Urban design is often overlooked as a component of long-range planning, but it is a foundation element of this comprehensive plan. Urban design is a way to identify what is good and bad in the organization of a community's buildings, cultural features and form. It is a shaping process that creatively merges the new with the old, innovation with conformance, and organization with chaos.
There are three major objectives of a comprehensive plan. The first is to guide the quantity and type of future development. This is accomplished through population, housing and employment projections. These projections translate into land absorption rates that indicate the quantity of future land use classifications that need to be planned. The second objective is to guide the location of future development. This is achieved by taking the quantity of land use and dispersing it throughout the planning area. The end result is the land use map which helps town officials review future development. The final objective is to guide the quality of future development, which is achieved through urban design guidelines and policies.
Throughout Plainfield's initial stages of development, the process of organizing the Town's buildings, institutional features and natural areas was oriented around the Quaker Church and US 40, or the street network. With the commitment of Town staff and leaders and an active group of citizens, the Town Center and the rest of Plainfield is effectively organized and functions as a vibrant mixed use community with a balance of land uses. As the Town continues to grow, identifying optimum land uses will be more difficult than it was with the small town core. The trend has become more accelerated during the past decade. Identifiable residential neighborhoods have given way to the rapid development of commercial and industrial uses on the east side of Town due to the expansion of the airport and the construction of the Ronald Reagan Parkway.
As a result of rapid growth, development has not always met the high standards established in the Town Center. Recognizing that the Town Center has evolved within a completely different context than that of Plainfield's major commercial and industrial corridors and residential neighborhoods, the Urban Design Strategy presented here approaches these segments differently. An overriding goal of the plan is to ensure that these different areas of the community are understood and designed so that they establish a strong sense of place that defines Plainfield with its own unique character and identity.
The comprehensive plan serves as the guiding element of Plainfield's growth management process and sets the tone and protocol for how future development and redevelopment within the Town is to be shaped. From a Town-wide perspective, the goal of urban design is to maintain, strengthen and enhance the unifying characteristics of the community and the patterns which yield its unique identity. From an individual project perspective, the purpose of implementing an urban design strategy is to ensure that new buildings and improvements conform to the characteristics which embrace the "vision" for Plainfield.
In order to achieve the identified goals, the plan establishes an "urban design framework" around which future development within Plainfield can be patterned. This framework provides an urban design "vocabulary" through which land use, architecture, landscape design, transportation improvements, community facilities and recreation areas can be organized. The implementation of this framework should be a priority of the Town staff, in the context of the market, the rights of property owners, and the visual impact of the results.
Public/Private Partnerships
The success of an urban design strategy in Plainfield will not occur solely through the creation and implementation of ordinances, but will result from a commitment of the development community and the Town's leaders. As the Town has reviewed new commercial development, one of the lessons learned has been the "give and take" required by both the developer who identifies the specific market opportunity and designs the project, and the staff who ensure that the project is compatible with existing land use and the comprehensive plan. At times, good planning and quality development could be short-circuited due to lack of time and staff resources. A partnership needs to be undertaken between developers and the Town staff which takes good planning and carries it through to quality development. For this partnership to be effective, a dialogue should take place from the inception of the project to its completion. The parties involved in this dialogue should fully explore planning issues, concerns, and site opportunities at every level in the development process.
The plan recognizes that in order to be effective, the responsibilities for implementation must rest with both the public and private sector. As Plainfield continues to develop, the success of the comprehensive plan can be measured by the success or failure of development projects. The Plan's vision is defined by the many decisions which address location, density, scale, infrastructure, visual aesthetics and phasing of projects. Accordingly, the tools and methods to be incorporated into the framework of the plan must focus on each individual aspect of the development process.
In order for this partnership to be successful, a dialogue must be applied through close working relationships between Town staff, developers and their design consultants on each and every land use application. To that end, the Plan promotes the idea of conducting pre-application conferences and urban design work sessions prior to each of the key milestone in the process - rezone, preliminary plat, site plan review, subdivision process, drainage process and building permits.
