Comprehensive Zoning Code Revision
Facts Regarding the Current Proposal – May, 2012
PROPOSED PROJECT
The City of Los Angeles Department of City Planning has developed a proposal to embark on one of the City’s largest planning initiatives to date: a comprehensive revision of the City’s Zoning Code. The current Zoning Code was first adopted in 1946, and has grown from an 84-page pamphlet to a 600+ page book that does not reflect the City’s 21st Century needs or vision. The five-year work program includes three major deliverables:
Dynamic Web-Based Zoning Code – Clear and predictable Code that allows for customized/interactive on-line experience
Layperson’s Guide to Zoning – Easy-to-Read Guides that help people navigate regulations & procedures
Unified Downtown Development Code – New Zoning Tools for revitalization of Downtown within first 24-30 months of the program; ensuring it is poised to lead the charge for Los Angeles’s economic recovery
RECENT ACTIVITY
On March 27, 2012, the Department requested funding for a 5-year effort to comprehensively revise the City of Los Angeles’s Zoning Code. Staff presented this request along with a detailed work program to the City Council’s Planning & Land Use Management (PLUM) Committee at its April 24, 2012 meeting.
Audio of this meeting can be found here: http://lacity.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=103&clip_id=10369
Public comments can be found 48 minutes and 10 seconds into the meeting audio linked above. PLUM approved the Department’s request.
SCOPE OF THE PROJECT
The proposal will result in a new Zoning Code that:
Establishes clear & predictable language
More effectively implements the Goals & Objectives of the General Plan and Community Plans
Offers a wider variety of zoning options that protect and/or enhance our communities
Reflects the diversity of Los Angeles and allows each neighborhood to maintain a distinct sense of place
Accommodates the City’s current and future needs
Improves the built environment, economic vitality, & quality of life
Is an economic development tool that will help shore up the City’s tax base
The work program was established with the idea that the Zoning Code is the set of rules that everyone agrees to play by. It includes an enhanced public participation strategy that will include many opportunities for public involvement and feedback. Our Department is committed to an open and transparent process that ensures that all stakeholders are given the opportunity to participate and contribute to the new land use and development standards.
WHAT THE PROJECT WON’T DO
The project will not: 1) override any existing Specific Plans or Overlays; or 2) result in the wholesale “up-zoning” of the City.
Although changes will eventually be pursued in order to implement the new Zoning Code, the proposed work program does not include any amendments to the current Zoning designations. Any future changes will include notifications and public hearings. The Department’s official position is stated 37 minutes and 40 seconds into the PLUM meeting audio.
Below are links to the Department’s funding request which outlines the work program and budget plan.
Council File No. 12-0460
http://cityclerk.lacity.org/lacityclerkconnect/index.cfm?fa=ccfi.viewrec…
PDF of Proposal
http://clkrep.lacity.org/onlinedocs/2012/12-0460_rpt_plan_3-27-12.pdf
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Questions may be directed to Erick Lopez at erick.lopez@lacity.org or David Olivo at david.olivo@lacity.org; email is preferred.
Minutes
This meetings has the following attachments:
