Edgewood Central District

The underlying purpose in creating this new zoning district centers on the public health, safety and general welfare of the residents, business owners, and visitors to the city.  In order to achieve the highest standard of public health, safety and general welfare, the creation of this district intends to:  

• Provide a reliable development framework for public and private development decision making that will lead to the desired land use character and improve property values;
• Encourage redevelopment or reuse of the underutilized or poorly maintained properties, recognizing Edgewood’s advantage of accessibility to  downtown Orlando, the airport, the tourist area, and existing infrastructure;
• Create a sense of civic pride by establishing good order and appearance through  establishing uniform landscape and building placement design guidelines;
• Recognize that the largest “open space” within the city is the Orange Avenue right-of-way and the need to make this open space compatible with humans in addition to vehicles;
• Protect the stability of the existing residential neighborhoods through design guidelines and only allowing uses which are compatible with the intended neighborhood character;
• Enliven the community by the requiring development designed to the human scale;
• Improve transportation efficiency in the city by encouraging alternative modes of transportation, the creation of new travel patterns and live/work/play communities, and the consolidation of vehicle access points along the major roads; and,
• Making Edgewood a walkable community through the mix of uses and design to create interest in walking, protecting pedestrians through design guidelines.

The district is intended to establish a land use pattern that includes the creation of activity nodes, where the primary focus is a high energy mix of live/work/play uses with well-designed public spaces, that are connected by corridors of new employment and multi-unit residential buildings at an intensity less than the activity nodes. The parcel configuration along the Orange Avenue corridor is well suited for this land use pattern with the current shopping centers (Fort Gatlin, Water’s Edge, and Edgewood Isle) candidates for the activity nodes given that their depth and area sufficient to accommodate a significant redevelopment effort, and the more shallow depth and individual ownership of parcels along the east and west sides of the corridor for the less intense uses. Assemblages of parcels on the west side of the corridor and a future commuter rail station location also have the potential for activity nodes.

The development standards for both the activity nodes and the business/residential corridor are intended to foster Edgewood’s identity as a great “place.”  Making a “place” is not the same as constructing a building, designing a plaza, or developing a commercial zone.  It is a cohesive plan designed to serve people, with development at a human scale, with attention to function as well as form. 

Footnote:  If the most recent ECD standards have not yet been codified, they can be found here - https://library.municode.com/fl/edgewood/ordinances/code_of_ordinances?n...