These areas have the potential to be employment and tax revenue generators for the community.  While not differentiated on the Land Use & Development Character map, commercial areas may be defined by scale and potential customer base area. Neighborhood scaled commercial centers may be distributed throughout the City at key intersections or nodes.  Regional commercial districts are typically larger in size and have the potential for greater impacts to the transportation network. Therefore, they should only be located close to I-65 or on major thoroughfares such as N. Lebanon Street.

Neighborhood scaled commercial centers contain a mix of active uses at key intersections that serve surrounding residential concentrations.  These centers should be compatible with and contribute to neighborhood character and livability. They should be defined by building frontages and an activated street, not by parking lots.  Neighborhood commercial centers should be pedestrian-friendly places with high-quality architecture, plazas, outdoor dining, sidewalks, and other pedestrian and bicycle amenities that create active, connected gathering places.

Regional commercial districts can include higher intensity retail and office developments that attract users from a wider area.  These areas should be located closer to I-65 interchanges and major thoroughfares that can handle higher traffic volumes that may be generated. New developments should have integrated designs with coordinated accesses, amenities, and cohesive architecture that fits within the context of the larger corridor.  Buildings should be arranged so that they frame and define the street network; internal drives should resemble streets rather than parking lot drive aisles.  Large expanses of surface parking, particularly between the building front and the street, should be avoided.  Landscape plantings should be used to create more attractive developments and buffer adjacent residential areas.  A coordinated pedestrian system should be provided throughout the commercial area, connecting uses on the site and between the site and adjacent properties.

These uses may include open air attractions with limited or small building forms or may be larger footprint structures for indoor recreation and entertainment.  A defining characteristic of this area is that customers will plan a special trip there and the overall concept is the experience as opposed to shopping for a particular good.  Generally, consumers are willing to travel longer distances to destination commercial centers and will spend longer periods of time there.  Additional office uses may be present as well as support services such as restaurants and bars. This area benefits from high visibility along I-65, and as such, quality design facing the interstate is important.  The design of development in this area should accentuate regional character, include amenities for pedestrians, and promote connections to adjacent development.

The floodway includes the stream channel and adjacent lands that are reasonably required to discharge flood waters downstream. The flood hazard area is the area that is susceptible to being inundated by a flood event having a 1-percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year. This is sometimes referred to as the base flood or 100-year flood. Future development should not be permitted within the floodway and floodplain; however, these areas may be protected and incorporated into open space on a development site.  Existing structures within the floodway present a danger to those property owners as well as those downstream.  These structures should be removed as funding and resources become available.

While these uses may produce some adverse impacts to the community in terms of traffic or aesthetics, they are incredibly important to the employment and economic base of the City.  Building types may include both large footprint users with multi-story buildings on large parcels or groups of smaller structures in a business park setting. Some of these uses involve extensive exterior storage or movement of goods and require measures to control adverse environmental and visual impacts. When potential conflicts between uses may occur, buffering and landscaping should be used to minimize these impacts.  Where areas are subdivided for development of an industrial or business park, opportunities for shared open space and connection to the City’s planned regional detention facilities should be explored.  Industrial areas may include limited commercial support uses, but these should be as a secondary element that follows the industrial or office development. These areas should be located along rail and roadway corridors with the capacity to handle the necessary volumes of truck traffic and be built out in a planned manner so as to maximize investments in public infrastructure systems.

The industrial area identified on the west side of I-65, in the southeast corner of the corporate limits, is envisioned to have a different character than the Lebanon Business Park.  This area should not include the large footprint manufacturing and logistics uses that make up much of the business park.  Instead, it should be comprised of service businesses and light industrial uses typically under 100,000 square feet.  Despite these relatively smaller footprints, it is still important to mitigate and buffer potential negative impacts to neighboring properties through thoughtful site design, landscaping, and screening. Development should also reflect a higher architectural standard and incorporate lifestyle amenities for employees.

These uses may vary in scale and impact to the transportation system.  Large institutional uses should be located along thoroughfares with the capacity to handle anticipated traffic generation.  Many institutional uses are distributed within single family residential and other future land use classifications.  Several key areas are identified for institutional use on the future land use map because of their importance to the City and/or are unlikely to change in use.  These include the Boone County Fairgrounds, Lebanon Senior High School and Middle School, and the Lebanon Utilities Wastewater Treatment Facility.