The previous comprehensive plan established the policy basis for addressing urban design issues such as gateways, corridors, and the Town Center. In this plan, an emphasis is placed on providing an urban design framework for the Town's various planning areas and corridor. This framework provides greater planning detail than what is normally found in a traditional comprehensive plan. It addresses future development opportunities and limitations for each area while establishing guidelines for the scale, order, intensity and architectural expression of that development.
Principals of Urban Design
This plan recognizes that quality design emerges from addressing issues related to project feasibility, design continuity and site-specific conditions. Within any given site planning exercise, certain fundamental urban design principals should be carefully tested within this context. Good urban design principles support the goals, objectives and design guidelines for protecting the cultural, historical and architectural character of Plainfield. Design guidelines provide the fundamental criteria for a community to achieve an identifiable character or image. They are typically based on existing architectural and spatial relationships and the overall aesthetic qualities desired. The design guidelines provided in this section provide a framework for future design to ensure that the best design solutions are achieved within given areas of Plainfield.
The Plan emphasizes that every new and redevelopment project in Plainfield should strive to incorporate urban design fundamentals that embrace a positive character for Plainfield. In order to achieve urban development that achieves the goals of the Plan, development applications should demonstrate a clear understanding of the broader Town goals include:
Compatible land uses;
Harmonious growth along corridors;
Appropriate architecture related to massing, image, form and scale,
Preservation of open space and the creation of recreational amenities; and
Efficient access, circulation and parking to serve developments.
The Plan in its entirety must put forth a coordinated land use strategy of location, quantity and quality to achieve these goals. There will not be one plan or ordinance that will provide all the design solutions desired by the Town. Rather, it will be a combination of the comprehensive plan, zoning and subdivision control ordinances, corridor and historic district guidelines, environmental regulations, site design regulations and other ordinance and standards that will complete the program. It is the intent that these documents will remove the mystery from the design review process and provide some measure of predictability for property owners. The guidelines will also ensure that decisions of the Design Review Committee are objective and consistent for all building, sign, and landscaping projects.
Urban Design Guidelines
Activities of a community are reflected in the patterns of its land use, but there is more to creating great places than simply providing the structure for the community's land uses. The type, location and intensity of different land uses also affect how a community's future goals are met and represented on the Future Land Use Map. For community identity and strong sense of place, a town needs to have community character that reflects the values of its residents through quality development. The urban design guidelines seek to define and translate visually perceivable physical forms of the community that contribute to the quality and character of the Town of Plainfield.
Four different areas of physical design are examined in this section: single family residential development, single family attached and multifamily residential development, commercial, office and industrial development. While focusing on these particular areas, many of the design principles can be applied across the Town. These design guidelines have been developed to provide guidance relating to the design of the community. The intent of the guidelines is to encourage the creation of useful and lasting community improvements that will be enjoyed for years to come.
These design guidelines offer specific recommendations for the design and placement of Town design elements, including buildings, streetscape elements, open space, signs, etc. The main principles illustrated in these guidelines include a focus on pedestrian comfort and human-scale, accessibility, visual interest, and architectural and historic compatibility.
The design guidelines are based on three goals. First, they provide developers a tool for understanding the comprehensive design intent and character desired by the Town of Plainfield. Second, they provide standards by which proposed developments will be evaluated for their compliance with the design intent. Third, they suggest and encourage design approaches that facilitate the design intent of the plan.
These guidelines do not dictate design decisions, but they do provide standards or guidelines to be followed. These guidelines work to prevent incompatible new construction or rehabilitation by acting as a base for objective decision making. Each guideline describes and illustrates ways that existing places and new developments may be designed, altered and improved to achieve the most desirable solution. Each guideline also provides criteria to evaluate the appropriateness of specific design decisions involved in a project. Attention to these guidelines will help to contribute to a unique and attractive Town, especially along the entrance corridors.
Single Family Residential
General Site Design Principles
New development should be compatible with the adopted Comprehensive Plan and Residential Design Guidelines Manual.
New residential development should be reasonably-scaled and compatible with adjacent neighborhoods
Transportation Design Principles
Residential neighborhood transportation planning should utilize a hierarchical system of internal roadways.
