A Short History of SPI’s Form-based Codes

Part 1 of a 4-part series

(Photo above from before form-based code shared in a presentation given by Councilwoman Alita Bagley in a City Council Workshop on January 22, 2015)

22/6/2020

At the beginning of a City Council Workshop on January 22, 2015, Councilwoman Alita Bagley presented the history of form-based codes by starting with a quote from a 2003 study done on South Padre Island by consulting group Wallace Robert and Todd.

According to their study
 
“The town of SPI has decided to take control of its destiny. It has commenced a proactive planning process designed to preserve, maintain, and enhance the unique assets, which make it both a major tourist attraction and a haven for a wide range of citizens that make up its population. Following a tourism study, which both identified the town’s potential as well as expressed concern about the negative impact of its deteriorating image and curb appeal, a vision statement for the future was developed through citizen participation. The vision statement was adopted in 2002, and it underlined the concern for the physical appearance of the town and formed the basis for this community enhancement report.” (critical points bolded by author)
 
The goals of the form-based codes were to bring sought-after potential to fruition and construct/develop ‘The Padre Boulevard Revitalization Program’ vision along with a temporary committee to:
 
1. Explore and develop recommendations for the long-range improvement of the business district (Padre Blvd. corridor);
2. Develop a set of recommendations with the goal of creating a safe and walkable community;
3. Recommend including improvements in the development of parking, lighting, landscaping, sidewalks, and aesthetics, among other things.
 
Gateway Planning Inc. was the consultant team that was brought on board to present the value and advantages of a new vision for the Island and helped to amend form-based codes. Scott Polikov (Director of Gateway Planning), remembers that when planning the development for the Island that it was the most stringent code he and his team had ever made.  The flooding and the vulnerability to hurricanes made it “the most challenging code we’ve ever written.”
 
The driving forces of that 2015 meeting were Alita Bagley and (former councilman and architect) Sam Listi.  According to Polikov, “Alita Bagley and Sam Listi were interested in figuring out how to get the ‘Padre Blvd. function’ evolved into more of a walkable environment, rather than a state highway, where you don’t have any protecting crossings.”
 
Mr. Polikov was concerned about the danger to pedestrians crossing Padre Blvd.  “I was recruited down there to meet with them regarding previous form-based code (before 2015) on Padre Blvd.  You (didn’t) have any crossings! (Pictured above) If you don’t have an intersection to do a crossing count down, then you can have all these people just running across the roads that can get hit.  It’s a horrible situation.”

Click on the links below for reference on South Padre Island's ongoing pedestrian safety predicament.

Polikov was shocked to find out form-based codes still existed on the Island because of push back in 2015 as well as continuing controversy afterward.  “The city’s lawyer just didn’t like it, and he didn’t understand it.  He pushed back.  The planning director, Dr. Sungman, recommended to the mayor that they throw (the FBC) out.  They called me to come and talk to them, but I didn’t want to be their strawman.  I thought they killed it.  I thought they wiped it out.”
 
The January 22, 2015, City Council workshop turned into a five-and-a-half-hour marathon.  Property owners attended and represented themselves, exercising their rights as residents, and played a significant role in making South Padre Island a better and safer place to work, play, and live.
 
“If we’re going to do it, we’ve got to do it right the first time, because as a taxpayer and a property owner, I don’t like seeing something put in and a couple of years later (we) tear it all out and do it another way.  That would be frustrating,” said property owner Beth Vance.
 
Kori Marra, a resident of Laguna Vista at the time, and now a member of the Economic Development Committee, added, “It takes people with vision.  Weslaco, Texas, has a downtown improvement district. After ten years, they got some money out of Austin.”  Marra also mentioned South Padre Island supporters like Carlos Cascos, “If anyone can go to Austin and get us some money, he can tell us how to do it.”
 
What has changed since the beginning of form-based codes was the start of a new era for South Padre Island, “It’s going to take 20-30 years for it to take hold of the complete boulevard.  We’re not tearing down buildings to make the form-based code work.  If one gets torn down or destroyed in a hurricane, we must come back and do it the right way,” said Listi.
 
Listi focused on building things the right way.  He said that building materials play a significant role, especially in roofing.  “Building materials are always a big part because you you have to allow for the hurricane winds.  Building materials are substantial so that it doesn’t blow things around.  During Dolly, we had complete roofs blow off,” he said.
 
According to Listi, before adopting the Island’s new form-based codes, “We had a pretty rough time walking along Padre Boulevard because sidewalks were made out of asphalt and had potholes, it made it difficult to walk.”  He added, “It’s not a stagnate document.  It’s subject to change, but you have to have a city planner that understands form-based codes to make (the right) recommendations for change.”

(Pictured above is slide 81of 96 of East Beach: Norfolk, VA, a beach town that has achieved sustainability using Form-based codes.)
 
Form-based codes help control and define organization tactics and designs that cities want to see for the future. “It takes architectural controls and organization of Padre Boulevard to make a nice environment. Without the form-based codes, people would just build whatever they wanted to build, wherever they wanted to build it,” says Listi.

The picture below is an example of a successfully designed district from Las Vegas.

Bike lanes and medians are an example of how residents now reap the benefits of the form-based codes.  Benefits including the detailed organization, a decade filled with hard work, and push for change that South Padre Island can take control of its destiny and embark on a long-term vision for a better/safer future to work, play, and live.

You can find South Padre Islands form-based codes here.
 
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