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Harris County Community Services Department <br /> Affordable Housing Project Design Standards <br /> <br />Buildingsshouldbeorientedtoallowfortheuseofcommondriveways,especiallyalong <br />arterialsstreets,whereareductioninthenumberofcurbopeningswillenhancethe <br />streetscapeandpromotetrafficsafetyandimprovedmobility. <br />Ifwithinacityboundary,thebuildingshouldfollowlocalregulationsandordinancesgoverning <br />setbacksandbuildingorientation.Newhousingunitsconstructedwithinexisting <br />neighborhoodsshouldfollowthose“;zmw,š©wšš7x­HomeownerAssociationruleswherethey <br />exist.Buildingsshallwherepossiblealignwiththefrontedgeofexistingbuildingsalonga <br />street.Atacorner,buildingsshallbeplacedtoalignwithexistingbuildingsfacingbothstreets. <br />Onblockswithoutexistingbuildings,newbuildingsshallbeplacedinaccordancewithother <br />buildingsonadjacentblocks. <br />StreetBoundariesandSidewalks <br />Thepublic(sidewalkedge)boundaryofthepropertyshallbedefinedusingfencing,walls, <br />hedges,lineoftrees,orotherlandscapematerial.Fornewhousingunitsconstructedwithin <br />existingneighborhoodswithsidewalks,thenewunitsshouldhavesidewalksthatconnectto <br />theexistingsidewalknetwork.Sidewalksshouldbemadecomfortableforusebypedestrians <br />throughtheuseoflandscaping,overhangsandcanopiesinordertoprovideshadeandnon <br />heatabsorbingmaterials.Handicappedaccessmustbeincorporatedinallrequiredaccess <br />sidewalks/pathways. <br />SiteDensity <br />Thedesignandbuildingofeachprojectmustbetothedensityspecificforthelocationtype. <br />DuetothediversityofunincorporatedHarrisCounty,proposedprojectswillbecategorizedas <br />urban/smallcityrequiringaminimumofatleast75%ofsurroundingnetresidentialdensity, <br />suburban/midsizetownrequiringaminimumofatleast75%ofsurroundingnetresidential <br />densityorrural/smalltownsrequiringaminimumnetdensityof5unitsperacrefordetached <br />orsemidetachedhouses;10unitsperacrefortownhomesand15unitsperacrefor <br />apartments. <br />OpenSpace <br />Privateusableopenspaceshouldbedirectlyaccessiblefromtheindividualdwellingandbeof <br />suchsizeastoofferareasonableoutdoorlivingopportunity.Theplacementofairconditioning <br />equipmentshouldnotrenderprivateopenspaceunusable. <br />SpecifictoMultiunitDevelopments <br />Setasideaminimumof10%ofthetotalprojectacreageasopenspaceforusebyresidentsor <br />locateprojectwithina.25milewalkdistanceofdedicatedpublicopenspacethatisaminimum <br />of.75acres(notanoptionforseniordevelopments).Privateandcommonopenspaces s hould <br />bedesignedtobeaccessibleandusablebyoccupantsofthedevelopment.Functionalopen <br />spaceenhancescirculationwithinasiteandcontributestothe­z·;x­aestheticqualities. <br />Harris County Community Services Department 25 <br />Affordable Housing Project Design Standards <br />Revised May 2011 <br /> <br />