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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFinding of Fact - Findings of Fact - Zoning Map Amendment No.CD2022-003ZC by Ben Kall BEFORE THE COMMON COUNCIL CITY OF ROCHESTER, MINNESOTA In Re: Zone Change No. CD2022-003ZC FINDINGS OF FACT, Request by Ben Kall CONCLUSIONS OF LAW, AND ORDER On October 3, 2022, the Common Council of the City of Rochester held a public hearing, upon notice to the public, to consider the above application. At all of the public hearings on this matter, all interested persons were given an opportunity to give testimony and make presentations concerning the application. Based upon the evidence presented at the hearing, the Common Council of the City of Rochester does hereby make the following findings of fact, conclusions of law, and order. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. The applicant, Ben Kall, is the owner of the subject site, 0.44 acres, located at 533 ththth 14 Ave. SW, on the north side of 6 St. SW, and on the west side of 14 Ave. SW, in the City of Rochester, Minnesota. The applicant requests a zone change from R- 1 (Mixed Single Family) to R-2x (Low Density Residential Extra.) 2. The subject property consists of one, vacant lot. 3. The R-2x zone district was specifically created in 2018 to promote areas with a mixture of residential dwelling types of overall low to medium density near the downtown core. The district was established to support residential infill and reinvestment. 1 4. The R-2x zoning district is permissible under, and consistent with, the “Low Density Residential” Land Use Designation of the P2S Comprehensive Plan. 5. The P2S Comprehensive Plan provides a significant amount of information to consider when weighing a proposal to up-zone a property to R-2x near the Downtown Core. 6. The 2040 Community Vision statement is a critical framing element for P2S 2040. It synthesizes public input into a description of how the community wants the city to look, feel, and function over the next two decades. It informs the goals, policies and strategies that give policymakers and elected officials the comprehensive perspective needed to make rational decisions about Rochester’s future. One of the six tenets of the 2040 vision statement is that Rochester be characterized by its safe and friendly neighborhoods, diverse and affordable housing options for people of all ages and backgrounds, thriving downtown, vibrant public spaces, and easy access to parks and recreational amenities. 7. Rochester’s demographic trends indicate that a wider variety of housing options are essential to meet the community’s current and future needs, particularly as downsizing Baby Boomer households begin to look for housing options requiring less maintenance and upkeep and a growing number of young adults seeking affordable housing choices. As household sizes decrease and service jobs increase, there will be a need for additional smaller-size homes resulting in shifts to higher housing densities in order to accommodate more housing units within the city limits. At the same time, there will likely continue to be an increase in the number of households at the upper end of the income scales, suggesting an 2 increasing demand for higher-end housing. With Rochester facing a need to attract more labor to fill a growing job base, it is important that people can find the housing they need in neighborhoods that offer the amenities they want. 8. Rochester is expected to add another 50,000 people by 2040 – a 55% increase in population. These residents will need places to live. New and existing neighborhoods located throughout the city will provide the bulk of housing opportunities, and increasingly, residents have options to live downtown. Recent Downtown plans have identified growing interest in expanding central city housing opportunity for those seeking a vibrant urban environment within a range of housing styles and an array of amenities. The percentage of people living downtown is expected to grow significantly in the future due to the effect of the Destination Medical Center (DMC) initiative. 9. Preservation of existing housing stock is important but will not fully meet our housing needs. Preservation efforts must be supplemented with responsible new residential development that is focused within the existing community’s footprint, fits within the character of existing neighborhoods, and promotes fiscally responsible development. A portion of this new development should be focused on infill lots and adding housing units to our existing neighborhoods. These areas create investment in our core neighborhoods, which already have the infrastructure in place needed for development. 10. In order to enhance and maintain the integrity of existing neighborhoods the City will need to provide sufficient investment to preserve the quality of public facilities and services and provide appropriate guidance on new uses and redevelopment 3 to insure compatibility of uses. The City should promote the compatibility of uses, encouraging low to moderate intensity uses within predominantly residential neighborhoods, including but not limited to single-family, low density multi-family, and group homes. Other uses that reinforce and do not detract from the primary low density, residential function of the neighborhoods may also be acceptable. 