Individual single family residences should not have direct access to major collector roads and highway arteries.
Streets should be designed with minimal disturbance of the natural environment and should be sensitive to excessive earthwork and steeply sloped terrain features.
Residential street alignments should reinforce a "neighborhood sense of scale" and should avoid monotonous street layouts: principles of traditional neighborhood design should be tested.
Subdivisions should be located with entrances directly across the street from one another.
On-street parking should be minimized in low-density single-family communities.
Public utilities should be accommodated, to the extent possible, within proposed street rights-of-way.
Sidewalks and walkways should be of appropriate size, based on the density of the neighborhood. A 9' strip should separate the roadway from the front yard, including a 4-6' sidewalk as appropriate for the density of the neighborhood.
Sidewalk design should facilitate access to existing and future greenways and trail.
Residential streets should not adversely impact sensitive environmental areas, as defined by the Comprehensive Plan.
Connections should be made to stub streets.
Landscape Design Principles
Existing vegetation should be preserved.
Street trees should be located along all neighborhood streets.
Landscape design concepts should be sensitive to the placement of utility infrastructure (and vice versa).
Subdivision entrances should incorporate special landscaping treatment, signage, lighting and other amenities to "identify" the project.
The use of a variety of landscape materials is encouraged.
Neighborhood "focal points" should be identified during the site planning process, and varying scales and varieties (including seasonal diversity) of trees, shrubs and flowers should be employed to promote visual interest and quality.
Large open spaces, natural areas and common areas which do not receive scheduled maintenance should employ low-maintenance landscape materials.
Individual residential lots should be landscaped to protect solar access to residences, to protect residences from wind during the winter and to orient plantings to promote site air flow during hot weather.
Outdoor lighting, signage, mailboxes, accessory structures, fencing and site furnishings should be compatible with a consistent neighborhood design theme and be compatible with the Plainfield Zoning Ordinance Architectural Review guidelines and Residential Design Guidelines Manual.
Open Space and Environmental Principles
Dominant natural features as well as sensitive environmental areas should be integrated into the design of the neighborhood.
Each single-family development should provide sufficient levels of open space, conservation areas, "pocket-parks" and other recreation areas for its residents.
Greenbelts or landscaped easements along major transportation routes should be incorporated into the neighborhood open space system.
Grassed swales should be employed for storm drainage, where possible, with structural outfalls located well above the floodplain limits.
All electric and telephone utility lines should be placed underground with above ground appurtenances and service areas screened, bermed and/or landscaped from public view, when possible.
Architectural Design Principles
Plainfield’s Residential Design Guidelines Manual should be followed where applicable.
New housing and infill housing should be of a consistent massing and scale within each neighborhood.
Single-family building types should be selected and sited with sensitivity to and respect for the existing terrain and natural features of the site.
Similar and visually compatible architectural materials should be utilized within a given cluster of single-family residences.
Within single family neighborhoods, compatible design themes should be pursued, while avoiding repetitious facade treatments from house to house.
Residential architecture should embrace sustainability principles and consider energy conservation in site planning.
Single Family Attached and Multi-Family Residential Development
General Site Planning Principles
New attached and multifamily residential developments should be compatible with the adopted Comprehensive Plan and Residential Design Guidelines .
New attached and multifamily residential developments should be designed employing a "neighborhood-scale" to housing orientations and massing. Excessively large neighborhoods should be avoided.
Residential buildings should be clustered to conform to the Plan's goal of siting units in the most developable areas (planning sub-areas).
Site planning and housing design for these residential developments should consider potential highway noise impacts.
Attached residential development site planning should evaluate and respond to energy conservation site planning techniques.
Where non-residential structures are to be incorporated into community designs, consideration should be given to be architectural compatibility with residential units.
Transportation Design Principles
Transportation planning should utilize a hierarchical system of internal roadways, incorporating both public and private streets and private parking areas.
Multifamily and attached residential units should not have direct access to any public street unless they are part of a mixed use or townhouse development
Private drives and parking areas should be coordinated with the Town’s street system.
