The Ketchikan Gateway Borough Assembly Monday introduced an ordinance that would adopt new regulations for Planned Unit Developments, or PUDs.

A PUD is a development with a master plan that might have different zones within the plan. The proposed regulations would allow the borough to consider the master plan comprehensively.

Planning Director Chris French explained that the PUD regulations would provide additional options that the borough’s zoning process now can’t offer.

“If you wanted to do a mixed-use development in particular, but you wanted it to have residential in some areas, commercial in some areas, maybe even industrial in some other areas of the property — the only way to do that now is to rezone separate zones, with different development requirements, some of which may not be very compatible with each other,” he said.

Through the PUD zoning process, though, French said developers can create a plan so that those uses are tailored throughout the property.

“You’re not stuck with what the code has in it now for all industrial. Maybe you want only certain uses that are industrial, maybe you want only certain commercial uses, or certain residential uses,” he said. “You can tailor this zone to the uses that you want.”

During Assembly discussion, there was no opposition to the proposal. Assembly Member Bill Rotecki noted that the PUD process expands available options, especially for large, complicated projects.

“The way I view it, it’s not a replacement of what we’ve got; it’s an addition to what we’ve got,” he said. “You don’t have to do a PUD. You can rezone – none of that has changed. If it benefits a developer, you might want to consider it.”

The Assembly voted unanimously to introduce the ordinance. It will come back for a second vote before it is adopted.

Also Monday, the Assembly agreed to indefinitely postpone action on a request that the borough adopt the 2012 International Fire Code.

Citizen Van Abbott submitted that request, but asked the Assembly to withdraw it for the time being. Abbott says that with the current fiscal climate, he believes the borough will not want to spend an estimated $700,000 to implement the code.

The next Ketchikan Borough Assembly meeting is Feb. 1.