Now, instead of requiring 40 percent open space in new residential development downtown, the town will require "urban amenities" such as shade trees, fountains, and roofs lush with shrubs and gardens. The open-space requirement will remain for residential development in other parts of Carrboro.

Omar Zinn of family-run Zinn Design Build said the change will allow "a more creative use of open space in the downtown area."

Previously, all new residential developments except those with retail or office space had to meet the open-space rule. In developments with fewer than 15 residential units, the developer could provide open space off the site or make a payment toward protecting open space elsewhere.

Now, if at least 25 percent of a downtown project's floor plan is residential, the developer must include features designed to "provide relief from the [urban] environment," according to the ordinance. If it's determined a development cannot physically meet the new requirement, the developer can pay a fee to the town to go toward other urban amenities downtown.

The Board of Aldermen voted 4-1 to get rid of the 40 percent rule and review how the new plan is working two years from now. Alderman Dan Coleman cast the dissenting vote because he feared some amenities would benefit only their residents, not the whole community. Aldermen Joal Broun and John Herrera were absent.

The board hopes changing the ordinance will get more people living, working and relaxing downtown. Currently, residential property taxes make up more than 80 percent of the town's property tax base.

Kendal Brown, a town planner and zoning development specialist, told the board the new amenities would meet the town's goals of making downtown "a destination rather than just somewhere to pass through."

Zinn agrees.

"Land comes at a premium, and the trend is to grow more vertical, as we're seeing in Chapel Hill," he said. "You have a finite space to work with. I think it makes sense to put in amenities that would reflect the character of the downtown."

James Carnahan, chairman of the town Planning Board, also thinks the new ordinance will benefit the town.

"It's been a long time coming," he said. The old requirement was an "unreasonable demand when space is limited downtown, when we really want to maximize the the use of land we have."