Densities and housing types may vary but should always consider surrounding character; more dense portions of a development should scale down to reflect adjacent context.  These areas allow for greater flexibility in form and scale to achieve active, cohesive, and vibrant neighborhoods. Mixed residential developments should be designed around common open space and amenity areas. Multi-family apartments will only be appropriate at certain locations given surrounding development patterns and the nearby transportation system.  These areas should be developed in a walkable and connected grid pattern to reinforce traditional neighborhood design. Infill and redevelopment near downtown Lebanon should maintain the traditional residential character; architecture, building setbacks, housing types, and massing are important components of infill design. Mixed residential development should be designed around natural features to highlight existing tree stands, ponds, and water courses as accessible community amenities. Parks, schools, religious institutions, and other community facilities may be included in the mixed density residential classification at appropriate locations.

These areas may be characterized by individual buildings that contain a mixture of uses or by single use buildings that contain different uses in close proximity to each other. Appropriate uses include restaurants, small-scale retail and professional services, offices, multifamily apartments and condominiums, townhomes, and recreation amenities. Building height should typically range from two to four stories, with active commercial uses on the first floor and office or residential uses on upper floors.  Mixed use centers should have coordinated development patterns at a pedestrian scale, with high-quality architecture, plazas, sidewalks, and pedestrian and bicycle amenities to activate the street and connect these centers to the residential neighborhoods they support. Building setbacks from the primary street should be minimal.  All buildings should have an entry oriented toward the primary street; first floor non-residential uses should include large windows to allow views into and out of the space to better activate the adjacent streetscape.

Building types may include both large footprint users with multi-story buildings on large parcels or groups of smaller structures in a business park setting. Research and development and small-scale prototyping uses should conduct all operations within an enclosed building and should not utilize extensive outdoor storage areas or operations.  When potential conflicts between uses may occur, buffering and landscaping should be used to minimize these impacts.  Where areas are subdivided for development of a business park, opportunities for shared open space and connection to the City’s planned regional detention facilities should be explored.  Flex areas may include limited commercial support uses such as restaurants and personal service businesses, but these should be as a secondary element that follows the office development.

The defined character may vary by neighborhood, but new developments should include mostly single-family homes and transition from the existing development patterns in adjacent neighborhoods. New neighborhoods should have walkable, well-connected street systems that connect to surrounding neighborhoods and nearby destinations. They should be designed around natural features to highlight existing tree stands, ponds, and water courses as accessible community amenities. Parks, schools, religious institutions, and other community facilities may be included in the single-family residential classification at appropriate locations.

Airside activities include runways, taxiways, aprons, and hangars.  Landside activities may include offices, parking, other airport-support facilities, or businesses which rely on the airport for their function and are generally accessible to the public.  Commercial uses serving the airport, such as office, retail, and restaurant uses are also appropriate in this zone.  There are design standards and considerations for development on airport and airport adjacent lands. The location and height of proposed structures as well as landscape plans must be reviewed accordingly.

Public sewer and water service is frequently unavailable in these areas.  Rural road widths are not capable of handling high traffic volumes.  New growth should only be encouraged in areas where adequate public water, sewer, and streets are available or are planned.  These areas should be subject to further planning and timed with infrastructure improvements and public-service delivery before significant development occurs.  New buildings should be designed around natural features to protect forested areas, streams, and tree fence rows.

Uses may include passive open spaces, ball fields, play equipment, golf courses, conservation areas, and environmentally sensitive lands.  Public parks and open space further increase the overall quality of life for residents. Recreation and park areas should be used as a respite from urban development and link to each other with bicycle and pedestrian facilities.

The LEAP Innovation District will include a mixture of land uses. This district will include light industrial and advanced manufacturing uses targeted towards higher tech manufacturing and production industries. In support of these uses there will also be a need for office developments that include research and tech uses. Lastly, there will be a ‘mixed-use village’ developed as part of the LEAP Innovation District which will contain its own unique mix of land uses. These will include residential uses, ranging from medium to high density developments, as well as office, commercial, education, public services, and recreation facilities. The final locations of these uses will continue to be finalized in time as development and investments come to the district. Refer to the LEAP Lebanon Concept Plan for more information on the vision of the district.