Portsmouth Design Guidelines

Commonwealth Architects, in collaboration with Cite Design (formerly Design Forum), completed an analysis of downtown Portsmouth, Virginia and compiled design guidelines for their Downtown Design District. These Guidelines will be used by the City of Portsmouth Planning Department in the review of any construction or improvement projects that fall within the newly defined Design District.

The project involved a highly public process, with key stakeholder interviews and presentations to the public playing a major role in the development of the guidelines. The design team surveyed the entire district on foot, studying important city nodes, building types, setbacks and historic precedents.