§ 331-144. Referrals for review and report.

If any amendment is to be considered by the City Council, it shall be referred for review and report to the Planning Board, the Corporation Counsel, and any other board, agency or official of the City which the City Council deems appropriate. The Planning Board may confer with the petitioner and assist such petitioner, where appropriate, to place the amendment in its most suitable form. Such conference and assistance shall not be deemed to constitute any commitment by the Planning Board as to its position on the advisability of the proposed amendment nor to require the petitioner to make any modification to his application. After said conference, however, the petitioner shall be allowed to revise his petition and to provide copies of such revised petition to the City Council and to any board, agency or official to which the original proposed amendment was referred. The Corporation Counsel shall report to the City Council regarding the form of the proposed amendment. The Planning Board shall report to the City Council regarding the form and the advisability of the proposed amendment. Its report shall analyze the proposed amendment and shall state the Board's reasons for its recommendation, describing any conditions it believes make the amendment advisable or not, and specifically stating whether the amendment would be in accordance with the purposes of this chapter as set forth in Article I. All boards, agencies and officials to which such proposed amendments are referred shall have not less than 30 days from the date of forwarding, or from the date of revision by the petitioner, whichever is later, to submit their reports. In no case shall this article restrict the right of an applicant to come before the Planning Board for an informal discussion and review prior to formal submission of a petition for amendment of this chapter.