Diverse Uses Across a Hostile Arterial
A 14-acre infill redevelopment will add 320 apartments and 40,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space. The team is assembling the Diverse Uses credit and believes six uses will earn two points. The uses include a grocery store 0.45 mile straight-line from the center of the site, but the actual pedestrian route is 0.62 mile because a six-lane arterial has no midblock crossing; a signalized crossing is farther away. A café has a building permit but no tenant or certificate of occupancy. A bank, pharmacy, school, and park are existing and within 0.4 mile by continuous sidewalk. The team also plans to count a restaurant across the arterial that is 0.38 mile straight-line but has no sidewalk on the last 300 feet. The project is registered as LEED ND: Built Project and is 80% leased.
1. Evaluate each use for the Diverse Uses credit. Which uses should the team count, and why?
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Test each use against three filters: is it existing and operational, is it within the maximum walking distance, and is the route a safe, continuous pedestrian route? For a Built project, the café with only a building permit is not operational and should not count; a certificate of occupancy and an open business are stronger. The grocery store fails on route: the 0.45-mile straight line is not the walking distance, and the actual 0.62-mile route exceeds the 1/2-mile maximum; a six-lane arterial with no midblock crossing makes the route worse. The restaurant across the arterial is only 0.38 mile straight-line, but the missing sidewalk on the last 300 feet breaks the pedestrian route, so it should not count unless a safe connection exists. The bank, pharmacy, school, and park are existing and within 0.4 mile on continuous sidewalk, so those four are the reliable count. The team should not claim six uses without a defensible route map.
2. What physical or leasing changes would most reliably raise the reliable use count?
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The most reliable fix is to change the pedestrian network, not the spreadsheet. A midblock signal or crosswalk on the arterial could shorten the grocery route to under 1/2 mile and make it safe; widening and completing the sidewalk to the restaurant could make that use count. If those improvements are uncertain, lease the café and obtain a certificate of occupancy before submission, or add a small grocery or service use inside the project boundary. Because Diverse Uses rewards variety, adding a duplicate restaurant is less valuable than filling a missing use category. Coordinate with the Walkable Streets credit so the same sidewalk and crossing improvements support both claims.
3. What documentation should be assembled to withstand review?
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Assemble a use table with address, use category, square footage, operational status, and measured walking distance from the relevant dwelling units or main entrance. Include a pedestrian network map that shows the actual route, crosswalks, sidewalks, and barriers, plus photos and leases, business licenses, or certificates of occupancy. For any excluded use, write a short note explaining why: straight-line distance too short, no continuous sidewalk, or not yet open. This prevents the reviewer from having to infer the team's assumptions and reduces the risk of a credit denial.