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Di ital Zonin Codes and Comprehensive Plans
<br />By Peter Sullivan, AICP
<br />The printed page is not extinct, but elec-
<br />tronic publishing is becoming a standard
<br />format for the digital age. From page -flipping
<br />online documents to custom-builtwebsites,
<br />there are dozens of applications and services
<br />that can create a modern digital document.
<br />But which tools are best for publishing long,
<br />highly structured documents, like zoning
<br />codes and comprehensive plans?
<br />This article surveys options for pub-
<br />lishing modern, interactive documents in a
<br />feature -rich, web -ready format. It identifies
<br />eight popular digital publishing methods and
<br />summarizes key trade-offs among the various
<br />approaches. The article also describes how to
<br />evaluate which method is best suited -to meet
<br />the needs of those working in a public -sector
<br />agency and recommends project manage-
<br />ment strategies for deploying, testing, and
<br />maintaining new software and online work
<br />products. The conclusion identifies a basic
<br />set of prerequisites for digital publishing.
<br />WHY DIGITAL PUBLISHING?
<br />in an era of14o-character tweets and
<br />round-the-clock media, urban planners are
<br />challenged to deliver complex information
<br />in a clear and engaging manner. So what are
<br />planning agencies doing to address this chal-
<br />lenge? In zoi6, Urban Insight collected data
<br />from more than 600 U.S. local government
<br />planning agencies about various technology -
<br />related topics, such as digital publishing,
<br />social media, online permitting, and web -
<br />based geographic information systems (GIS).
<br />It published its findings earlier this year in
<br />City Planning Department Technology Bench -
<br />marking Survey.
<br />With respect to digital publishing, this
<br />report identifies a gold standard based on
<br />ease of use, information retrieval, and com-
<br />pliance with popular computing devices and
<br />software. The standard includes an HTML
<br />format, mobile responsive design, and full
<br />search capabilities.
<br />The data shows that the usability of
<br />online zoning codes is mixed, with only
<br />one-third of planning agencies meeting the
<br />gold standard. Among the group that did
<br />meet the gold standard, there were multiple
<br />methods for producing these documents.
<br />These approaches include a mix of self -
<br />publishing and third -party services.
<br />Some well-known third -party options
<br />include codification services, provided by
<br />firms such as Code Publishing Company,
<br />Municipal Code Corporation, Coded Sys-
<br />tems, General Code, and American Legal,
<br />in addition to digital publishing. While
<br />there are a variety of reasons for utilizing
<br />these services, this article focuses on self -
<br />publishing tools.
<br />One of the goals of this article is to
<br />ensure that authors are aware that the
<br />choices for digital publishing are not lim-
<br />ited to either publishing a static PDF on a
<br />website or fully outsourcing document host-
<br />ing to a third -party vendor. Several of the
<br />in-house publishing methods presented in
<br />this article are affordable, user-friendly, and
<br />feature -rich, and exceed the Urban Insight
<br />gold standard.
<br />The Urban Insight report also evalu-
<br />ated digital publication of comprehensive
<br />plans, which is another type of planning
<br />agency publication that benefits from
<br />enhanced digital features but also raises a
<br />number of management issues due to docu-
<br />ment length and complexity. In comparison
<br />to online zoning codes, comprehensive
<br />plans are skewed even further away from
<br />the gold standard, and there are greater
<br />instances in which the document is not
<br />available online in any format.
<br />As a document, comprehensive plans
<br />follow a less hierarchical structure and are
<br />more likely to be produced with flexible
<br />layout software like Microsoft Publisher
<br />or Adobe InDesign. In contrast, zoning
<br />codes are traditionally prepared in a word
<br />processor, which maintains hierarchical
<br />structure and automates the text updates
<br />(e.g. multilevel lists, cross-references, and
<br />tables of contents). While creative design
<br />does provide greater visual interest for the
<br />reader, the downside of a custom layout
<br />is that it can be more difficult to revise
<br />and maintain, especially if it is reliant
<br />on advanced software that incorporates
<br />objects, paths, layers, and other advanced
<br />page layout features.
<br />Authors should also consider that a
<br />document finely tuned for the printed page
<br />will not necessarily provide the same look
<br />and function on a screen. Fortunately, there
<br />are self -publishing methods that efficiently
<br />balance this print -versus -web dilemma.
<br />DIGITAL PUBLISHING METHODS
<br />The term "digital zoning code" or "digital
<br />comprehensive plan" implies the presence of
<br />certain navigational features and document
<br />behaviors beyond static text and images
<br />displayed on a screen. These features and
<br />behaviors become available (or can be
<br />enabled) through a combination of specific
<br />file formats, authoring workflows, and end -
<br />user settings. For the efficient publication
<br />of digital zoning codes and comprehensive
<br />plans, this article recommends digital pub-
<br />lishing methods that include, at a minimum,
<br />the following basic characteristics:
<br />o Internal and external hyperlinks
<br />• Web -based navigation features and cus-
<br />tomizable display options
<br />o A table of contents and intuitive headings
<br />o A combination of authoring, editing, and
<br />publishing capabilities
<br />o A reasonable learning curve and intuitive
<br />workflow
<br />• Robust customer support or technical
<br />documentation
<br />There are countless software applica-
<br />tions and services capable of organizing
<br />and publishing content on a webpage, from
<br />simple text editors like Windows Notepad,
<br />to integrated site design, development,
<br />and publishing applications like Adobe
<br />Dreamweaver.
<br />ZONINGPRACTICE 10.17
<br />AMERICAN PLANNING ASSOCIATION I page 2
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