Town of Lyons Code Audit and Zoning Rewrite

MRB Group worked with the Town of Lyons and a community Steering Committee to comprehensively update the Town’s zoning regulations and development procedures. The project built on the Town’s Comprehensive Plan and other recent planning efforts, with a focus on supporting reinvestment, housing opportunities, economic development, and a more user-friendly development process.

MRB began by preparing a Planning Foundations Report and a comprehensive Town Code audit to identify outdated or inconsistent regulations. GIS analysis and development scenarios helped illustrate how existing zoning requirements could limit the types of growth and redevelopment the Town wanted to encourage.

The revised regulations incorporate current planning best practices, including eliminating minimum off-street parking requirements, updating dimensional standards to better reflect historic neighborhood patterns, streamlining approval procedures, and creating clearer opportunities for accessory dwelling units, duplexes, townhouses, and other housing types. The code was also reorganized to make it easier to understand and administer.

The updated regulations are intended to encourage investment in downtown Lyons and the waterfront, support more efficient development, protect farmland and natural areas, and reduce unnecessary infrastructure extensions. MRB guided the project through the SEQR and adoption process, with the Town Board adopting the revised regulations on September 23, 2026.

Big Idea

Modernize the Town’s zoning framework to encourage investment, expand housing opportunities, and streamline development.