opportunity for submitting online comments to the Planning Commission was only available until July 1st. But proponents of the PR claim the public had the chance to participate in earlier phases of an extended process: Documents produced in the previous decade supposedly advanced many of these same changes.
However, it was only under the 2018 Community Action Plan that genuine citizen consultation occurred, and many of those who took part don’t recognize their input in the current PR District proposal. The 2018 CAP proposed mixed residential and commercial uses for only two rather limited areas and at the same time, specifically called for maintenance and enhancement of the essential residential character of much of the remainder of the area now designated as PR.
ZoneCo extended these earlier plans far beyond what was recommended and intended by BG residents who directly participated in the planning process. ZoneCo designated almost all of the oldest Bowling Green residential neighborhoods surrounding the downtown as a mixed use district to include businesses and dense housing. City Council should reconsider the plans developed earlier with citizen involvement as well as current citizen input and preserve the residential character of the proposed PR neighborhoods.
Winnie Rex
Bowling Green