Streets and parking bays should be designed with minimal disturbance of the natural environment and should be sensitive to excessive earthwork and steeply sloped terrain features.
Residential street alignments should reinforce a "neighborhood sense of scale" and should avoid linear, monotonous street layouts.
Street and parking area signage should provide for clear directions and safe movement throughout the neighborhood.
On-street parking should be avoided on public streets within attached and multifamily communities, with reasonable provisions made for street standards to accommodate an emergency parking lane. This does not apply to mixed-use development with residential uses or townhouse development.
Private off-street parking areas should be buffered and landscaped from primary views from public streets.
Sidewalk design should facilitate access to existing and future greenways and trail.
Dedicated, screened, and off-street parking areas should be provided for special vehicle storage (campers, boats, recreational vehicles). Such vehicles should not be permitted in normal parking areas.
Proper linkages should be provided for pedestrian access from buildings to parking areas.
A pedestrian/open space system linking neighborhood activity centers should be provided.
Public utilities should be accommodated, to the extent possible, within proposed street rights-of-way.
Residential streets as well as private driveways and parking areas should not adversely impact the sensitive environmental areas, as defined by the Comprehensive Plan.
Landscape Design Principles
Existing quality vegetation should be preserved.
Street trees should be located along both public and private neighborhood streets.
Special landscape treatments should identify and reinforce neighborhood and building entry areas.
Landscape design concepts should be sensitive to the placement of utility infrastructure (and vice versa).
Community entrances should incorporate special landscaping treatment, signage, lighting and other landscape amenities to "identify" the project.
Neighborhood "focal points" should be identified during the site planning process, and varying scales and varieties (including seasonal diversity) of trees, ornamental shrubs and flowers should be employed to promote visual interest and quality.
Well landscaped special use areas, such as pools, tennis courts and other neighborhood recreation areas, should be provided.
In elderly housing neighborhoods special recreational and landscaped amenities should be provided.
Large open spaces, natural areas and common areas which are not likely to receive scheduled maintenance should employ low-maintenance landscape materials.
Building clusters should be landscaped to protect solar access to residences, to protect residences from wind during the winter and to orient plantings to promote site air-flow during hot weather.
Outdoor lighting, signage, mailboxes, accessory structures, fencing and site furnishings should be compatible with a consistent neighborhood design theme and be compatible with the Plainfield Zoning Ordinance and Residential Design Guidelines.
Walls and fencing should be employed to enhance the privacy and enjoyment of outdoor spaces adjacent to residential units.
Open Space and Environmental Principles
Dominant natural features as well as sensitive environmental areas should be integrated into the design of the neighborhood.
Attached and multifamily residential projects should provide sufficient levels of open space, conservation areas, parks and other active recreation areas for its residents.
Plainfield’s Greenway System, greenbelts and landscaped easements along active, external transportation routes should be incorporated into the neighborhood open space system.
Grassed swales should be employed for storm drainage, where possible, with structural outfalls located well above the floodplain limits.
Parking lot drainage designs should seek to minimize cumulative runoff concentrations.
All electric and telephone utility lines should be placed underground with above ground appurtenances and service areas screened, bermed and/or landscaped from public view, where possible.
Screened and landscaped on-site storage areas for refuse and wastes should be provided for easy and safe access to the residents.
Architectural Design Principles
Plainfield’s Residential Design Guidelines Manual should be followed where applicable.
New and infill housing should be of a consistent massing and scale within each neighborhood grouping or building cluster.
Attached and multifamily building types should be selected and sited with sensitivity to and respect for the existing terrain and natural features of the site.
Similar and visually compatible architectural materials should be utilized within a given cluster of neighborhood buildings.
Within higher density neighborhoods, a consistent design theme should be pursued, while avoiding repetitious facade treatments from building to building.
Unit siting should employ varied frontage setbacks.
Siting of residential buildings should consider clustering units around courtyard-styled areas or other "thematic" landscape focal points in order to reinforce neighborhood scale and visual appeal from building approaches.
