Misguided zoning change is the latest example of the problems with councilmanic prerogative | Editorial
That a bill most district councilmembers believed was not good enough for their own constituents was approved on a 15-2 vote shows the power of an outmoded tradition.
Councilmanic prerogative — the tradition that district Council members have final say over land-use decisions — has long been a bad way to run a city. The latest example comes courtesy of first-term 5th District Councilmember Jeffery “Jay” Young, whose push to alter an obscure zoning regulation will likely hurt Philadelphians who can least afford it.
With little public benefit to be gained from changing the law, Mayor Cherelle L. Parker should veto the misguided effort.
Young’s bill seeks to change what are known as “nonconforming uses” guidelines, which allow a property to be used for a different purpose than its current zoning designation — for example, a plot of land intended to be a residence that instead becomes a business — if its use predates existing regulations.
According to experts, both in tenant advocacy and the business community, restricting these nonconforming uses will hurt city residents and businesses with the fewest resources, driving displacement.
» READ MORE: Councilmanic prerogative makes city a bad landlord | Editorial
Critics of Young’s bill told The Inquirer there are tens of thousands of properties in Philadelphia that don’t strictly conform to existing zoning guidelines, and any challenges stemming from the legislation will fall on an already overtaxed zoning board — as well as add to the hodgepodge of zoning enforcement rules that already plague the city.
Despite those realities, Young pushed his bill through City Council last week — with a swiftness that begged the question of what drove him to think this legislation was so desperately needed.
The proposal goes back to last year, when Parker announced plans to use a building in Young’s district to house people in addiction. The freshman councilmember was reportedly furious that the practice of allowing for nonconforming uses removed his leverage over the plan.
His Council colleagues held the bill up for a year until Young submitted amendments in February. Even then, most district Council members opted their constituencies out of the change before voting last week, leaving the law to apply only to Brian O’Neill’s Far Northeast District 10, Cindy Bass’ Northwest District 8, and Young’s North Philadelphia district.
» READ MORE: Councilmanic prerogative in Philadelphia: What you need to know
That a bill most district councilmembers believed was not good enough for their own communities was approved on a 15-2 vote shows the power of councilmanic prerogative, and the continued enabling of Young, who in his short time on City Council has shown questionable priorities.
Earlier this month, he orchestrated an unexpected delay of the city’s desperately needed program to install speed cameras outside of elementary schools, an effort that took years of lobbying and cajoling in Harrisburg.
Young — who called the program a cash grab despite any revenue being reinvested back into street safety infrastructure, not the general fund — cited the complaints of an unnamed constituent (who apparently receives a lot of tickets) to justify his opposition to the cameras. The city’s own data show that, on average, roughly a half-dozen children in Philadelphia are hit by a car every week.
This entire episode should be a reminder to councilmembers that they are elected to serve the public, not indulge their colleagues by rubber-stamping dubious proposals. The mayor must not only veto the nonconforming use bill, but Council should decline to overturn it.
Until prerogative is successfully challenged, implementing citywide initiatives — like Parker’s own goal to build and preserve 30,000 homes and ensure safe streets for Philadelphia’s students — will continue to remain just out of reach.