The Philadelphia Zoning Board of Adjustment has shown a strong preference for providing developer-friendly decisions. Philadelphia City Council President Darrell Clarke has seen enough.
"Philadelphia City Council President Darrell Clarke wants to radically restructure the city’s zoning board over what he described as a series of decisions favoring developers and plans to introduce legislation to do so," reports Aaron Moselle and Ryan Briggs.
Clarke's plans for the council were laid out in a September 9 letter, writing that the city’s Zoning Board of Adjustment "has flagrantly violated the law by granting zoning variances without any demonstration of hardship by the developer." The letter also includes draft legislation that would trigger a public referendum to amend the city charter to increase the size of the board and "impose council approval on positions that are currently appointed directly by the mayor," according to Moselle and Briggs.
"If approved, the ZBA would be required to include an urban planner, architect, zoning attorney, a real estate finance expert, and two members from community organizations," adds Moselle and Briggs.
The article includes more details about the unique power and reach of the city's ZBA, which has heard over 1,000 individual appeals, large and small, 2021 so far. "For comparison, New York City’s similar Board of Standards and Appeals typically sees less than half that number in a year."
Read the full story: Council President Darrell Clarke to introduce overhaul of Philly Zoning Board
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