[StBernard] Zoning rules to be modernized in St. Bernard

[Westley Annis]

St. Bernard Parish Government will modernize zoning and land use rules

St. Bernard Community Foundation $60,000 grant to pay for national planner

 

St. Bernard Parish Government will begin the process of modernizing its
zoning and land use regulations in September thanks to a $60,000 grant from
the St. Bernard Community Foundation awarded to the government to help with
its recovery.

 

The grant will allow the parish to hire a national leader in planning and
public policy to rewrite its zoning regulations in an effort to simplify the
rebuilding process for both officials and private developers. 

 

Donald Poland Consulting of Hartford, Conn., in conjunction with the
Department of Community Development and the St. Bernard Parish Planning
Commission, will update, modernize and help to implement the new regulations
by the end of the year.


Poland is a professional planner and urban geographer who has an outstanding
body of experience in both the public and private sectors. Poland is the
President of the Connecticut chapter of the American Planning Association,
the Executive Director of the Connecticut Partnership for Balanced Growth,
and is a serving member on the Board of Trustees for the Connecticut Trust
for Historic Preservation.

 

"We are very excited to have acquired the services of such an established
planning professional," said Jerry Graves, Jr., Director of the Department
of Community Development and Secretary of the Planning Commission. "Mr.
Poland will not only be assisting us in modernizing our laws, but will also
be providing guidance to our staff as to how those changes are to be
implemented effectively."

The Department of Community Development and the Planning Commission will be
reviewing Poland's proposals during the month of September and through the
early half of October. 

 

Public comments will be solicited at the October 14th Planning Commission
meeting. A final draft of the proposal will then be written and submitted to
the St. Bernard Parish Council for review, comment, and approval.

 

Some specific goals of the zoning and land use regulation modernization
include making the zoning and land use laws more coherent and user-friendly;
establishing a design development district and development review board; and
updating parking, landscaping, and signage requirements. 

 

 "I think one of the main focuses here is to create effective regulations
that will help to encourage investment in the parish," Donald Poland said.

 

Poland wants to create a "design development district" that will introduce
mixed uses and the latest in "smart codes" along major entryways and
high-traffic areas, such as the Judge Perez Drive gateway (near Jackson
Barracks), the St. Bernard Highway gateway, the Parish Government complex
area, Village Square and the future hospital location. The new designs will
allow the parish to phase in more pedestrian-friendly, mixed-use development
without imposing excessively onerous requirements that could, if implemented
with excessive haste and in a universal fashion, slow the rate of
reinvestment within an area that was devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

 

Poland will also work to streamline the approval and permitting processes so
that buildings can be constructed more quickly while still conforming to the
highest standards of design. 

 

With returning jobs, an excellent public school system and a renovation of
Jackson Barracks, St. Bernard Parish has a "bright future," Poland said.

 

Poland is a professional planner and urban geographer who is recognized as a
national leader and expert on neighborhood and housing issues. As the
current president of the Connecticut Chapter of the American Planning
Association, he worked on development of a smart growth policy guide for the
American Planning Association. 

Established in 2007, the St. Bernard Community Foundation is an affiliate of
the Greater New Orleans Foundation.

 

ABOUT GNOF

The Greater New Orleans Foundation (www.gnof.org <http://www.gnof.org/> )
serves as a catalyst for change in southeast Louisiana by connecting
community needs with individuals, families and organizations interested in
charitable giving -- -and through leadership of initiatives designed to
improve the quality of civic life. Tracing its roots to 1923, GNOF is a
leading resource on charitable giving and community needs, stewarding more
than 700 charitable funds and endowments with total assets of more than $192
million.

 

                            

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