Visual Simulation Legislation (2010 LGAA)

City of Glen Cove (Winner)
County: Nassau County
Population: 10,001 to 50,000
City Hall: (516) 676-2004

In December 2009, Mayor Ralph Suozzi and the City Council passed the Visual Simulation Ordinance, making Glen Cove one of the first municipalities in the nation to require "visual simulations" or 3D digital animations for proposed large scale developments in order to enable viewers to literally see how these projects would impact the community.

The idea was originally conceived as a way to create a more responsible, predictable and transparent planning process for the community. The Visual Simulation Ordinance ensures that planned developments meet the community's standard for mixed land uses, compact building design, walkable neighborhoods, and that they foster sense of place and preserve open space. It does so by encouraging public and stakeholder participation in development decisions, and making development decisions predictable, fair and cost effective.

Glen Cove's new law is unique in that it requires digital animations for large scale projects, developments and subdivisions from day one. Real-time animation enables the viewer to walk through the animation at eye level, choosing their own path. They can look around and choose to be anywhere in the 3D model. In addition to movement, the viewer's experience is also enhanced by the ability to add actual time to their experience. The ordinance will give everyone the means to experience the project as contemplated, allowing for a richer and more intelligent discussion which will result in meaningful feedback on these proposals. The legislation makes project proposals more user-friendly and understandable for the public. A 3D digital model has the advantage of being able to be rotated so that the subdivision can be viewed from multiple locations, making it easy for the average person to better understand the issues, constraints and opportunities presented by a particular site. This results in increased efficiency at the Planning Board approval process, since, at an earlier stage, members will have a deeper understanding of how the project will look.

Glen Cove's Visual Simulation Ordinance can be a model for other communities. It utilizes modern technological tools and creates digital representations to take the guesswork out of evaluating how a development will fit into a neighborhood. The transition to this new requirement is simple, as this digital technology is already integrated into virtually all engineering, planning, architecture and landscape architecture practices. Designers already create and work with 3D digital models throughout the process, and these designs can now be shared with the public. The new law makes development decisions predictable, fair and cost effective by bringing greater accountability and transparency to the public review process, creating verifiable and accurate representations, and ensuring that substantive issues and concerns are identified at the beginning of the process rather than at the end.