By Peter Stempel 

If you are following the continued development of Washington County and the Vision Dixie process, one term you are going to be hearing more and more is "Mixed Use."  Put simply "Mixed Use" is a type of zoning and development that means just what it says, mixing uses, that is combining some types of commercial spaces with residential units in the same buildings and areas. Situated well, this type of development can have a tremendously positive impact on towns and cities.

Mixed Use is not a new idea.  In fact mixed-use structures have played an important role in American history.  Many of us have experienced mixed use in our lifetimes--living above a shop, having neighborhood stores, and being able to walk to work or shopping.  If you add baseball and apple pie, you have good old-fashioned Americana. 

If this lifestyle and the idea of mixed-use development seems new to you, it is probably because we have been doing a very good job of separating residential units from commercial and industrial uses for the past half century.  Most contemporary zoning has distinctive separate uses in each zone, preventing any mixing, and all but ensuring that our workplaces, housing and shopping are far apart.

This segregation arose out of very real concerns in the late 19th and early 20th century, mainly that the mixing of industrial uses and residential uses was detrimental to the health and welfare of everyone, and that this combination encouraged the development of industrial slums.  The degree to which we have separated uses reflects the severity of the original problem in its own time.  In this case, however, the cure has created its own problems, most notably that it is impossible for most Americans to imagine life without a car, even in "downtown" areas like the historic section of St. George. 

Reintroducing mixed-use zoning and development has enormous potential to reinvigorate our communities.  It can also create some benefits that might surprise you. The first and most obvious benefit is that we can bring retail and residential uses closer together, making it possible for people to walk and bike to the store.  We can bring professional uses closer to residential areas as well.  While not everyone will be able to walk to see their accountant or chiropractor, many people will be able to do just that. The more people that do walk, the fewer people will be occupying roads in cars. 

Mixing uses also creates many more opportunities for affordable housing.  An apartment over a store is infinitely more affordable than a single family home.  If the cost of land and development can be shared between residential and commercial uses, the cost of the residential portion of the development is often less, because of the rent the commercial space can command.  Moreover, the introduction of mixed -use developments creates opportunities for different types of small-scale entrepreneurial businesses--opportunities to expand the tax base in a distributed fashion.

One benefit of mixed-use development will probably surprise many of you, and that is in the quality and type of employment it encourages.  Mixed use encourages small local business as opposed to "big box" national retail business, and it encourages locally generated, high quality jobs.

This blending, of course, needs to be well considered.  Nobody is suggesting that we allow the random disposition of uses or that we build obnoxious commercial buildings on quiet neighborhood streets.  Mechanisms such as spot zoning, which allow the creation of very well placed zones of mixed use, or incentive zoning, which ties the benefit of mixed use to meeting particular standards, would allow our cities to ensure that mixed use is introduced in a way that provides minimum disturbance and maximum benefit.  

This brings us to the magic of mixed use.  Cities like it because it offers the potential of a stronger tax base.  Developers like it because it offers a better bottom line.  And, citizens like it because it creates a more convenient, and a more vibrant community. In essence, if it is well placed, mixed-use development can be a win-win-win situation.  The caveat, however, is that it must be well placed.  That means that it must be easily served by existing infrastructure and roads. When this caveat is observed, the mixed-use development is more likely to be successful.  Development that simply mixes uses but is isolated, rarely, if ever, develops the life that makes true mixed-use developments attractive. One of the single best advantages of mixed use is the ability to use existing infrastructure well, by increasing development potential, while offsetting traffic impacts.

Incorporating mixed-use development into our communities is about creating choices.  It is about creating different kinds of housing, different kinds of jobs, and enabling different modes of transportation.  Ultimately, such developments might make up a relatively small proportion of the offerings in our area.  The thing to keep in mind, however, is that even modest amounts of well-located mixed-use development can have significant effects on the vibrancy of our community life.  Imagine walking to shop once in a while and bumping into friends--imagine your son or daughter being able to afford a convenient apartment.  And, even if you are not someone who wants to walk to, live above, or work in the corner store, know that allowing your fellow citizens to have the option to do so could save you time and money in the form of traffic and taxes.

Peter Stempel is an architect practicing in Virgin, Utah.  He is a member of the American Institute of Architects and the United States Green Building Council.  He is also a board member of Citizens for Dixie’s Future.