Philadelphia Continues Zoning Tweeks

Jared Brey reports on recent proposed changes to zoning in Philadelphia: "City Council members have introduced a handful of bills in the last several weeks making changes to the city’s zoning maps. Some of the bills were introduced as part of the ongoing Philadelphia2035 district remapping process; others anticipate specific development projects."

A couple of the bills propose small changes, like an overlay in Center City East that would prohibit personal credit establishments (i.e., pawn shops and check cashing businesses), and there are a few bills that would rezone individual parcels and blocks.

A few of the more substantial changes:

• "Remap a swath of the Frankford section of the city, bounded by Roosevelt Boulevard, Oxford Avenue, Dyre Street, Frankford Avenue, and Bustleton Avenue. The bill would change dozens of parcels from RM-1, a lower-density, multifamily zoning category, to RSA-5, a higher-density, single-family category. The bill was developed as part of the Philadelphia2035 district remapping process."
• Remap a large swath of the Roxborough, which is facing development pressure. The rezoning is intended to help preserve neighborhood character.
• Councilmember Jannie Blackwell introduced a bill requiring "the Department of Licenses and Inspections to post on its website all of the zoning permits that are issued by-right within one business day of when they are issued."