The Commercial Appeal - June 15, 2010 -

A new zoning plan to preserve Midtown's urban streetscapes against suburban-style sprawl will be the topic of three public meetings this month.

The draft Midtown Plan will be discussed from 5:30 to 7 p.m. on Thursday at Peabody Elementary, 2086 Young; June 23 at Circuit Playhouse (formerly Playhouse on the Square), 51 S. Cooper; and June 30 at Memphis Leadership Foundation, 1548 Poplar.

Prepared by six organizations including the Memphis and Shelby County Office of Planning and Development, the plan's purpose is to "provide carefully tailored zoning categories that will preserve and reinforce the Midtown District by encouraging rehabilitation and new construction that is sensitive to the existing urban form and reflects appropriate uses, scale and character of the neighborhood," the document states.