QUESTION
What plans does the Department of City Planning have to make zoning changes more accessible to communities in the future?
1:10:07
·
104 sec
The Department of City Planning does not currently have a specific plan to make complex zoning text amendments more accessible to communities, as the process is defined in the city charter.
- The city charter specifies how zoning text amendments are introduced to community boards, borough presidents and city council.
- The department recognizes the challenges that large, complex zoning proposals pose for community boards to understand in a short period of time.
- The department has made efforts to better support community boards, including creating a new division dedicated to that purpose.
- Any changes to make the process more accessible would require looking at the city charter together with the city council.
Kevin C. Riley
1:10:07
So with that being said, is there gonna be a system that DCP is gonna put in place that would address zoning changes moving forward that our communities wouldn't have to deal with a complex tax amendment like this.
Dan Garodnick
1:10:20
You know, the city charter tells us how to introduce a text amendment to community board and to the council and borough presidents.
1:10:30
So that's a that is an important question that you're asking, but it's one that we would have to look at together.
1:10:38
And I recognize that the challenges of doing big things in zoning and the amount of complexity of a proposal like this, and what it is, what it presents for a community board.
1:10:49
I also remember being in your shoes when proposals for ZQA and NIH came down the pike, which I also found, you know, extremely difficult to to understand in the short periods of time where I was being presented the information.
1:11:07
So we have made lots of strides to try to meet people where they are, particularly at the community level, We created an entire new division within the Department of City Planning to be able to support community boards, which is also part of our function as defined by the the charter.
1:11:25
So but the short answer is that is the the process that the Carter has has defined, and so big proposals will mean a lot of text going to community boards.
Kevin C. Riley
1:11:35
Thank you, commissioner.
1:11:36
And it's just important that we do the discuss that moving forward because zone regulations will change moving forward.
1:11:43
Now I'm pretty sure in the next forty, fifty 50 years.
1:11:46
We'll be discussing this again.
1:11:48
Hopefully, if we're all still here.
Dan Garodnick
1:11:50
I'll meet you here in 50.