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Council committee advances Young’s plan to require building permits before demolition in 5th District
Summary
The Rules Committee adopted an amendment and reported bill 250,917 out of committee with a favorable recommendation; the ordinance would require a building permit before issuing a demolition permit in parts of the 5th Council District to limit speculative demolition and vacant lots, according to sponsor Jeffrey Young and Planning Commission staff.
Councilmember Jeffrey Young introduced bill 250,917 as a measure to curb speculative demolition and reduce vacant lots in the 5th Council District, saying the change would help keep neighborhoods affordable and prevent blight. “What this bill is doing is trying to protect the quality of life for residents in the fifth council district,” Young said at the Rules Committee hearing.
Paula Brumbelow Burns, director of legislation for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission, testified that the ordinance would amend section 14-5-29 of the Philadelphia zoning code (the VDO 5th District Overlay) to require applicants to obtain a building permit for a change, expansion, or new principal structure before the Department of Licenses and Inspections may issue a zoning or building demolition permit. Brumbelow Burns told the committee the Planning Commission considered the bill at public meeting and recommended approval.
The Building Industry Association’s Kenneth Penn warned the committee that the ban on demolition prior to issuance of a building permit could delay projects, raise carrying costs for owners and developers, and unintentionally increase public-safety risks by preventing timely demolition of unsafe structures. “This creates a narrow and difficult standard that will unnecessarily delay many projects that are otherwise proceeding in good faith,” Penn said, urging narrower scope or exceptions tied to vacant-property licensing.
Young acknowledged development-sector concerns but said the bill sets a standard for property maintenance and aims to prevent demolitions that accelerate gentrification and contribute to blight. After discussion the committee adopted an amendment to the bill and later voted to report the amended bill out of committee with a favorable recommendation and request first reading at the next council session.
What happens next: the Rules Committee reported bill 250,917, as amended, to the full council with a favorable recommendation and asked that the rules be suspended to permit first reading at the next council session. The committee did not record roll-call tallies in the hearing transcript; the chair announced the motions carried.
