What do a proposed development in your neighborhood, a plan for the creation
of a new public park, and an addition to your house have in common? They are all dependent on your city's zoning
code. And a zoning code should be fair,
sensible and smart. Philadelphia's
current zoning code is out-of-date and out-of-touch with the needs of our City
and our neighborhoods.
In the May 2007 Primary, the citizens spoke loud and clear. Nearly 80% of
the voters approved Ballot Question #6 which called for the creation of a
Zoning Code Commission to reform and modernize Philadelphia's Zoning Code.
ZoningMatters.org follows the progress of the Zoning Code
Commission as its members work to produce an improved code for the City. The site provides information on issues and
trends in zoning and draws connections to the larger context of urban planning
in Philadelphia.
It is designed to keep the public informed and involved as Philadelphia begins
this exciting and important opportunity to design a new vision for the growth
of our City and the preservation of our neighborhoods.
Common Ground for Building Our City: Developers, the Public and the Zoning Code
The Penn Project for Civic Engagement (PPCE) is collaborating with Philadelphia chapter of the American Institute of Architects (under its umbrella organization the Center for Architecture) to conduct a series of deliberative workshops to provide input to the Zoning Code Commission (ZCC) in their effort to define the public engagement process that will be part of the new zoning code.
The first workshop, held on January 19, 2010, hosted the development community. The second workshop, held on January 23, 2010, was for community leadership.
The Proposed Revisionsto the Detailed Recommendation for a New Zoning Code were adopted by the Zoning Code Commission (ZCC) at the November 18th, 2009 meeting. The changes will be used in tandem with the Draft Recommendations for a New Zoning Code to begin writing the first module of the new code. The revisions also contain action items that the ZCC will follow, including the creation of several work groups to discuss specific details of the code. As each of the three modules is written, the ZCC will be sharing more detailed information with the public to receive additional feedback.
The New Philadelphia Zoning Code: Best Practices Report was presented for the Zoning Code Commission's consideration at its June 10, 2009 meeting by the consultant team of Clarion Associates, Duncan Associates, and partners. The report describes possible best practices on several zoning issues that Philadelphia will have to address as it rewrites its code. A full discussion of this material took place at the Commission's July meeting.
Center City Zoning: Lessons from Other Cities was presented to the Zoning Code Commission at its May 13, 2009 meeting by Mr Michael V. Dyett, FAICP, of Dyett & Bhatia Urban and Regional Planners. The presentation summarized the state of zoning regulations in Philadelphia's downtown, compared it with best practices in peer cities, and offered suggestions on how Philadelphia could use those precedents to meet its planning goals through more effective Center City zoning.
The Interim Report: Assessment of Existing Code was presented to the Zoning Code Commission at its March 11, 2009 meeting by its consultant team of Clarion Associates, Duncan Associates and partners. This is an interim document that is helping to shape the next phases of the ZCC's work, including research on best practices and zoning models, followed by a report consisting of recommendations for the code rewrite.
The Executive Summary: Assessment of Existing Code offers a concise overview of the full 120-page Interim Report: Assessment of Existing Code. The Summary covers the goals of zoning code reform and the consultants' evaluation of the City's code, as well as the results of professional code-user interviews, Councilmanic District public workshops, and the ZoningMatters online web survey.
Comments on these documents are welcome and will be used to help guide the upcoming work of the ZCC. Comments may be submitted to zoning.commission@phila.gov.
We have made the entire Interim Report file available here (1.8MB), or you can choose to view and or download it by section from the Zoning Code Commission Meetings, Minutes and Handouts section, March 11 2009 meeting handouts.
February 10th, 2010 ZCC Meeting
1515 Arch Street, 18th floor, Room 18029
PLEASE NOTE: If the school district of Philadelphia closes schools on Wednesday February 10th, this meeting will be rescheduled for Wednesday February 17th at the same time and place.
8 am
Mar 10, 2010
March 10th, 2010 ZCC Meeting
1515 Arch Street, 18th floor, Room 18029
8 am
Apr 14, 2010
April 14th, 2010 ZCC Meeting
1515 Arch Street, 18th floor, Room 18029
8 am
May 12, 2010
May 12th, 2010 ZCC Meeting
1515 Arch Street, 18th floor, Room 18029
8 am
Jun 9, 2010
June 9th, 2010 ZCC Meeting
1515 Arch Street, 18th floor, Room 18029
8 am
Jul 14, 2010
July 14th, 2010 ZCC Meeting
1515 Arch Street, 18th floor, Room 18029
8 am
Aug 11, 2010
August 11th, 2010 ZCC Meeting
1515 Arch Street, 18th floor, Room 18029
8 am
November 10th, 2010 ZCC Meeting
1515 Arch Street, 18th floor, Room 18029
8 am
Dec 8, 2010
December 8th, 2010 ZCC Meeting
1515 Arch Street, 18th floor, Room 18029
8 am
What do you think of the Zoning Matter web site?
Feature:
NEW SURVEY! Please Provide Your Input on the Recommendations for a New Zoning Code.
The Zoning Code Commission is committed to including all Philadelphians in modernizing, updating, and improving the City's Zoning Code. We need your opinions on the draft Recommendations to help the Zoning Code Commission create a zoning code that promotes development and protects the character of our neighborhoods.
We encourage you to take the survey below. Thank you for sharing your opinions with us.
Click Here to Begin the Survey
This survey on the Detailed Recommendations is now closed. The new survey on Module 1-Administration and Procedures will be posted on February 10, 2010.
