Mayor: Zoning rules antiquated, inflexible

LYNN – They could hold new homes, but Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy said buildable lots in West Lynn and other neighborhoods are undeveloped because of the city?s antiquated zoning laws.She sided with Lynn Area Chamber of Commerce members Wednesday who called for forming a zoning review committee, but Kennedy warned the overhaul must involve residents from across Lynn and City Council members who ultimately will approve or scrap zoning change suggestions.Zoning ordinances are essentially guidelines dictating the kind of businesses or residences that can be built in different parts of the city. They dictate details like house lot sizes and parking. Kennedy said many of the ordinances are overly general.?One size cannot fit all in Lynn,” she said.Chamber members want city officials, councilors, and business community representatives to pore through zoning bylaws with Economic Development and Industrial Corporation Director James Cowdell leading the review committee.They said the zoning status of Boston Street and other major local commercial thoroughfares need rethinking. Council President Timothy Phelan agreed.?I recently reached out to our development team to obtain their written opinions on the zoning of the Boston Street Corridor and I?m looking forward to hearing their views.Creating a collaborative team to review, analyze and hopefully continue to improve any zoning impediments is a good thing for the city and I?m happy to be a part of the process,”Phelan stated in an email.Kennedy challenged Chamber members? suggestions for hiring a non-city consultant to assist with the zoning review. She favors bringing in Metropolitan Area Planning Council representatives already assisting the city with a downtown zoning review to consult on the zoning revamp.?The cost would be zero,” Cowdell added.A thorough zoning code overhaul is a top chamber priority with Chamber Vice Chairman Taso Nickolakopoulos reminding Kennedy on Wednesday that studies on barriers to the city?s development identified outdated and cumbersome zoning rules as “real deal-breakers, placing the city at a major disadvantage.”Kennedy said the zoning code?s minimum 10,000 square foot house lot requirement is not flexible enough. She said house lots in West Lynn are much smaller and go undeveloped if they are vacant.?They end up getting assessed as non buildable,” she said.The minimum lot size zoning requirement also forces local housing officials to seek multiple approvals before they can improve a neighborhood by building a new home on a vacant lot, said Housing Authority and Neighborhood Development Director Charles Gaeta.Chamber Chairman David Solimine, Jr. said business owners and developers who want to build or expand in Lynn look with “uncertainty” on city zoning rules.?If people are uncertain they can work a year and not get permitted, they will go somewhere else,” he warned.He said hiring a consultant to advise a city committee on zoning changes is a good investment, despite the cost concerns voiced by Kennedy.?Doing it well, doing it right, will be more expensive,” Solimine said.