Lighting at parking and loading areas should be mounted on walls or posts at a height of 25 feet or less unless appropriate light levels dictate another lighting plan.
Free-standing and wall mounted fixtures should incorporate cutoffs to screen the view of light sources from neighboring residential uses.
Fixtures and posts should be consistent throughout the development.
Lighting should be used to highlight building entrances.
Commercial, Office and Industrial Development
General Site Planning Principles
New commercial and office development should be compatible with the adopted Comprehensive Plan.
New commercial and office development should be designed in a scale compatible with adjacent development and street systems.
Site planning and architectural designs for these non-residential developments should consider potential highway noise impacts.
Major office projects and large employment centers should employ "campus" design programs, accentuating integrated site planning, landscaping and architectural concepts.
Parking areas should be located outside of required yard areas.
If the site is "double-fronted", with visibility from an adjacent highway, the site layout should seek to minimize unfavorable views from the highway.
In general, setbacks at new buildings should reflect the setback of neighboring buildings, in order to facilitate a consistent appearance and coordinated parking and access solutions.
Transportation Design Principles
Transportation planning should utilize a hierarchical system of internal roadways, incorporating both public and private streets and private parking areas.
Individual parking spaces for commercial and office developments should not directly access any public street.
Private drives and parking areas should be coordinated with the street system.
Interior street alignments should reinforce an appropriate sense of scale relative to the proposed commercial development massing and should avoid linear, monotonous street layouts.
Street and parking area signage should provide for clear directions and safe movement throughout the planned development.
On-street parking should be avoided on public streets serving commercial and office projects with reasonable provisions made for street standards to accommodate an emergency parking lane.
Private off-street parking areas should be buffered and landscaped to the extent possible from primary views from public streets.
Sidewalks should be provided for pedestrian access (emphasizing handicap access needs) from buildings to parking areas and adjacent properties.
Public utilities should be accommodated, to the extent possible, within proposed street rights-of-way.
If connections to trails are provided, bicycle parking for employees should be conveniently located near building entrances.
Sidewalk design should facilitate access to existing and future greenways and trails.
Truck loading areas should be located beside or behind the building to the extent feasible.
Provide adequate on-site areas for truck loading and maneuvering, where feasible as dictated by site constraints.
Cul-de-sacs within new planned business or industrial parks are strongly discouraged since they promote inefficient circulation patterns, particularly for large vehicles.
Truck and auto entrances should be separated, and auto parking areas should be isolated from truck movement and loading areas.
Where possible, connections should be made to adjoining parking areas and access to lots should be consolidated through the use of shared curb cuts.
Parking areas should be screened by buildings or landscaping. Long, unbroken rows of parking should not be allowed. Large fields of parking should be adequately landscaped.
Landscape Design Principles
Existing significant vegetation should be preserved.
Street trees should be located along both public and private commercial streets.
Shade trees should be provided in landscaped medians in all parking lots, employing consistent species groupings to reinforce the character of development and ambience of the parking areas.
Special landscape treatments should identify and reinforce major commercial or office entry areas as well as primary building entry zones.
Landscape design concepts should be sensitive to the placement of utility infrastructure (and vice versa).
Entrances from public streets should incorporate special landscaping treatment, signage, lighting and other landscape amenities to thematically "identify" the project.
Significant physical "focal points" of the site should be identified during the conceptual planning process, and varying scales and varieties (including seasonal diversity) of trees, ornamental shrubs and flowers should be employed to promote visual interest and quality at key nodes.
Large open spaces, natural areas and common areas which are not likely to receive scheduled maintenance should employ low-maintenance landscape materials.
Outdoor lighting, commercial signage, directional signage, mailboxes, accessory structures, fencing and site furnishings should be compatible with a consistent project design theme and be compatible with the Plainfield Zoning Ordinance.
Off-street parking areas, building foundations, and signs should all be landscaped.
Fences and barriers should be constructed of consistent and compatible high quality materials to create a coordinated appearance.
