PHYSICAL PLANNING

STANDARDS
commercial centers

Ministry of Human Settlements

HUMAN SETTLEMENTS REGULATORY
COMMISSIONS
H.L.U.R.B. June,1981
 GROUP 10 BS ARCH v-2
• Rowena P. Sulapas
 rowena_sulapas@yahoo.com
• Zherivie N. Quindoza
 petit_mini24@yahoo.com
• Arwen V. Capucion
 arwen_avc@yahoo.com
• Lester S. Marquez
 lester_marquez_18@yahoo.com
 lsmarquez01@yahoo.com
COMMERCIAL CENTERS

• Commercial Area (CA) or Commercial

Business District (CBD) is the main
area, in which economic, social,
cultural and administrative services
of the town are concentrated. Its
essential functions are for the retail
of goods and services for profit and
the performance of various
financial and office functions.
CLASSIFICATION:
MAJOR CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT:


 Is the shopping area containing the

largest department and variety stores
and specialty shop as well as business
and professional offices, hotels,
theaters, and other entertainment
facilities. In its extension area may be
found significant shares of wholesaling
and industrial activities and
transportation terminals. The CBD is the
area of greatest concentration of people
and vehicles at daytime. The highest
MINOR CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT:
 Is the shopping and service area
found in less developed on lower
class cities and municipalities with
the market (in general) as its main
feature complemented by shops and
offices as well as recreation and
transportation facilities.
 Noticeable in its character is the
equal residential - commercial or
mixed use development in strip
pattern and at times amorphous.
 The Minor CBD is generally
located at the poblacion together
with the Municipal Hall which serves
as the Town Center.
 Intensification and specialization
of activities in the minor CBD lead its
transformation into a major CBD.
SHOPPING CENTER:

 Refers to a group of
establishments, planned, developed
and managed as a unit to serve
specific residential areas or market
 This may locate within a CA or
CBD in which case its serves as its
nucleus, or independent from it.
Specialization is found in shopping
centers.


COMMERCIAL STRIPS:
 As miscellaneous collections of
individual stores standing on their
individual lot strung along street
frontages with or without incidental
off-street parking. It serves as finger
extension of CA or CBD.
NEIGHBORHOOD CENTER:
 Is the village or neighborhood
source for staple and convenience
goods and services and is built
around a super mart or grocery as
the principal retail outlet.
SPACE ALLOCATION:
POPULATION SERVED:
 The major CBD may serve a
population range of 100,000 to
250,000, while the Minor CBD may
serve about 50,000 to 100,000 people.
SHOPPING TREND:

 Trend in increasing no. of

specialization of shops, the nature of
the goods sold is constantly being
changed due to change in fashion.
New inventions or new methods of
manufactures are brought about by the
 Trend in the size of retail outlets,
flexibility in design and advertising
are seen to be highly important if the
demands of the future are to be met
adequately.
FOOD STORE EXPENDITURE:

 To make an accurate sales

volume projection possible, the
amount of money available to food
store expenditure potential must be
known.
AREA STANDARD
 A good rule of thumb is to
provide from 1.5% to 3% of the total
built-up area for commercial use. The
actual land area provided for
commercial use will be influenced by
any planned vertical expansion.
SITE SELECTION CRITERIAS:
 LOCATION:
 The term “location” indicates the
general area in which to select a shopping
center site. The merits of location whether
the land has already been acquired or is
being sought, must always be subjected to
careful economic analysis.
 If the site has already been acquired
the economist direct his studies toward the
economic characteristics of the location in
an effect to decide whether the particular
property should be developed as a shopping
center project, and if so, what its size and
character should be.

TRADE AREA:
 The term “Trade Area” is normally
defined as “that area from which is
obtained the major portion of the
continuing patronage necessary for the
steady support of the shopping center.
 The Defining Factors used in
delineating a trade area vary from
center to center. They include but are
not limited to:
 1. the size and influence of the
proposal retail facilities
 2. Planning and design
characteristics
 Such as railroads and rivers that
would limit accessibility either in fact or
psychologically.


