Zone regulations: Area Standards.

Abstract
In a given society, at each historical stage, market/institutional forces throw up common and widely recognized patterns of urban land distribution in human settlements of similar size. The improving technology of transportation and communication acts upon the historical form and provides new opportunities for development. Where the inherited form does not meet the changing goals and objectives of society or is slow to respond to opportunities created by new technology, the Planner is called upon to intervene. However, the planner must be aware of the pervasive power of market processes, so that limitations to the scope of planned intervention are understood. In this context, the basic tools of land use control i.e. zoning and subdivision regulations are described. Zoning is a method by which the development plan segregates parcels of land or areas of towns and ascribes to them broad classifications of appropriate use, for example residential, industrial, commercial or educational. Combinations of uses can also be indicated. Zoning, land subdivision and building control comprise a hierarchy of regulator techniques for land use control, at different degree of detail. These are described as follows: i. ii. iii. Zoning regulates the overall structure. Land subdivision is concerned with the immediate relationship between contiguous plots, access and services. Building control regulates the proportion of built-up area, setbacks, height and bulk on each plot.

The three devices are normally used in conjunction and indeed have overlapping elements. The execution these devices are directed by town planning and building regulations. Building control guidelines have been given in NATIONAL BUILDING CODE and BULDING BYE-LAWS (of various authorities acting under provincial legislation). Zoning and Building regulations are generally the silent protector to the general public and are generally not well recognized unless a situation where regulations are either inadequate or are not enforced occurs. This generally tends to occur after large events such as earthquakes, hurricanes (typhoons) and fires with extensive economic and life loss. This paper will explore importance and challenges associated with zoning regulations and their enforcement. This paper will set the stage for discussing performance regulations, how they relate to prescriptive regulations and the important elements that must be addressed to accomplish the same ideals that traditional building codes have been built upon. Key Terms: Zoning, land subdivision, building control and bye-laws, area standards, building codes, density, setbacks, prescriptive regulations, performance-based regulations, etc. By: Syed Ali Raza Shah

Term Paper Assignment AR-609 Regulator Considerations in Architectural Applications