New Zoning Ordinance
The current Zoning Ordinance was last thoroughly evaluated and comprehensively re-written in 1992. In the ensuing time, hundreds of changes, both major and minor, have been made to the text of the ordinance including the addition of multiple districts, overlays and special purpose zones. The result is an ordinance of unusual complexity containing outdated requirements, multiple internal inconsistencies, which is poorly organized and written in language that is not comprehensible to many citizens. The ordinance as a whole does not permit efficient processes with outcomes that citizens, land owners and developers can rely upon. Additionally, new ways of thinking about planning and zoning combined with new techniques and principles for implementing adopted plans offer ways to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of City planning and zoning resulting in the reasonable certainty that all affected parties expect from government regulation.
