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ZCC plans ambitious fall schedule for approving new code

08/11/2010 | 

ZCC Regular Session

At a rare August meeting of the ZCC, commission members were alerted to important dates and deadlines for the coming fall. The goal is that the ZCC will be ready to vote on the preliminary report of recommendations for Philadelphia’s Zoning Code on November 10, 2010. Briefings and public meetings will start immediately after Labor Day with a special meeting of the PCPC on September 7 at 2:00 PM. A fully integrated draft of the new zoning code will be released September 8 at the ZCC’s regular monthly meeting. The final deadline for all written comments is October 10.

Once the draft code is released, a formal public briefing with City Council will be scheduled along with 10 neighborhood meetings, one in each councilmanic district. In anticipation of needed discussions, the ZCC plans to meet twice in October – October 6 and 27 – to prepare for a vote in November. Any delay will force zoning code discussions into a timeframe when Council must be focused on city budget issues.

The Charter Amendment requires the ZCC to adopt by two-thirds vote a preliminary report proposing specific changes to the Philadelphia Zoning Code, including draft legislation required to implement the recommendations. The report must be submitted to City Council, which has 45 days to convene public hearings on the proposed changes. Council has 30 days after the close of hearings to send recommendations back to the ZCC. The ZCC must submit a final report no later than 30 days after it receives such recommendations. City Council must then enact into law, reject, or table the final report within 60 days. The ZCC hopes to have a new zoning code by early 2011.

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