Guidelines for Developers

Our role in the zoning variance process is as a representative voice of our neighbors and as such we hold meetings as needed to facilitate a conversation between developers and investors in our community and the people who live here.  If you are planning to build a new structure or make modifications that require a variance to an existing structure, please contact the P&Z committee chair to schedule a meeting to review your request.

Once a meeting has been scheduled, please prepare a presentation for the neighbors of your project and be ready to answer any questions that they might have.

What to expect at your meeting

One week before your meeting, the members of the NNA Planning & Zoning Committee will flyer the immediate vicinity around your project to make sure that the neighbors are alerted to what is going on and to give them a chance to attend the meeting.   On the flyer will be a complete agenda for the meeting with a brief description of your project and any other matters to be discussed at the meeting.

At the meeting, the Planning and Zoning Chairperson will announce the projects and go over a brief introduction of the neighborhood group and our decision making process.

If you have hired a project lawyer and/or architect, they should be present at the meeting if possible.  Please be prepared to present the following materials in order to give a clear understanding of your project or request.

• A detailed description of your project including square footages of the proposed spaces and information on the materials and finish of the interior and exterior.   The description should also  include information on the proposed use, and projected rent or selling price for the units.
• Pictures of the existing building or lot and the block as a whole
• Architectural drawings showing the floor plans or lot plans as well as the front and side elevations of the building.
• Color renderings or photo simulations of the proposed building if available.

Once you have presented your materials, there will be a period for the committee and any members of the public to ask questions about the project.   We may at this point discuss some options for the project design and some concessions to the neighborhood.

If there are multiple projects being heard at the meeting, we will then continue onto other meeting business and at the end of the meeting hold a vote on your project.

Arriving at a decision

Once all of the projects have been heard, a vote will be taken and the results will be tallied immediately.  NNA's support for a project will be based upon a simple majority.  Records of the vote are available.

Based on the outcome of the public vote, the Planning & Zoning chairperson may do one of three things:

• if there were no objections to the project and it passes the vote, a letter of support for the project may be written
• if there were issues raised that the group was able to come to agreement on, a letter of support with provisos may be written
• if no compromise was reached and the project was voted against, a letter of opposition may be written

Once that has occurred, the committee chair will contact you within 2 business days regarding the outcome of the meeting.   We will also write a letter to the ZBA and our Councilperson regarding the meeting outcome.

We understand that developers play an important role in how our neighborhood grows.  We hope to present a transparent meeting format that is agreeable to all concerned parties, including existing residents and business owners, as well as developers and investors.  Please feel free to contact the committee chair with any questions or suggestions about making the process more streamlined.