Urban planning and expansion

The first plan for the Capitol Center was the 1947 Taylor Plan, which consolidated several government buildings in one downtown area. In 1974, the Capitol Center Planning Commission for the City of Tallahassee, Florida responded to growth of its urban center with a conceptual plan for the expansion of its Capitol Center. Hisham Ashkouri, working for The Architects' Collaborative, led the urban planning and design effort. Estimating growth and related development for approximately the next 25 years, the program projected the need for 2.3 million square feet (214,000 m²) of new government facilities in the city core, with 3,500 dwelling units, 100 acres (40 ha) of new public open space, retail and private office space, and other ancillary spaces. Community participation was an integral part of the design review, welcoming Tallahassee residents to provide input as well as citizens' groups and government agencies, resulting in the creation of six separate Design Alternatives. The best elements of these various designs were combined to develop the final conceptual design, which was then incorporated into the existing Capitol area and adjacent areas.

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  Land use
  
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  Adams Street Mall
  
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  Topographical map
  

Tallest buildings

Rank	Name	Street Address	Height feet	Height meters	Floors	Year
1	Florida State Capitol	400 South Monroe Street,	345	101	25	1977
2	Turlington Building	325 West Gaines Street,	318	97	19	1990
3	Plaza Tower	300 South Duval Street	276	84	24	2008
4	Highpoint Center	100 South Adams St	239	70	15	1990
5	Doubletree Hotel	101 South Adams St,	220	67	16	1972

Sprawl and Compact Growth

The Tallahassee-Leon County Planning Department implements policies aimed at promoting compact growth and development, including the establishment and maintenance of an Urban Service Area. The intent of the Urban Service Area is to "have Tallahassee and Leon County grow in a responsible manner, with infrastructure provided economically and efficiently, and surrounding forest and agricultural lands protected from unwarranted and premature conversion to urban land use."^[40] The result of compact growth policies has been a significant overall reduction in the Sprawl Index for Tallahassee between 2000-2010.^[41] CityLab reported on this finding, stating that "Tallahassee laps the field, at least as far as the Sprawl Index is concerned."^[42]