The City of Dayton was the recipient of the Texas Masonry Council’s 2019 Texas Sustainable City Award at the organization’s conference on Friday, Aug. 9. The award, given to only one city each year, recognizes and celebrates best practices in sustainable masonry design, development and leadership. The City of Dayton was chosen because of its Unified Development Code (UDC), which was adopted by the City Council in May of this year.
“Our Unified Development Code was a labor of love with a multitude of stakeholders making contributions to its creation and adoption, said City Manager Theo Melancon, as he accepted the award on behalf of the City. “Our City Council had the vision needed to raise our standards and adopt the Code. Our economic development corporation spearheaded funding of the endeavor, while staff worked tirelessly to craft our code to make it responsive to our community.”
Melancon specifically recognized the efforts of Assistant City Manager Kimberly Judge and planning assistant Tami Green. Their dedication and expertise were integral to the success of both the crafting and the adoption of the UDC. They used community input through various town hall and developer meetings.
It was this responsiveness that was recognized by the TMC. The Sustainable City Award is given to a single community that prioritizes and implements best practices through regulatory tools and collaboration with the development community.
The UDC is a policy tool that combines traditional zoning and subdivision regulations, along with other desired city regulations, such as design guidelines and stormwater management into one document. The UDC streamlines and coordinates the development process and removes inconsistencies and outdated policies, making it easier for developers, the public, and public entities to understand and participate in the process.