Report on public input released

Special Workshops

The final report from the Common Ground for Building Our City workshops puts forth eight principles for the ZCC to consider as it determines how the public fits into the project review process. Details about public participation were left out of the draft administrative procedures released February 17, so that the ZCC could review the report. The commission agreed to explain whether or not any recommendations are incorporated into the new zoning code and why. Each principle reflects the points of common ground that emerged from discussions on key topics, along with an account of where tensions remain and recommended actions to put the principles into practice.

The series of three workshops was designed to coordinate a dialogue between developers and community groups about the role the public should play in the development review process. Each group met separately before joining to find areas of agreement. Based on a detailed accounting of the discussions at each meeting (available for review as an appendix to the report), the workshop organizers were able to identify the following common ground principles:

1. Every neighborhood should have a similar, widely known way to convene civic groups and concerned individuals for input into project review.
2. All projects of a certain level of impact, whether as-of-right or requiring variances, would benefit from public input.
3. When assessing a project’s impact, go beyond size to look at how a project impacts or fits into its surroundings.
4. Issues of design and aesthetics should be reviewed, but on a basis separate from the parameters of zoning.
5. Early and effective notification about project proposals helps improve outcomes both for the neighborhood and the developer.
6. The project review process should be more transparent and predictable, in ways that inform, invite and engage constructive participation.
7. Clear review timelines should be set as part of a predictable public input process. This would reduce uncertainty and cost for the developer while ensuring the community gets sufficient time to assess, discuss and comment.
8. The role of City Council members in zoning and project review should be made explicit and transparent.

Click here to review the full report. Common Ground for Building Our City: Developers, the Public and the Zoning Code was a joint effort of the Penn Project for Civic Engagement and the Philadelphia Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. The project was made possible by a grant from the William Penn Foundation.