 Thus the trade areas for various

locations will not necessarily assume
similar sizes or shapes.
POPULATION:

 Attention must be paid not only to

the existing population but also to
prospects for future growth, which may
be forecast by reference to the past
growth rates., the trend of population
shifts, and the availability of the
remaining suitable land for residential
 In forecasting the population
trend for ten to 15 years
consideration must be given to such
factors as:
 1. Existing population Density
 2. Zoning Restrictions
 3. Physical or man-made barriers
to the development of new
residential areas ( mountains,
water ways, industrial areas, public
parks, cemeteries, airports), and
 4. Other land uses that would
forestall residential development.
SITE QUALIFICATIONS:
 1. The site must be located in the
most desirable general area as
established by the economic survey.
 2. The site must be owned or
controlled by the developer or offer
the possibility of acquisition.
 3. Land cost must be in keeping
with overall economic considerations
 4. Existing zoning must permit
shopping center development or a
reasonable likelihood zoning must
exist.
 5. The site must contain sufficient
land to permit construction of
facilities to meet the sales potentials.

 6. The land must be in one piece,
free of intervening roadways, right-
of-way, easements, major waterways
or other obstacles that would force
developments in separated portions.

 7. The topography and shape of

the site must permit advantageous
planning and reasonably economical
construction.
 8. The surrounding road pattern
and accessibility must allow full
utilization of the business potential.


 9. The structures must be visible

from major thoroughfares.


 10. Surrounding land uses should

be free of competitive developments,
and, if possible, should be of a
nature that enhances the operation
of shopping center.
SITE REQUIREMENTS:
• STRUCTURES
 a. FOR RETAIL PURPOSES (Retail
Area)
 b. FOR SERVICE PURPOSES (air-
conditioning plants, electric sub-
stations, maintenance shops, truck
roads, loading docks, and equipment
storage.)
 c. FOR OTHER COMMERCIAL
USES(OFFICES and recreational
facilities, community centers,
auditorium, exhibition space and
• CAR STORAGE AREA


 a. Surface Parking Lots

b. Double- deck or multiple deck
garages


• PEDESTRIAN AREAS
 a. Mall, courts, lanes, and plazas
 b. Covered pedestrian areas, such
as arcades and covered malls and
courts.
A U T O M O B ILE M O V E M E N T A R E A S
D istrib u tio n R o a d S yste m o n S ite
• PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION AREAS
 Bus Roads, bus terminals, and
taxi stands
• BUFFER AREAS
 Landscaped areas separating car
storage areas or service areas from
the public road system or areas
separating parking from shopping
areas.
• RESERVE AREAS
 Portion of site to be held in
reserve for the planned growth of
ACCESSIBILITY STANDARDS:
• The recommended distances expressed
in travel time on foot or public
transport are as follows:
1. From Residential Zones to:

 a. Neighborhood Center – 750

meters on 15 minutes travel time on
foot (maximum)
 b. Minor CBD – 15-30 min. travel
time by public transport.
 c. Major CBD – 45 min. to 1 Hour
travel time from the farthest area
 2. From Recreational Zones to any shopping
centers should be a minimum of 05 min.
travel time by public transport or 15 min. by
foot


 3. From Education Centers (schools):
 A minimum travel of 15 minutes by
public transport.
 4. From Health Centers (Hospitals):
 A minimum travel of 10-20 minutes by
public transport.
 5. Police Stations:
 5 min. Travel time
 6. From Fire Stations:
SITE PLANNING PRINCIPLES
 1. safeguard surrounding areas
against blight;
 2. Exposed retail facilities to
maximum foot traffic
 3. Separate various mechanized
traffic types from one another and
from foot traffic
 4. Create a maximum of comfort
and convenience for shoppers and
merchants
PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS:
1. Planning for Development in Stages
2. Traffic
3. Foot Traffic
4. Shape of Site
5. Size of Site
6. Location
7. Access
8. Topography and Physical Characteristics
9. Utilities
10.The Building Pattern
11.Parking
12.Buffers
13.Landscaping

• 1. PLANNING FOR THE
DEVELOPMENT IN STAGES
 *should be considered if the
shopping center site is located in an
area that has not reached its
ultimate population and if a quick
acceleration of population growth
may be accepted.
 *the desire of the land owner to
make some immediate use of his
land even though full utilization will
be practically only in future years.

