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CITY PLANNING INITIATIVES & STUDIES

Developing a Plan for Our City and Communities

The Wilmington Department of Land Use and Planning (formerly the Department of Planning and Development) is pleased to announce that Wilmington 2028: A Comprehensive Plan for Our City and Communities is available for download.

Visit this link to download the full plan.

Visit this link to download the appendix.

In addition to the full plan, a summary document is available for download here.

This new Citywide Comprehensive Plan represents the culmination of many months of research and outreach. With assistance from consulting firm Interface Studio, Wilmington has been able to gather input from over 2,500 citizens since August of 2017 through numerous participation platforms.

These included interviews, public forums, focus groups, surveys, and a steering committee that met regularly to guide the process. Participants were asked to rate their overall satisfaction and desires for the future on quality of life issues like public safety, sense of community, affordability, commuting time, parks and recreation, and housing.

The public engagement process included a survey in the fall of 2017 that captured the ideas and comments of more than 2,000 participants.  There were also a series of five public meetings held throughout the City in the fall of 2017 where more than 200 citizens offered their input and ideas. Additionally, ten focus groups were convened in 2017 and 2018 to address issues such as economic development, environment, parks and recreation, and youth programs and services, during which participants made further recommendations regarding the plan. The final public meeting was held at the Children’s Museum, in October of 2018, which attracted more than 300 citizens who offered their thoughts and comments for the final plan document.

The Department of Planning and Land Use is extremely grateful to all those who shared their thoughts, concerns, and ideas to help shape the recommendations in this plan.

The Planning Department created Comprehensive Plans for the city as a whole and for 12 individual neighborhoods areas known as Analysis Areas. The Comprehensive Plans, developed with input from area residents, provide long-range goals for each neighborhood regarding land use, zoning, transportation, crime and safety, parks and recreation and historic preservation. The Comprehensive Plans are formally adopted by City Council and provide the basis for review and evaluation of proposed development, rezoning and Capital Budget expenditure.

Citywide

Baynard Boulevard

Browntown/Hedgeville

Central Business District

Delaware Avenue/Bancroft Parkway

East Side

Midtown Brandywine

Northwest

Price's Run/Riverside/11th Street Bridge

South Wilmington

Southwest Wilmington

West Center City

West Side

Northeast Brandywine Riverfront

Visit this link to download or view a copy of the final report.

Excerpts From the Final Report

THE HISTORY - WHY PREPARE THIS PLAN?

This plan focuses on the opportunities to implement many of the planning concepts that have been discussed and worked on by the Northeast Neighborhood over the past few years. The key aspect of this effort is the fact that the City is not only addressing neighborhood revitalization, but it is also responding to new opportunities by rethinking how large swaths of land can set the stage for making its Brandywine riverfront more vibrant and serve as a major economic driver. This plan builds upon other efforts underway related to improving the environmental quality of the Brandywine River. A broad coalition and the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary (with support from the U.S. EPA), are leading initiatives such as the Shad 2020 Plan, which are focused on restoring habitat and removing old dams within the Brandywine River, in order to foster the American Shad, as well as fresh water mussels.

Community planning in this context is more than preparing a preferred development proposal or recommending a site be “cleaned-up” to address a single issue. Instead, it represents the proactive role government can take in working with residents, special interest groups, property owners, and developers to ensure that the redevelopment of former or underutilized industrial/brownfield sites are undertaken in a manner that fully maximizes their potential with regard to meeting community needs, and that the result is a greater quality-of-life for residents. Ultimately revitalization can be achieved in a manner that complements the existing neighborhood and melds the new with the existing, to the benefit of all.

Information About the Draft Plan

The City of Wilmington was awarded a Brownfields Area-Wide Planning Grant through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for $197,500. The project location – Brandywine River Northeast – is located in Northeast Wilmington with a specific project boundary of the Brandywine River, North Market Street, Vandever Avenue, and Northeast Boulevard. Within this project boundary, there are approximately 10 certified brownfield sites which are preventing economic development and recreational access to the Brandywine Creek. The project area provides enough acreage for green infrastructure solutions, a walking and biking path, and river access. As part of the planning process, a steering committee of community stakeholders was developed and in working with residents through several public outreach events a new vision for the project area, consistent with the larger redevelopment plans for the Northeast and the City of Wilmington has been developed. Plans are designed specifically to address the redevelopment of identified brownfields, provide economic development to this unique waterfront urban area and continue to build community capacity.

