- You Are Here:
- Home
- Explore
- About the Plan
- What is Density?
While reviewing the Future Land Use Dashboards of the Comprehensive Plan 2021, you may notice that each future land use category includes a recommended density range (for example, 0.5 to 10 DUA in the Neighborhoods category). And you may ask, what is DUA? And what does that mean?
DUA is short for Dwelling Units Per Acre, which is a common way to measure the residential density in an area: the more dwelling units located on an acre of land, the higher the density. Many zoning districts in Plano, especially those that allow apartments or townhomes, use DUA to set limits on the maximum residential density allowed in the district.
However, density alone does not guarantee the size, form, or use of a building. Other components factor into the appearance and compatibility of developments, including building heights, setbacks, intensity, ownership type, unit size, and parking - all are important to understand the form of development.
TermsDUA - Dwelling Units Per Acre Dwelling Unit - A building, or portion of a building, that is used as the residence of a single household (or family). For example:
|
The following Plano examples show developments with a similar size and form but with different densities:
Address: 6000 Columbus Ave (Legacy West)
HOUSING TYPE | |
Multifamily | Multifamily (Condominiums) |
BUILDING HEIGHTS | |
29 stories | 27 stories |
DENSITY | |
156 DUA | 45 DUA |
INTENSITY & SCALE | |
High Intensity High-Rise Scale | |
PARKING ORIENTATION | |
Structure Parking | |
BLOCK PATTERN & STREETSCAPE | |
Short Block Grid Urban Streets | |
Address: 7901 Windrose Ave (Legacy West)
Address: 6301 Windhaven Pkwy
HOUSING TYPE | |
Multifamily | Single-Family |
BUILDING HEIGHTS | |
2-3 stories | 2-3 stories |
DENSITY | |
15 DUA | 16 DUA |
INTENSITY & SCALE | |
Low Intensity Low/Mid-rise Scale | High Intensity Low/Mid-rise Scale |
PARKING ORIENTATION | |
Surface Lots & Garages | Garages & On-Street Parking |
BLOCK PATTERN & STREETSCAPE | |
| Gridded Blocks Traditional Residential Streets | Short Block Grid Urban Streets |
Location: Southwest corner of 18th St. & G Ave.
Densities for the following subdivisions were calculated using the density definition from the City of Plano Zoning Ordinance, which defines residential density as “the number of individual residential living units per acre of the site or lot on which they are located. Calculation of residential density shall be based on the net size of the property, exclusive of public and private street right-of-way, street easements, and park and open space accessible to the public.”
Heritage Creekside West Homes |
| 9 DUA |
| Southwest of W Plano Rd. & Alma Dr. |
|
Madison Estates |
| 10 DUA |
| Southeast of 14th St. & Jupiter Rd. |
|
Village at Legacy |
| 11 DUA |
| Northeast of Legacy Dr. & Custer Rd. |
|
Horizon at Premier |
| 11 DUA |
| North of Premier Dr. & Ruisseau Dr. |
|
Pheasant Landing |
| 12 DUA |
| Northeast of 14th St. & Shiloh Rd. |
|
Livingston Apartments |
| 15 DUA |
| 6301 Windhaven Pkwy. |
|
Rice Field |
| 16 DUA |
| SW Corner of 18th St. & G Ave. |
|
The Icon at Legacy West |
| 18 DUA |
| SW Corner of Headquarters Dr. & Communications Pkwy. |
|
15th Street Village 1 |
| 21 DUA |
| SW Corner of 15th St. & G Ave. |
|
Preserve at Preston |
| 21 DUA |
| 2523 Ohio Dr. |
|
Heritage Creekside West Townhomes |
| 25 DUA |
| Southwest of W Plano Rd. & Alma Dr. |
|
Cityscape at Market Center |
| 30 DUA |
| 3825 Mapleshade Ln. |
|
Aura One90 |
| 33 DUA |
| 680 Executive Dr. |
|
McDermott 55 |
| 38 DUA |
| 8312 Angels Dr. |
|
Savannah at Gateway |
| 41 DUA |
| 401 Shiloh Rd. |
|
Legacy Town Center Town Homes |
| 42 DUA |
| Southwest of Legacy Dr. & Parkwood Blvd. |
|
Windrose Tower |
| 45 DUA |
| 7901 Windrose Ave. |
|
Huntington Apartments |
| 58 DUA |
| 4925 Rasor Blvd. |
|
Legacy Town Center North |
| 65 DUA |
| 5765 Bozeman Dr. |
|
Jada Legacy Central |
| 85 DUA |
| 6501 Excellence Way |
|
Junction 15 |
| 95 DUA |
| 930 E 15th St. |
|
Kincaid at Legacy |
| 118 DUA |
| 7200 Dallas Pkwy. |
|
LVL 29 |
| 156 DUA |
| 6000 Columbus Ave. |
|
The aerial images below show a range of densities for each of the Housing Types in the Comprehensive Plan. All images are the same scale.