Orlando, FL Zoning Overlays & Bonuses: Downtown Design Guide (2026)

Part 5 of Chapter 62 lays out design standards specific to the AC-3A district, downtown Orlando's core activity center. 500 requires ARB review for any project inside the Downtown Development District or Community Redevelopment Agency District, working alongside the Planning Official and other boards to interpret the design criteria; anyone seeking relief from the criteria must file a written variation request with full supporting information. 501 confirms AC-3A carries no general building height limitation, though the Downtown HP Historic Preservation Overlay's own height limits still apply within that overlay, and Orlando-Orange County Airport Zoning Board regulations govern the whole downtown district.

502 requires parking garages and lots fronting Pedestrian Streets and Malls to devote at least 75% of ground-floor frontage within Downtown Parking Zone A to active uses other than parking, offices, light retail, personal services, entertainment, or, outside Zone A, to provide a 20-foot landscaped pedestrian setback unless active ground-floor uses are already present; garage facades must also achieve architectural unity with the buildings they serve. 503 zeroes in on the mapped Downtown Facade Guidelines Area shown in Figure 46, requiring every building facade there to follow the Facade Design Guidelines the Orlando Downtown Development Board adopted under Chapter 65's board-and-officer duties provisions, meaning facade materials, articulation, and detailing are reviewed against that separate downtown-specific guideline document rather than the citywide Chapter 62 standards alone.