Planning
The City of Jamestown’s Planning Division supports responsible growth, development, and reinvestment throughout the City. The Division works with residents, property owners, businesses, and developers to provide guidance on development proposals, site planning, and applicable municipal review and approval processes, including those involving the Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA).
These efforts are guided by the City’s recently adopted Pearl City 2045 Comprehensive Plan, which establishes a long-term vision for Jamestown’s future and identifies priorities for land use, neighborhood revitalization, economic development, transportation, infrastructure, and environmental sustainability.
Through coordinated planning and collaboration with community stakeholders, the City is working to encourage thoughtful development, strengthen neighborhoods, support economic opportunities, and enhance the quality of life for Jamestown residents.
Pearl City 2045 Comprehensive Plan
The Pearl City 2045 Comprehensive Plan establishes a long-term strategic vision for the City of Jamestown, providing a framework to guide future growth, development, and public investment.
The plan reflects an evaluation of Jamestown’s existing conditions, evolving needs, and future opportunities, incorporating community input to identify priorities that will shape the City’s development in the years ahead.
As the City’s adopted Comprehensive Plan, Pearl City 2045 serves as an important resource for municipal decision-making, policy development, and the evaluation of future projects and initiatives. It also provides a foundation for pursuing funding opportunities and coordinating investments that support the City’s long-term objectives.
The plan identifies eight overarching goals that address Jamestown’s community identity, neighborhoods, housing, transportation, natural resources, economic development, infrastructure, and collaborative planning.
Goals of the Pearl City 2045 Comprehensive Plan
- Embrace & Celebrate Jamestown’s Unique Community Identity
- Support Safe, Vibrant, & Pedestrian-Scale Mixed-Use Neighborhoods
- Stabilize Housing Options
- Improve Multimodal Transportation Safety & Connectivity
- Restore, Preserve, & Enhance Natural Resources
- Expand & Diversify Economic Opportunities
- Commit to Resilient & Sustainable Infrastructure
- Promote Inclusive & Collaborative Planning
The Comprehensive Plan is intended to guide decision-making over time, with implementation occurring through future planning initiatives, development projects, partnerships, and municipal investments. Individual recommendations will be evaluated based on community priorities, available resources, and applicable approval processes.
Ongoing Planning Initiatives
In addition to supporting development proposals and municipal planning activities, the Planning Division is advancing initiatives that address transportation safety, land use, infrastructure, and community development.
These initiatives support the implementation of the Pearl City 2045 Comprehensive Plan and provide opportunities to modernize planning practices, encourage reinvestment, and improve the City’s built environment.
Safe Streets for All (SS4A)
The Safe Streets for All (SS4A) program is a federal initiative administered by the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) that provides funding to help communities reduce roadway fatalities and serious injuries through transportation safety planning and infrastructure improvements.
The City of Jamestown received an SS4A planning grant to develop a Road Action Plan (RAP), which will identify roadway safety concerns and establish strategies to improve transportation safety throughout the City.
The planning process incorporates the Vision Zero framework, a data-driven approach focused on eliminating traffic fatalities and serious injuries. It also applies the Safe System Approach, which recognizes that human error is inevitable and emphasizes designing transportation systems that reduce crash risks and minimize the severity of injuries when crashes occur.
The Road Action Plan will provide a framework for identifying safety priorities, evaluating potential improvements, and guiding future transportation investments to better protect motorists, pedestrians, cyclists, and other roadway users.
Five Objectives of the Safe System Approach
- Safer People: Promote responsible behavior among roadway users while creating conditions that support safe travel.
- Safer Roads: Design and maintain roadways that anticipate human error, reduce crash risks, and improve safety for pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists.
- Safer Vehicles: Encourage vehicle technologies and safety features that help prevent crashes and reduce the severity of injuries.
- Safer Speeds: Support appropriate travel speeds through roadway design, established speed limits, public education, and enforcement.
- Post-Crash Care: Improve emergency response, crash survivability, and the safety of first responders through effective incident management.
Zoning Code Update
The City of Jamestown is undertaking an update to its Zoning Code to better align local land use regulations with the goals and priorities established in the adopted Pearl City 2045 Comprehensive Plan.
Much of Jamestown’s existing zoning framework originated in the 1960s, reflecting planning and development practices that were common during that period. Over time, changes in land use, transportation, housing, and economic conditions have created opportunities to modernize these regulations to better serve the City’s current needs and long-term objectives.
Historically, zoning regulations throughout the country increasingly emphasized automobile-oriented development, including larger parking areas, greater separation of land uses, and increased building setbacks. These approaches influenced the design of neighborhoods, commercial districts, and public spaces, often reducing opportunities for walkable, mixed-use development.
The Zoning Code Update seeks to establish a more modern, flexible, and predictable regulatory framework that supports thoughtful development and reinvestment throughout Jamestown.
A central focus of this initiative is recognizing the relationship between private development and the public spaces that connect the City. Streets, sidewalks, buildings, parks, and commercial areas collectively shape how residents and visitors experience Jamestown. Well-designed development can contribute to safer streets, stronger neighborhoods, more accessible public spaces, and a more vibrant local economy.
The update is also intended to address regulatory barriers that may complicate new development, property improvements, and adaptive reuse of existing buildings. By evaluating current requirements and considering more flexible, context-sensitive standards, the City aims to create a clearer and more efficient development process while maintaining appropriate expectations for quality, safety, and neighborhood compatibility.
The proposed framework will emphasize development that complements surrounding properties, supports pedestrian accessibility, encourages efficient land use, and contributes positively to the City’s character and economic vitality.
Modernizing the Zoning Code is not about reducing development standards, but about establishing regulations that are clearer, more practical, and better aligned with Jamestown’s future.
Ultimately, the Zoning Code Update is intended to support responsible investment, strengthen neighborhood vitality, encourage high-quality development, and advance the long-term vision established in the Pearl City 2045 Comprehensive Plan.
Key Priorities of the Zoning Code Update
- Encourage walkable, pedestrian-oriented development and vibrant mixed-use neighborhoods.
- Reduce unnecessary regulatory barriers to development and adaptive reuse.
- Provide clearer, more predictable standards for property owners, developers, and investors.
- Introduce greater flexibility in development and parking requirements where appropriate.
- Promote high-quality site design that complements surrounding neighborhoods and public spaces.
- Support reinvestment, neighborhood vitality, and long-term economic resilience.
Planning Commission
The City of Jamestown Planning Commission reviews applicable development proposals and site plans in accordance with the City’s zoning regulations and other relevant land use requirements.
The Commission plays an important role in the municipal planning process by evaluating proposals and considering their consistency with applicable development standards and planning objectives.
Meeting agendas and related materials are available through the City’s online document portal.
Contact Information
Principal Planner
Municipal Building
200 East Third Street – 4th Floor
Jamestown, New York 14701 Phone: (716) 483-7541
Email: kulaszewski@jamestownny.gov
