The Role of Real Estate Development in Shaping Communities
Communities grow out of land development. Without someone coming in and building homes, businesses, roadways, and utilities, a community would not exist. Real estate developers are responsible for adapting land to suit their goals and visions, but without proper regulations, they might wind up building too much of one category of development. When it comes to building a community with what it needs to grow and prosper, developers must work together with local governments to see a vision come to life.
What Is Land Zoning?
The zoning of a particular plot of land determines what a developer can build on it. Zoning committees limit the size, shape, and type of buildings so as not to overwhelm the surrounding areas. For instance, a skyscraper is unlikely to be a permitted use in a rural development. Likewise, a horse farm will probably not be an approved land use in the middle of a city. Zoning ensures that too much of any one designation is not built. It limits the number of commercial properties versus residential ones.
What Goes into a Zoning Designation?
Before the government can slice up a large tract of property, it needs to understand more about the history, current use, and landscape. Is the land in or near a flood plain? Are there any endangered habitats nearby? Does the ground have the drainage required for a large-scale community development? The zoning committee will contract engineers and surveyors to answer these questions before placing restrictions on each section of the property. This ensures that people will be safe on the land and that the environmental impacts are not too severe.
What Role Does Land Use Play?
Zoning restricts and regulates what can be put in an area, but what about land use? Are these the same thing? In fact, land use and zoning are different. Land use is how a developer interprets the restrictions and creates an amicable property use for each section of land. The developer and engineers take the zoning map designation to make land uses and building plans. For instance, an area zoned as residential may get a land use designation of multi-family or single-family.
Without the resourcefulness and creativity of developers, communities would not exist as they do. A real estate lawyer’s role is to provide support and legal foundations for every step of community improvement. Getting this valuable ally on a development team is crucial to its success. If you are looking for a lawyer to assist you with real estate zoning and other issues, then consider contacting our real estate lawyer in Belgrade, MT at the Silverman Law Office.