Saline is considering a new zoning district for its downtown to encourage economic development and officials will host a workshop on June 29 to get input from the community.

The city is considering the use of “form-based (zoning) techniques” that are designed to permit and encourage mixed use, walkability,and economic development, according to information from the city.

The workshop will take place in the Liberty School cafeteria beginning at 7 p.m. with assistance from Carlisle/Wortman Associates, the city’s planning consultant.

Community input is encouraged to help the city determine “preferences and desired outcomes” for the downtown and surrounding area.

“Form-based codes are a new, innovative tool that can support and build on the best attributes of the downtown area by prescribing a more predictable physical development outcome while freeing up restrictions on the use of properties,” according to the information.

The code promotes design that complements the downtown’s existing places while allowing a wider mix of land uses.

“Form-based codes rarely create nonconformity in these types of applications, and usually add an economic windfall to existing owners in that they allow for new types of investment,” the information states.

These proposed codes are built on a few simple rules, but these rules vary widely depending on the preferences of the community,” the information about the workshop states.

The workshop will help to determine issues such as what boundaries the downtown zoning may have and what type of building height and density residents would prefer.

The workshop begins at 7 p.m. in the Liberty School cafeteria, 7265 North Ann Arbor St.

For more Saline stories, visit our Saline page.