Fate of new Philadelphia zoning code is uncertain

Pretty much everyone agrees that Philadelphia's antiquated and bloated zoning code has been an impediment to development and is in need of a serious rewrite.

But after a special commission spent the better part of four years designing a new code, uncertainty surrounds the proposed replacement and its effect on each of the city's unique neighborhoods.

City Council has scheduled a public hearing for Wednesday on this extraordinary, once-in-a-generation change to zoning - the rules that govern what can be built and where - possibly heading the new code toward an up-or-down vote by the end of the year.

With 40 people signed up to testify, the mind-boggling array of issues, interests, and politics involved should be on full display in Council chambers Wednesday morning.

Councilman Bill Green, who has placed himself at the center of the issue, said many community and neighborhood groups were just coming to grips with the meaning of the proposed changes.

"The only thing I'm hearing is a call for us to slow down," he said.

Last week, Green produced a 13-page memo outlining 10 amendments he described as the "middle ground" between the new code and its critics.

Other Council members, including Brian O'Neill, Blondell Reynolds Brown, and Marian Tasco, have raised concerns. They may offer their own amendments.

Green doubted Council would take any action Wednesday, but he said he wanted a new code passed by year's end.

"I think it's got a good shot," he said. "I'm certainly pushing to get this accomplished by December."

The Nutter administration supports the rewritten code and hopes to shoehorn the plan through the lame-duck Council rather than start over with up to seven new members taking office in 2012.

Cities began using zoning a century ago to control undesirable land uses, such as junkyards. Zoning has become a primary way that neighborhoods get defined by outlining what is permissible in which areas.

But the current, 650-page code is so outdated that 40 percent of projects in the city must receive a variance from the zoning board to be built.

"The scary number is, we have more zoning-board cases than New York City, and they're five times our size," said Alan Greenberger, deputy mayor for economic development. "The zoning board, inappropriately in our view, has become a de facto planning agency."

In 2007, voters created the Zoning Code Commission by referendum, with a 10-month window for the work. It took four years to write a slimmer, 384-page code.

The new code is meant to simplify the building and permitting process and create predictable zoning that requires far fewer variances.

The new code also accounts for some of the realities of modern city living, allowing more home offices and workshops in burgeoning artists' neighborhoods.

Councilman Frank DiCicco championed change after being overwhelmed by the explosive growth of neighborhoods in his district, including Center City, Old City, and Northern Liberties.

At a briefing last week, DiCicco said most of the growth was led by local developers willing to weather the city's "burdensome" and "drawn-out" building process.

"The one component that's missing is people from the outside who are developers. They don't look to Philadelphia," he said.

That means Philadelphia cannot attract outside investment, stunting its economic potential year after year.

"One reason is that thick [zoning] document," DiCicco said.

Because variances are needed so often under the current code, Council members and organized neighborhood groups - known by the shorthand "civics" - have had tremendous influence on what gets built.

The new code would diminish the power of Council and civics. But, as DiCicco noted, they ideally would find fewer projects objectionable under a more clearly defined code.

The major source of unease surrounding the new code lies in its implementation. That requires a remapping of the city to reflect changes between the old and new codes.

The Zoning Code Commission has broken down the city into 18 districts for planning and mapping purposes. Mapping all the districts could take five years, according to the panel.

The Zoning Code Commission wants to put the new code into effect immediately, despite the lag time in mapping.

But Green, O'Neill, and others have warned of the "unintended consequences" of that approach.

They want the code rolled out piecemeal as mapping is completed for each district. Otherwise, they have warned, certain uses considered "noxious" could seep into neighborhoods.

Greenberger, who also serves as chairman of the Zoning Code Commission, said he worried about "running multiple codes" under that approach.

"That, we think, is a recipe for trouble," he said. "We don't think having a rule book down but not in effect . . . makes much sense."

Green also has suggested allocating more money to cut the remapping process down to two years, but Greenberger is skeptical that much time can be shaved, even with more resources.

In the meantime, Green has recommended that certain residential and commercial uses - such as group homes, methadone clinics, nightclubs, and dollar stores - be prohibited or require an exemption until remapping is completed.

"I think what he's asking for is pretty logical," said Bryan Collins, with the nonprofit PennFuture, a statewide environmental-advocacy group. "I think it makes the whole process of passing the code with the current Council much more likely."

The civics also appear to be concerned about the loss of clout and fear having to swallow noxious property uses.

"It's not so much one use in an area, but it's an aggregation of uses in one area," said Steve Huntington, coordinator of the Crosstown Coalition, which includes 13 civics. "You begin to change the character of the neighborhood."

A heavy dose of testimony from the civics is expected Wednesday. Huntington said they wanted to make sure they had a say in the district planning.

"We just regard these 18 mini-plans as pretty darn important," he said. "Our overarching concern is that any future development would happen with civics and neighborhoods having a seat at the table."

Collins said that the Zoning Code Commission had solicited a huge amount of input during the last four years and that it had done its "due diligence."

"This just wasn't something people picked up on as much as we would have liked," he said. "Now it's the eleventh hour and people are getting skittish."

DiCicco last week called the new code "a huge, giant step forward for the city of Philadelphia."

"I only have 117 days left as a Council person," he said. "If it happens, it happens. If it doesn't it's not going to change my life. But it will change the lives of future generations."