PUBLIC HEARING - Zoning Code Update

Every ten years, every community in the Twin Cities metropolitan region is required to update its Comprehensive Plan.  After they are reviewed by the Metropolitan Council and adopted by each city, they go into effect.  Cities are required to update their regulations to be in line with the Comprehensive Plan.  Essentially, the Zoning Code the toolbox used to implement the Comprehensive Plan. 

The current Zoning Code has been updated with various issues and topics over the years, but has not had a major overhaul in decades, if ever.  The existing Code is hard to navigate, has many inconsistent and undefined terms, has some burdensome regulations, while lacking other needed regulations.  Behind the scenes, staff has had near-weekly meetings for several hours discussing various aspects of the existing Code and what should be kept, deleted, or rearranged in the proposed Code.  These meetings centered around what has been working well, what has been problematic, and what the vision for the community is.

Over the past nine months, the Planning Commission has had several meetings discussing various topics and sections of the Zoning Code.  Feedback has been incorporated into the draft.  Staff also met with the City Council at two work sessions--once for an overview of the process and some high-level questions and another to discuss clarity on home occupations.  

The attached draft is color coded to show where the language came from.  Much of the language is retained from the existing Code and then arranged better.  Several parts were consolidated and condensed.  There is also a lot of new language in Code.  These sections were found in other communities' Codes and some were crafted by staff.  There are several portions that are proposed for deletion.  The current draft has several parks shown in red only for transparency that staff did not propose to keep entire sections in some places.  The final ordinance that is presented will be in black type with all of those deleted portions removed.  

Public hearing notifications were provided in the May 26 and June 16 Anoka Union Herald Newspaper.  The City's website has had a page devoted to the Zoning Code Update since spring 2023.  Various social media blasts were posted on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.  Three Ramsey Resident articles since Fall 2022 have discussed the Zoning Code Update project with the most recent one (May/June) noting the public hearing date.  An email was sent to all of the business emails on the Economic Development distribution list.  

Alternatives to Consider:

1. Recommend approval of the draft ordinance to the City Council.
2. Recommend approval of the draft ordinance to the City Council with modifications.
3. Table the discussion to a future meeting to have staff make the requested changes to the document. 
3. Recommend denial of the draft ordinance to the City Council.  

This work has been done as a course of staff's normal duties.  All work has been done in-house without the use of consultants.  

Staff recommends a recommendation of approval to the City Council for the Zoning Code Update.

Move to recommend to the City Council approval of an ordinance for the Zoning Code Update.