• 2. TRAFFIC
 *the shopping center is not to be
planned to serve traffic, rather traffic
is to be planned to serve shopping
center.
 *gather all info about existing
roads and traffic carrying capacities
of the surrounding road system as
well as to establish the additional
traffic load generated by the new
shopping center
 *the recommended right of way
width for main street that services
the center is 30 meters.
• 3. FOOT TRAFFIC


 *the best assurance of high sales

volume is the exposure of all
individual stores in a shopping center
to the maximum amount of foot
traffic. If shopping centers are to
prosper , dense foot traffic must be
created .
•
• 4. SHAPE OF SITE
 *the site should not be divided by
traffic way because the continuity of
shopping is interrupted.
 *A regularly shaped property is best
for efficient layout
 *site depths of perhaps 1000 meters
or more, distinguish shopping centers
developments from the old standards
strip commercial area which were
usually zoned 100 meters or less in
depth
 *any awkward, very irregular shape
to the property (even though the total
site area is sufficient) should be
avoided because portions of the site
• 5. SIZE OF SITE


 * the area necessary for the type

of center is important. There must be
sufficient site area for the initial
development indicated by the trade
area analysis with room expansion
and for buffer strips is needed.
• 6. LOCATION


 *from the standpoint location, the

shopping center must be
unassailable. The site must be
located near a well populated
residential area of one that is
growing so rapidly that it gives
promise of soon being able to
support the size of shopping center
one contemplates to build.
• 7. ACCESS


 *Access should be easy and

convenient. It should be possible to
turn off the highway directly into the
site. Easy access means free-flowing
traffic to reach the site. Left turns
requires specially constructed lanes
for turning movement.
•
• 8. TOPOGRAPHY AND PHYSICAL
CHARACTERISTICS


 *Topography of the site is another

important factor, a steeply sloping
site may require excessive filling and
cutting for the building and parking
areas. Even if the cuts and fill can be
balanced, the earth moving
operations adds to cost in the site
preparation.
•
• 9. UTILITIES


 *availability of utilities at or near

the site is a positive factor in a site
selection. Long runs to reach utility
connections are development cost to
be avoided. Off-site development
usually can be adjusted with the
municipality and customarily with the
private utility company.
•
• 10.THE BUILDING PATTERN
 *The Strip
 - a straight line of stores tied
together by a canopy over the
pedestrian walk extending along the
entrance front to the abores.


•
*The “L”
 - is basically a strip with one end
turned, it is adaptable for site
conditions at two important
intersecting roads.
•
*The “U”
 - is basically a strip with both ends
turned in the same direction.
 -The intent of U is to reduce the
length of an otherwise long strip.
*The “Mall”
 - is essentially a pedestrian way of
offering frontage of two facing strips
 - its has the most generally
accepted pattern for the major
shopping center and can be applied
to the community size center.


•
*The “Cluster”
 - is a group of buildings separated
by pedestrian malls or courts and
generally grouped around a single
key tenant.
 - It is most often found in the
major Shopping Center geared to a
single department store.
• 11.PARKING
 Parking arrangement depends on
the ff:
1.Site Potential
2.Direction of traffic flow to the site,
volume and peak loads
3.Entrance and Exit Points
4.Circulation within the site-outer
perimeter and along the store
frontage for autos, buses, and
pedestrian
5.Walking Distance from parking-
 6. Balance of load on the parking
area according to tenant occupancy
needs.


 7. Width and Angle of the parking

stall; direction of movement through
the aisles “ “Ease of parking”


 8. Planned Employee’s Parking

• 12. BUFFERS
 Sometimes the shopping
center site is a trace of land
surrounded by an existing built-up
area. In such cases, the shopping
center has to be fitted into existing
street and neighboring development
patterns.
13. LAND SCAPING

 Planting and seasonal floral

displays in appropriate places
within the center and greatly to