Walkable Urban (WU) Code

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​​​​​​​​​​As part of the Reinvent PHX project, a new urban and transit-oriented zoning code, the Walkable Urban (WU) Code, was adopted by City Council on July 1, 2015 (Ordinance G-6047). The Walkable Urban (WU) Code is Chapter 13 of the City of Phoenix Zoning Ordinance.   The code regulates development in proximity to light rail stations and is envisioned to replace existing zoning for properties within the Interim Transit-Oriented Zoning Overlay Districts (TOD-1 and 2, Sections 662 & 663 of the Zoning Ordinance).

The WU Code approval by the City Council only created the regulations in the Zoning Ordinance. Properties within the five Reinvent PHX Transit Oriented Districts (Gateway, Eastlake-Garfield, Midtown, Uptown, and Solano) will still need to go through a rezoning process, with extensive public hearings, to establish the WU Code on a specific property.


Walkable Urban (WU) Code is organized into five Transit-Oriented District (TOD).  To learn more view :

As part of the code's adoption, Councilwoman Pastor added a friendly amendment giving staff direction to provide the following information for the NHD Subcommittee's annual review of the WU Code projects.

  1. Number of times staff used design flexibility and the percent utilized
  2. Rationale as to why reduction in requirement was approved by staff
  3. How the reduction was documented on the site plan and in the tracking system
  4. Number of variances applications for projects
  5. Types of variances applied for
  6. Percent of approved variances
  7. Number of appeals to the Design Review Committee
  8. Percent of Design Review Committee appeals that were approved
  9. Percent of flexibility approved by the Design Review Committee
  10. Rationale as to why the Design Review Committee approved flexibility
  11. Provide an update on outreach to all property owners and residents


Transit-Oriented District Information

Follow this link for more information on the Transit-Oriented District Policy Plans for all five districts.

For additional information regarding the WU Code and the mapping process, please contact the Long Range Planning Team at pdd.longrange@phoenix.gov​ or 602-534-3753.









For additional information regarding the Transit Oriented District Policy Plans see ReinventPHX