Land Use & Zoning Archives

Following on the closing of the Magarity Ford dealership, Bowman Properties has proposed new zoning plans to make way for a high-end supermarket in the Chestnut Hill neighborhood. Bowman reportedly introduced legislation before the City Council in last October which would extend the commercial designation of the lot beyond what it formerly was, allow exemptions to the code for mixed-use buildings, and change the direction of a traffic lane bordering the lot.

Licensing, zoning and permits are all interconnected issues. Each of these areas covers government regulation on the way businesses are run. Licenses are of many kinds, depending on the type of business in question. Liquor licenses are one such example.

On Thursday, a resolution was passed by the Philadelphia City Council which contains 40 changes to the city’s zoning code, which by all accounts is out of date. The resolution is a big step in the rewrite process, which is four years in. Sources said it is hoped that the rewrite will be completed by the end of the year.

In our previous post, we began looking at a Forbes article which made the point that urban populations often seek out government action in order to insulate themselves from increasing urban density. As our last post noted, this “down-zoning uprising” that occurs in various metro areas is evidence that urban populations do not always seek to promote the urban lifestyle, but often seek to control increasing population density.

Our Philadelphia readers may be interested in a recent Forbes article discussing population density. The article noted that while some urban policy experts feel that government population density regulations-even those seeking to slow growth in urban areas-are a subtle effort by urbanites to unfairly impose urban lifestyle preferences on residents, there is nevertheless evidence that urban residents very often favor and seek out government regulations which seek to slow “urban densification.”

In our last post, we noted that a land-use study published last month has prompted proposals for zoning amendments to the historic Pennhurst property.

The Pennhurst Memorial and Preservation Alliance recently presented a land use study at an East Vincent Township meeting looking at the possibility of developing the historic site while continuing to maintain its buildings. According to the study, re-developing the site’s historic buildings into rental housing would be “financially viable.”

Philadelphia City Council efforts to revise important development regulations were once again postponed following two meetings in as many weeks. The delays have drawn criticism from those who believe the Council is dragging its feet in revising the zoning code. But others feel that, with a code dating back to the 1930s, taking a little more time to get the revisions right is a good approach.

When a business needs to expand or add a facility, time is often of the essence. However, construction and land use are tightly regulated by the state of Pennsylvania and local governments. Local governments often have very specific zoning requirements that need to be met before a real estate development or construction project can get underway. It is true that zoning and land use regulations can get in the way of a project, but these obstacles are not always insurmountable.

Horses within the Philadelphia city limits may seem odd and five horses may seem even odder, but a family on Pontiac Avenue in Southwest Philadelphia has been keeping horses in their backyard for the past 10 years. At first the couple had one horse, but now they have three ponies and two horses all living in an urban backyard. While they initially sought the approval of their neighbors before they bought the animals, their neighbors are growing increasingly frustrated with the smell. After years of complaining to officials, the couple has received two violations for failing to get variances from the zoning ordinance that prohibits a backyard stable.