The perimeter of parking lots and loading areas adjoining residential land-uses and less intense commercial uses should be screened with continuous landscaping, berms and/or low walls or other appropriate features, such as the example shown below.
Retention ponds, where required, should be designed as landscape features.
Open Space and Environmental Principles
Dominant natural features as well as sensitive environmental areas should be integrated into the design of commercial and office areas.
Commercial and office projects should provide sufficient levels of open space, conservation areas, parks and other recreation areas for its employees and visitors.
Greenbelts and landscape easements along active, external transportation routes should be incorporated into the open space system.
Parking lot drainage designs should seek to minimize cumulative runoff concentrations.
All electric and telephone utility lines should be placed underground with above ground appurtenances and service areas screened, bermed and/or landscaped from public view, where possible.
Screened and landscaped on-site storage areas for refuse and wastes should be provided for easy and safe access to the residents.
A landscaped "backdrop" should be established along the rear property lines of commercial development, with landscaping compatible with the screening needs of adjacent land uses.
Architectural Design Principles
New commercial and office buildings should be of a consistent massing and scale within each grouping or building cluster.
Similar and visually compatible architectural materials should be utilized within a given cluster of commercial buildings.
For commercial and office developments, a consistent design theme should be pursued, while avoiding repetitious facade treatments from building to building.
Primary building entries should be segregated from service oriented entries.
Siting of commercial buildings should consider clustering units around courtyard-like areas to reinforce the scale of the area and visual appeal from building approaches.
Lighting at parking and loading areas should be mounted on walls or posts at a height of 25 feet or less unless appropriate lighting levels dictate a different lighting plan.
Free-standing and wall mounted fixtures should incorporate cutoffs to screen the view of light sources from neighboring residential uses.
Fixtures and posts should be consistent throughout the development.
Lighting should be used to highlight building entrances.
Wherever possible, signs should be located low to the ground, in the driver's line of vision. Roof-mounted signs are prohibited. Pole signs are allowable for integrated centers in the CG district.
Building sign sizes should primarily reflect viewing distances for drivers.
Building signs oriented to adjacent highways can be larger in scale.
At multi-tenant developments, shared monument signage should be encouraged.
Monument and wall signage should be designed appropriate for the scale of the building.
Sign support structures should be minimal or architecturally integrated with the overall development.
Street-facing façades of office buildings should vary in height to create visual variety.
Warehouses should avoid blank elevations on street frontages through the use of building indentation and architectural details, such as "faux window treatments", related to the "structure" of the building.
New facades should be well composed, and articulated with a variety of materials and planes and should be compatible with surrounding buildings.
Building entrances should be highlighted with accent elements, lighting or other features that aid in orientation.
Visitor entrances should be prominent, preferably through the use of a portico or awning that will provide weather protection.
Stairways, fences, trash enclosures and other accessory elements should be designed as integral parts of the facility design.
New commercial, office, and industrial facilities over 200,000 square feet should install 800 mhz cable antenna to facilitate public safety radio reception throughout the community as buildings affect the reception of 700 and 800 mhz radios used for public safety.
AESTHETIC CONSIDERATIONS
An important consideration in the implementation of plan recommendations will be the character or aesthetics of the roadways, particularly those that provide gateway entrances into the Town. Appearance has much to do with a strong sense of community. Design standards, which can be contained in a zoning ordinance, are one way to make areas more attractive while enhancing or protecting a certain character within the Town. Design standards need to be strictly enforced in order to yield success. Incentive programs can help ensure that individuals adhere to the design guidelines provided.
Plainfield currently has established a set of design standards for the development of residential subdivisions and neighborhoods within the Town. Guidelines have also been adopted for key gateway corridors, addressing landscaping, trails, signage and lighting. These elements create an identifiable character along a roadway corridor and could have a noticeable effect on the entire community.
The Town has the opportunity to participate in aesthetic improvements as part of its street projects and can influence the design of state highways through proactive involvement and communication. Recently, INDOT has undertaken an initiative of context sensitive design, whereby roadways are designed with the character of the site and the Town in mind.
