NEW ORLEANS – On Friday, April 17, 2015, at 9:00 a.m., a Committee of the Whole to receive public comment on the proposed Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance (CZO) will take place in New Orleans City Council chambers, in City Hall, at 1300 Perdido St.
The Riverfront Alliance, representing 8 neighborhood groups and associations and representing thousands of citizens who share their concerns about the Draft CZO, is urging residents to write to City Council members today with their CZO objections in advance of Friday’s meeting.
Organizers say they have been working to develop 4 amendments to correct what they see as “terrible flaws” in the draft CZO.
The Riverfront Alliance’s package of amendments include:
• Riverfront Overlay – Stop out-of-scale riverfront towers in historic neighborhoods.
• Restaurant regulations – Don’t change rules for restaurants regarding hours, alcohol or live entertainment without a public citizen Conditional Use process every time.
• French Quarter protection – Re-insert the long-standing protection known as “Section 8.1.”
• “Article 5” – Eliminate this “Trojan Horse” until the concerns of Bureau of Governmental Research are addressed. Article 5 would allow developments as small as 10,000 square feet to be exempted from restrictions on such elements as use, density, parking, floor area ratio, signage and more. Article 5 also removes neighborhood participation processes and zoning requirements. and gives the City Planning Commission unbridled decision-making powers.
Proposed amendments may be considered and voted on for recommendation purposes, but no vote on the full ordinance will be taken on Friday, April 17.
For more information on the amendments
To send a message to the New Orleans City Council
