City of Syracuse opens online Zoning and Permitting Discovery Center

The Zoning and Permitting Discovery Center will help guide users through the City’s permitting requirements as they begin complex projects, such as starting a new business or a home-renovation project. Founded on the City’s planning and building regulations, the portals ask simple questions that help applicants achieve their project goals while guiding them through the permits, fees, and licenses their project will need.

The site includes a zoning portal, which has an interactive mapping system so the user learn where a new business or residence is permitted throughout the city. It also has a business-permitting portal, which helps business owners learn about the specific permits, licenses, and other requirements for starting their business in Syracuse.

The website also includes a residential-permitting portal, which helps homeowners and developers learn where their residential project is allowed, and what permits they’ll need before starting the project.

“Small businesses and homeowners are the engines of our local economy,” Walsh said in the news release. “They create jobs, generate tax revenues, and help build vibrant, engaged neighborhoods. Until now, there have been very few tools intentionally designed to give people looking to invest in our community a clear breakdown of the processes and complications they might face.”

The City of Syracuse Central Permit Office “spearheaded” the project to “improve the citizen permitting experience.” By moving the permit discovery process online, the Central Permit Office will be able to provide reliable, project-specific information to business and residents “around the clock.”

The new site also gives the City a “new level of insight” into economic trends in the community. The system is built on a model created by Open Counter, a San Francisco, California–based development company that specializes in online workflows for municipalities.

“We’re aiming to increase communication and eliminate confusion on both side of the counter,” Stephanie Pasquale, commissioner of neighborhood and business development, said in the news release. “City staff will have access [to] a powerful suite of administrative tools to analyze proposed projects while citizens are given a remarkably high level of service that reduces their discovery process from weeks down to a few minutes.”

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com