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Ordinance Committee refers overhaul of Chapter 118 zoning to full Common Council
Summary
The committee voted unanimously to send a draft replacement deleting outdated Chapter 118 zoning text and directing the public to Norwalk City’s Planning & Zoning web page and office for the current regulations; members amended notice language and removed a fixed effective date in favor of the website showing the latest effective date.
The Ordinance Committee voted to refer a proposed replacement of Chapter 118 (zoning) to the full Common Council after brief public comment and minor staff edits.
City attorney Brian Candelaria told the committee the posted Chapter 118 in the city code is outdated and inaccurate and recommended deleting the existing text and replacing it with language directing residents to the Planning & Zoning Office and the city’s website for the official Norwalk zoning regulations and map. "If you click on that web address, it will take you to a Planning and Zoning web page on the city website where you can access all the regulations and the maps," Candelaria said, describing the practical effect of the change.
During the public hearing, resident Eric Dyson said the notice materials were technically available but hard to navigate — the agenda PDF contained a non-clickable link and the path from the agenda to the live zoning materials required extra steps. "I appreciate the preamble that you gave because all that you could find on the site was section 118 being deleted, but not what was replacing it," Dyson said, urging clearer access for the public.
Committee members discussed a minor wording edit to read "Planning and Zoning Office" and whether to retain a fixed effective date (the draft had referenced Dec. 5, 2025). Candelaria and members agreed it was not legally necessary to print a fixed date in the notice and that the more practical approach is for the web link to display the current effective date. Chair Seed then entertained a motion to move the revised notice to the full Common Council; Councilmember Reese Dellinger moved the referral, and the committee approved it by unanimous voice vote.
The referral sends the draft language and the committee’s minor edits to the full Common Council for consideration. The committee did not make substantive changes to zoning policy itself; the action is procedural to replace an inaccurate code chapter with a web‑referenced regulation and map and to ensure public access to the current materials.
