Before development restrictions regarding the University Impacted Area become law, public hearings will be held for community members to give their feedback.

Ames City Planner Jeff Benson said the project stems from community values, which include not changing the neighborhood’s character.

“[The plan is] to preserve the existing character of the area,” he said.

The new restrictions require the exteriors of all new developments to be built with brick like several other existing Campustown buildings, Benson said. He said 85 percent of the Greek housing is made from brick.

He said the study included 634 houses and considered 50 different factors to determine what the area was like, in order to ensure the law standards are consistent with existing buildings.

Tony Borich, ex-officio ISU student council representative, said the restrictions will help “blend the area.”

All buildings except those in the Campustown Service District area cannot be taller than three-and-a-half stories, he said. Apartment complexes in the Campustown area cannot be higher than 75 feet, and the first floor is reserved only for business, he said.

Several buildings in Campustown stand taller than the ordinance would allow.

These buildings include the recently-built 131-foot-tall Legacy Tower, 119 Stanton Ave., and the 130-foot-tall Cyclone Plaza, 200 Stanton Ave., according to Emporis, a real estate database.

Benson said current buildings in the area would not be required to update, reconstruct or remodel to fit the new standards, although any future buildings would have to fit the standards.

“The neighborhoods are in support of [the plan],” said Fern Kupfer, member of the South Campus Area Neighborhood Association and associate professor of English. “It’s a good thing to have some restrictions and to pay attention to architectural integrity.”

Borich said there would be no balconies above the third floor, because people tend to throw objects from the balconies. He said the balcony restriction would make the sidewalks safer for pedestrians.

Borich said the zoning development would provide long-term benefits for the University Impacted Area.

“I think all businesses in Campustown will benefit,” Borich said.

Borich said the plan wouldn’t affect current students, but future students may see the effects.

The zoning plan will not become law unless it is passed by the Ames City Council by March, Benson said. The first public hearing for the community will be Wednesday at 7 p.m. in City Hall, he said.