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Redevelopment and Public Say are Key Issues in the 4th and 9th Districts

03/04/2009 | 

ZCC Public Outreach Meetings

4th-districtEncouraging redevelopment of existing buildings and sites is a top zoning concern for residents, business-owners, and community leaders in the 4th and 9th Councilmanic Districts. They want the new code to support reuse over demolition, promote sustainable communities, and help preserve neighborhood character. Participants also spoke out about the current level of community say over development and want to increase opportunities for real public involvement.

Zoning discussions at the 4th and 9th district meetings centered around sustaining existing community context. “Each neighborhood has an identity,” one resident and business-owner said, “and zoning should be more sensitive to it.” Participants want the city to encourage redevelopment by making requirements for adaptive reuse less onerous. Regulations for new construction should be stricter and include requirements that ensure buildings fit the character of the neighborhood and give advantage to sustainable urban models.

Underlying all discussions about zoning were concerns about process, lack of enforcement, and public awareness. In general, zoning in Philadelphia was described as difficult to understand, time-consuming, and costly. Participants said it puts the brakes on development by default, whether good or bad, and does nothing to promote the kind of neighborhood growth and revitalization the city needs. Participants described community involvement in the zoning approval process as “swimming up hill over and over again.” They believe the process favors developers and places the public in a reactive position. They want a more effective strategy for bringing the public in and making information accessible – better notification systems, community education programs, improved online services. While some communities are better organized and able to wield a degree of influence, they want the new code to make sure public involvement is more equitable. In the end, they want a code that respects the characteristics of each neighborhood, balances uses fairly across the city, ensures the public has say, is designed so that “no can mean no” with respect to variances, and all regulations are effectively enforced.

he final public outreach meeting of the code evaluation phase is scheduled for the 2nd District on Thursday, March 12, 6:00-8:00 PM at South Philadelphia High School, 2101 South Broad Street. For the most up-to-date information, visit www.zoningmatters.org .

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