Transcript Transfer of Development Rights (TDR)

Transfer of Development Rights
(TDR)
June, 2007
Kirby Date, Countryside Program Coordinator
Balancing Conservation and
Development
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Up front community vision and planning
Landowner planning and assistance
Effective zoning implementation
High quality development projects
Transfer of Development Rights
A technique for guiding growth away
from sensitive resources and toward
development centers through the
transfer of development rights from
one area to another
What are “Development Rights”?
• The right to develop a piece of property as determined by
zoning
• Severable from other rights of property ownership
• Also known as development credits
• In residential areas, one credit = one unit of development
permitted
• In commercial areas, credits are in Floor Area Ratio (FAR)
or square footage of development permitted
• Also can be based on square footage of land coverage
• It is possible to transform one type to another via formula?
How does TDR work?
• Comprehensive plan identifies sending and
receiving zones
• Zoning determines number of credits for sending
and receiving properties
• Sending Landowner sells development credits to
Receiving Landowner or to TDR bank
• Sending Landowner places conservation easement
on property
• Receiving landowner receives zoning permit for
project with additional credits applied
Options for TDR Administration
• Individual “swap” between two landowners,
with community granting variance
• Two clipboards on the planning desk:
interested buyers/sellers
• TDR bank at local financial institution –
community wide – timing less critical
• TDR bank – cross-jurisdictional, or
countywide
Possible Roles for the Land Trust
• Help with identification/prioritizing of lands
to be preserved
• Help with community motivation/education
• Work with landowners considering TDR
• Hold conservation easements resulting from
TDR
• Serve as TDR bank
Sending Areas
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Requires strong landowner support
Education, education, education
Carefully consider density in zoning
Work to conserve big blocks of contiguous
land
• Minimize “edge” of farmland and
development
• Use in conjunction with other tools
Receiving Areas
• Require adjacent landowner/community
support
• Education, education, education
• Carefully consider density in zoning
• Work for more compact development in
areas with infrastructure
• Should be accompanied by design
guidelines
A Comparison of Approaches:
Large Lot Zoning
• Expands land conversion with
extreme low density
• Requires extensive/expensive
new infrastructure
• Increases traffic on roads,
pressures on services
• Uniform growth pattern
replaces rural character with
suburban character
• Resulting open space is in
fragments on private lots
• Serves mostly high end housing
due to high land and
infrastructure costs per unit
Comparison: Conservation Development
• Condenses development on one
portion of a parcel to protect
resources on the site
• Reduces impact on storm water,
habitat, riparian areas, rural views
(at low densities)
• Does not reduce overall usage of
land and spreading out of population
• Infrastructure use is reduced for the
developer, but not for the
community
• Resulting open space conserved is in
smaller blocks, often not useable for
agriculture and conservation
purposes
• Often serves high end housing only
due to low densities overall
Comparison: TDR
• Condenses development
community-wide
• Reduces infrastructure
needs community-wide
• Allows for preservation
of large blocks of rural
land
• Allows for transportation
and housing options
TDR across the U.S.
• 180 current programs ranging from local
community to region to state
• 69 environmental
• 44 environment & farmland
• 32 farmland
• 15 historic preservation
• 12 other (housing, infrastructure, urban design,
revitalization)
• 8 unspecified
Why TDR for Ohio?
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Works as a voluntary program
Operates on the private market
Accommodates incentives
Suits “village-township” relationship
Works at the township, county or regional level
Requires little local regulation
Can be coupled with a number of funding
mechanisms for receiving areas
Challenges to implementation of
TDR
• Public/official reluctance to adopt new programs
• Lack of enabling legislation to streamline process
• Need for methods to prevent tax base reduction via
sending development credits
• Public reluctance to increase intensity of development in
receiving areas
• Potential for inappropriate program design
• Lack of public education on the benefits of compact
development in receiving areas
• Developer assumption of increased density without TDRs
Community Success Factors
• Voluntary, with incentives for both sending and
receiving landowners
• Tied to comprehensive planning
• Receiving areas with infrastructure
• Provides for tax base stability in sending zones
• Allows transfer across jurisdictions
• Good education program
• Provides streamlined implementation/approvals
• Uses a TDR bank to facilitate transfer
Market Success Factors
• Market Potential: monetary incentive “match” for
landowners to sell easements and developers to
buy them
• Landowner motivations (harder to sell land than
credits)
• Developer desire for additional density in
receiving zones
• Consistent application of TDR requirements to
all future upzonings
• Community commitment for the long term
Legal Issues
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Government regulation
Contractual relationships
Local authority
Consistency with Zoning/Planning Laws
Property Rights
Taxation
Documentation
Next Steps to TDR in Ohio
• Research successful example projects and
programs
• Develop an understanding of TDR and Ohio
real estate markets
• Education!
• Enabling legislation
• Develop model codes/programs
Initial Ohio TDR Projects
• Hiram Township and Village, Portage
County
• Madison Township/Village demonstration
project
• Orange Village, Cuyahoga County
• Hinckley Township, Medina County
Resources
• Rick Preutz, www.beyondtakingsandgivings.com
• Brandywine Conservancy Environmental
Management Center, Transfer of Development
Rights, www.brandywineconservancy.org
• Cleveland State University, Levin College Forum
on TDR, www.urban.csuohio.edu/forum/events
• Ohio Lake Erie Commission Balanced Growth
Program, toolkit
http://www.epa.state.oh.us/oleo/bg1/toolkit.html
HB 69
• Sponsored by Rep. Larry Wolpert, R-Hilliard
• 3-part legislation for townships, counties, and
inter-jurisdictional programs
• Requires community planning to designate
sending and receiving zones
• Permissive: Programs are optional
• Allows for incentives and TDR credit transfers
(right now the two are confused)
Questions?
Kirby Date, AICP
Countryside Program Coordinator
216-687-5477
[email protected]