Additionally, transportation enhancements are supported by FHWA as long as they do not interfere with the overall function of the transportation corridor. Efforts for maintaining public property and sidewalks along corridors would also benefit community aesthetics.
The major corridors, both existing and proposed, will continue to serve as the "front door" to the Town of Plainfield, and are often viewed primarily from the vehicle. These corridors include Ronald Reagan Parkway, Stafford Road, SR 267 from US 40 to I-70, Perimeter Parkway, and US 40 from the edge of the Town Center to the county line. In some cases, it will be best to utilize the natural environment, including woods, fields and water features, to provide aesthetic enhancement. These features compliment roadway facilities because they provide the visual richness at a scale that matches the built environment. In areas where development has become so dense that the natural environment is removed, the character of the corridor will often defined by competing features, and other elements must be relied upon to define, highlight, and unify these spaces.
The recognition that corridors around the Town of Plainfield play an important role in defining the image and aesthetic quality of the community is an important first step in establishing a unified image. For the purpose of the comprehensive plan, recommendations for regional transportation, local transportation and community gateways are suggested. For each treatment, a basic summary is provided. Additional detailed design will be needed on a project by project basis to properly address site-specific technical aspects of the project and to coordinate with the various utilities, regulatory agencies and adjacent property owners. It is anticipated that once a design has been established for the different characters of roads within the Town, these design standards could be replicated in other areas through Town initiatives and developer cooperation.
A general overview of the corridor enhancements for all areas includes the following recommendations:
Remove and bury overhead power lines
Develop thorough landscape guidelines
Install unique/ornamental lighting
Develop and implement overall wayfinding signage treatment plan
Expand and connect to the community greenway system
Provide shared access/parking for new developments
Develop parking lot guidelines for landscape and locating off-street parking lots
Improve and provide new access and frontage roadways
Encourage development at an appropriate scale
Screen incompatible land uses
Benefits of these enhancement projects include:
Positive Town image and identity
Stronger sense of place
Improved safety for both pedestrian and vehicular movement
Quality standards to help attract business and generate tax revenues
Regional Transportation
Ronald Reagan Parkway
The Ronald Reagan Parkway corridor has been master planned as a continuous corridor from Interstate 74 near Brownsburg to Interstate 70 in Plainfield. Conceptual elements proposed for the corridor include:
Informal landscape plantings throughout the corridor
The use of landscape plantings and berms to screen parking lots and undesireable views.
Landscaped medians with a mix of hardscape and softscape treatments.
Consistent use of like or similar materials to reinforce a consistent aesthetic character throughout the entire corridor
Consistent use of decorative light fixtures and signal poles that reinforce the aesthetic of the corridor.
The use of structured gateway elements.
The use of specialty wall and signage treatments.
The application of corridor specific thematic devices including banners, pole medallions, and imagery incorporated into built features.
The development of a themed corridor-specific wayfinding signage system.
Enhanced wall treatments at bridges that reinforces the aesthetic of the corridor through the use of like or similar elements.
The inclusion of a multi-use trail along the length of the corridor
Strict access management standards including the limiting of curb cuts and median openings, consistent traffic signal spacing, and the use of internal roadway systems with shared access to the corridor.
SR 267 Corridor North Treatment
Enhancement opportunities exist with the median along the 267 corridor. Where appropriate and allowable by clear zone safety standards, the addition of shade trees and wildflower/perennial plantings along the median are encouraged. Shoulder areas should be maintained and enhanced with the addition of ornamental street lighting and the removal of overhead utility lines.
SR 267 Corridor South Treatment
In the segment of the corridor where a planted median is not feasible, additional plantings are encouraged along the edge of the right-of-way. The expansion of the pedestrian walk/trail is also encouraged, separated from the roadway by the planted parkway strip.
Local Transportation
Perimeter Parkway Corridor Treatment
Conceptual elements proposed for the Perimeter Parkway include:
Ornamental street lighting
Shade trees and perennial plantings in median
Wayfinding signage (with graphic orientation) in median
Pedestrian walk/greenway connection with appropriate graphic signage along route. The walk should be separated from the roadway by a planted parkway strip.
