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City report: average zone-change takes about 112 days; council urges digitization and proactive zoning
Summary
A planning-department report found general zone-change applications average about 112 days (3.74 months) to reach council, with some cases taking more than 11 months; councilmembers urged streamlining, digital filings and proactive zoning to speed housing and economic-development projects.
The Department of City Planning and Engagement presented a report showing that general zone-change applications take about 112 days on average to move from application to City Council consideration, a timeline several council members called too slow for meeting housing and economic-development goals.
"The average time for general zone change application to go through the full process to city council is approximately 112 days or 3.74 months," Council member Burrelli said while reading the report's findings. Burrelli and others noted that some zone-change requests have taken more than 11 months.
Council member Rowlands and Council member O'Neill praised the detailed analysis and said the work should guide process improvements. O'Neill said the city should reduce reliance on paper submissions and invest in modernized digital systems, arguing that paper requirements into 2025 are an impediment to growth. Rowlands emphasized coordinating the report with the city's prohibition list and neighborhood-planning work to shift from reactive to proactive zoning.
The report will inform ongoing budget and process-improvement work; the committee filed the report for further consideration as part of that effort.