The planning process has included a series of public meetings to engage the community to shape the vision for the project area. The result of this grant includes the development of the DRAFT Brownfield Area-Wide Plan which includes the following elements.

  • A summary of the various community activities performed throughout the project
  • An explanation of the Communities’ priorities and a list of strategies that help meet those strategies.
  • The results from the brownfield research and project area conditions.
  • Specific re-use scenarios for the catalyst, high priority
  • Detailed plan implementation strategies which identify specific actions, resources available and resources needed to implement the plan and will include:
    • Assessment and cleanup activities needed;
    • Catalyst, high priority brownfield site(s) improvements and other project area improvements, infrastructure investments that are needed to support brownfield reuse and advance sustainable revitalization, and improve public health, within the project area.
    • Near term versus long term actions and priority projects;
    • Specific partners already involved or need to be involved to lead the specific action; and
    • Specific resources of funding, prioritized investment projects, and resources needed within the project area.

The project partners include the City of Wilmington, Old Brandywine Village, Inc., UD Water Resources Agency, UD Small Business Development Center, UD CCRS Center for Community Research & Service, UD CCRS, UD Community Engagement Initiative, Delaware Sea Grant, DNREC, Christiana Care, and NOAA.

The mission of the Department of Land Use & Planning is to prompt and support the responsible and intelligent growth of communities throughout the city. The Division of Land Use ensures that all development processes are properly integrated to allow the efficient review and response to all appropriate requests to develop land in Wilmington, which includes reviewing plans and specifications for renovations and new construction. The Division of Planning provides and promotes creative and thoughtful prospective direction on how broader urban planning issues and priorities can be identified, researched, and implemented.

The Department of Land Use and Planning is responsible for guiding construction and development through the issuance of permits, licenses, certificates, and appropriate inspections to facilitate compliance. The Department is tasked with preparing, modifying, and maintaining neighborhood comprehensive development plans, land use regulations, and demographic and social impact studies. In addition, the Department serves as the principal liaison between city government, community organizations, and planning councils and works in partnership with these groups in developing neighborhood plans. The Department assists in the identification of community needs, the determination of governmental priorities, and the design of programs.

Major activities pursued by officials in this department include:

  • Plan reviews, building permits, and inspections
  • Business licenses and sign permits
  • Administration of Zoning Code, Zoning Map, and Code amendments
  • Preparing the annual capital budget and capital improvement programs
  • Proposing amendments to the capital budget, zoning code, urban renewal plan, and comprehensive plan
  • Processing site plan applications, street and public facility naming/renaming, street removals, major and minor subdivisions, demolition requests, and annexations
  • Overseeing the City's 12 City Historic Districts
  • Conducting environmental and historic reviews of federally funded projects
  • Providing staff support to the Zoning Board of Adjustment, City Planning Commission, Design Review and Preservation Commission, and the Neighborhood Planning Council Leadership
  • Compiling and disseminating economic and demographic data
  • Conducting historic & cultural preservation planning activities
  • Preparing land and use planning studies and policy research

Recent Planning Efforts

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DEPARTMENT LEADERSHIP

Elliott T. Larkin

Director

Yvonne D. Flagg

Deputy Director

CONTACT WILMINGTON 311

CALL 

Dial 311 within city limits or (302) 576-2620 from outside city limits

HOURS

Operators are on duty Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

GO TO

Submit a 311 Request for Service

OFFICE DIRECTORY

LOCATION

Department of Land Use and Planning
Louis L. Redding City/County Building
800 N. French Street, 3rd Floor
Wilmington, Delaware 19801

OFFICE HOURS

Monday through Friday
8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

EMAIL

luppermits@wilmingtonde.gov

CALL

(302) 576-3050

FAX

(302) 468-6985