At Thursday’s planning commission meeting, a key focus was a proposed shift in the UDO that would delegate by-right development approvals from the planning commission to staff. The change, intended to cut red tape, raised concerns about transparency and accountability. It's made possible because by-right developments, by definition, meet all legal requirements.
Director of Planning and Public Services Brian Otis said the change could could speed the application process up by 30 days.
However, commission members expressed concerns that this change could leave staff isolated in decision-making.
'You'll be a man on an island,' Planning Commission Chairman Vince Poling said.
Vice Mayor Emily McCorryn asked if a compromise could be reached.
'Can we formalize some kind of communication even if it is not approval?' McCorryn asked.
Otis proposed sharing staff reports at multiple stages, such as when applications are received and before final signatures, ensuring transparency. McCorryn welcomed the adjustment, but both parties agreed to finalize the language by the next meeting in November.
The Planning Commission chose to defer the approval of the new Administrative Procedures Manual until November.
Poling said he would have voted no if a vote was called, but recognized the difficulty of redrafting the town's UDO.
'500 pages of stuff with a bunch of changes,' Poling said. 'That's a lot of documents to cover.'"
So, citizens of Strasburg, what do you prefer?
- "red tape" (e.g. a 500-page UDO. Has anyone at the town ever heard of the KISS principle?)
- speed
- transparency
- accountability
- town staff making planning decisions
- town planning commission making planning decisions
- town council making planning decisions
It seems to me that all of these issues should have been addressed well before a vote on the UDO was called for.
What do you think?
attribution: Jegi and flickr
