Zoning Permit • Construction of Larger Mixed-Use Structure • Special Exception for Parking Garage • Application of Pending Zoning Ordinance

Dowds v. Zoning Bd. of Adjustment, PICS Case No. 17-1114 (Pa. Commw. June 27, 2017) Colins, J. (13 pages).

Pending ordinance doctrine did not apply to zoning application where examiner testified application was complete prior to favorable reporting of proposed zoning ordinance out of the city council, the point at which, under the city's zoning ordinance, the proposed ordinance was deemed “pending.” Order of the trial court affirmed.

Lynn Dowds appealed the order of the trial court that granted in part and denied in part her appeal of the decision of the zoning board of adjustment of the city of Philadelphia. Appeal arose from an application filed by property owners George and Catherine Twardy for a zoning/use permit to demolish an existing two-story structure used as a law office and to construct a six-story mixed-use building with an interior parking garage on the ground floor. While the structure, its mixed-use, and the number of parking spaces were permitted as of right, the city determined the garage required a special exemption, which owners applied for; the city also refused owners' proposed curb cut.