Clifton Park has approved zoning changes that will encourage mixed-use projects, which are a growing trend in real estate development.
The change should streamline the review process developers face, but leaves the ultimate fate of a proposed apartment complex uncertain.
The zoning changes were the result of input from community members, as well as a lengthy study with the town center as the subject. The area includes banks, offices, stores, franchise restaurants, and shopping centers, and grew as the city’s population increased. Today, it is typical of most suburban cores, where roads are designed to get vehicles across busy intersections and into the parking lots that front the establishments.
Changes in the zoning were made to make the center safer for bicyclists and pedestrians, create open spaces and parks, allow for more architectural variety, and encourage mixed-use projects in which residences occupy floors above retail stores.
The new code also capped the number of apartments that could be built in a specific project at 50. This means the development proposed by Windsor Cos., which includes 200 luxury apartments, is on hold and will need to be considered separately by the Town Board.
City officials could work with brochure printers to create a booklet describing the enhanced town center, and make it available to commercial and residential realtors to present to their clients.
