"Its Time to Build a Snowman ... Well, Not So Fast"

 "We'll be taking some time off till January 3rd -- so we need to get you our Friday video short early this week. But actually that works out well since the video is a Holiday Greeting card. It's from Ned Ledbetter, a senior zoning enforcement officer. I think after you see it you'll want to share the link with other planners AND anyone on your staff who handles zoning enforcement. Take a look at the short video, then read about it below.



The video is the work of Gontram Architecture, Inc., of Raleigh, North Carolina. I asked Eddie Gontram, a principal of the firm, what was behind this unique holiday greeting. His reply: 'We came up with the idea to produce the video this past Fall. In years past, we sent out custom-designed greeting cards for the Holidays that featured a project from that year. This year, we wanted to do something a bit more fun, creative, and unique. We also saw the waste created by greeting cards, and the relatively short lifespan associated with them. We decided to do a video. Then, while brainstorming for ideas, we decided to look at the simple winter activity of building a snowman, and what would happen if the Zoning Code applied to building a snowman.'

Gontram adds, 'The response has been truly amazing  While we sort of adopted a 'duck and cover' posture once we sent it out, we were hopeful that any zoning or inspections staff that viewed it would have a sense of humor. The very first comment came from a plans examiner, 'If it weren't so close to the truth, I'd have been offended rather than amused.' Several others viewed it, then forwarded it to their entire organization."


(Via Planning Commissioners Journal.)