Mississippi considers new codes while battling DOT

Several South Mississippi communities that took the brunt of Hurricane Katrina are considering changing their development codes and adopting other recommendations from last October’s Mississippi Renewal Forum. “So far, most local officials seem to be in favor of the SmartCode being adopted as an optional overlay but fast-tracked if it is chosen,” said Sandy Sorlien, who is providing SmartCode training in a number of the 11 Gulf Coast communities on behalf of the Governor’s Commission on Recovery, Rebuilding, and Renewal. Leading the pack is Pass Christian, a seven-square-mile municipality that had 6,579 residents before the hurricane. Urban designer Laura Hall of Santa Rosa, California, led a Pass Christian charrette Feb. 15-19 that was aimed at refining the regulating plan and producing a final version of the SmartCode, a Transect-based development ordinance originated by Duany Plater-Zyberk & Co. The code and plan will then be presented to the aldermen for adoption. The process is expected to take 60 days. Although Pass Christian is interested in making the SmartCode mandatory throughout the community, other cities are considering other approaches, such as offering developers the choice of whether to get expedited approvals under the SmartCode or proceed at the normal pace under existing conventional zoning, Sorlien said. Some cities, such as Pass Christian, are paying for SmartCode work from their own funds — a sign of the seriousness of their intentions. Code projects include these: • Ocean Springs (pop. 17,000) has its planning staff reviewing locations appropriate for the SmartCode. The city had been leaning toward SmartCode overlay districts, but in mid-February Planning Director Donovan Scruggs said the latest thinking is that “we adopt the SmartCode for several areas within the city and make those mandatory.” Code consultant Chad Emerson concurred with that shift of thinking, saying, “It allows a municipality to prioritize growth areas and make mandatory a progressive code in those areas without completely revamping the entire existing code (which inevitably can cause legal challenges — whether warranted or not).” A workshop was conducted for property owners in two affected areas, and the city hired a landscape master planner to further develop plans that emerged from the Renewal Forum. • Gulfport (pop. 71,000) is paying for a SmartCode charrette led by Robert Alminana of HDR Inc., which was scheduled for Feb. 24-28. In addition, architect Stephen Coyle of HDR facilitat