11. Development should complement and extend the positive qualities of surrounding neighborhood and adjacent buildings. However, compatibility with the design of existing buildings does not mean uniformity. Features such as height, scale and massing, along with complementary features such as window and entry styles, streetscape character and parking or garage placement are representative of factors to consider when assessing compatibility. One issue will be finding exactly the “right” neighborhood housing mix. Quality housing options in all areas and at all price points are needed. 12. “Missing Middle” housing, a range of housing types compatible in scale with single family dwellings, can help meet Rochester’s growing demand for walkable urban living while enhancing the integrity of our existing neighborhoods. These housing types include duplexes, four plexes, and courtyard apartments interspersed with single family homes – creating a moderate density that can support public transit, services, and amenities within walking distance. These homes typically have small to medium footprints with a structure width, depth, and height similar to a single- family home. The mixture of these neighborhood building types result in the perception of low density, even though they often support more than 16 dwelling units per acre. Their simple construction, density, and access to destinations 4 increases the affordability of these units while creating a sense of community through neighborhood vitality and the integration of shared spaces. 13. Recent residential redevelopment projects have been located in the neighborhoods surrounding downtown. In many of these cases, the feasibility of the projects depended on the ability to realize some increase in residential density. The addition of residents, jobs, and businesses to a community can provide advantages in terms of increasing the viability of local shops and businesses, or increasing the utilization of underused services such as transit. Residential infill, however, can mean different styles of housing, and potentially different demands on public services and facilities need to be considered. 14. The P2S 2040 Plan encourages infill and redevelopment, prioritizing development in areas with existing infrastructure capacity. Fostering redevelopment was identified as a community priority throughout P2S community outreach efforts. Infill development is characterized by development or redevelopment of undeveloped or underutilized parcels of land in otherwise built-up areas, which are usually served by or have ready access to existing infrastructure and services. Focusing development and redevelopment on infill sites takes advantage of this existing infrastructure while helping to steer development away from greenfield sites on the urban fringe, which are more expensive to serve with infrastructure and services. 15. Because healthy, thriving regions need both a strong periphery and a strong core, the Comprehensive Plan includes policies that will encourage redevelopment and infill development. Increasing the proportion of infill development compared to greenfield development can lead to a more compact region that provides benefits 5 in terms of slowing the loss of agricultural land, reducing travel distances, and providing some level of infrastructure expansion cost avoidance that can be redirected to maintenance or upgrading of existing facilities. In recent years, infill and redevelopment in Rochester has become more common. This activity has focused largely in the downtown area and neighborhoods surrounding downtown. 16. At its public hearing on this application, held on October 3, 2022, the Common Council of the City of Rochester considered the issue of whether the Zone Change request satisfied the conditions of Rochester, Minn., Code Ordinances (R.C.O.) § 60.388. (2018). 17. The applicant’s zone change request would allow “Infill” or “Missing Middle” Row Home style townhome development in a location that offers development patterns that implement the City’s land use policies for more walkable, transit supportive, and compact development. The site is on the edge of the Central Development Core (CDC) district. 18. The R-2x district is intended to maintain and promote areas with a mixture of residential dwelling types of overall low to medium density near the downtown core. This was intended to spur residential reinvestment in areas abutting the central development core, and transit-oriented growth areas along and near the high priority spines of the Primary Transit Network. This district was established to support residential infill and reinvestment that is compatible with the existing characteristics of development, as identified in the Planning 2 Succeed Comprehensive Plan. 19. R.C.O. § 60.388 subds. 1 and 2 provide that the Common Council “shall approve a 6 request to amend the zoning map or the text of the zoning ordinance if the amendment satisfies the criteria provided in this section:” A. The criteria of this subdivision apply to those amendments to the zoning map filed by formal petition. An amendment need only satisfy one of the following criteria: 3) While both the present and proposed zoning district are consistent with the Plan, the proposed district better furthers the policies and goals of the Comprehensive Plan as found in Chapters 2 and 3 of the Rochester Urban Area Land Use Plan, chapter 3 of the Housing Plan, and Chapter 10 of the ROCOG long range Transportation Plan; or 20. R.C.O. § 60.388, subd. 3 provides that the amendment must satisfy all of the following criteria: A. The permitted uses allowed within the proposed zoning district will be appropriate on the subject property and compatible with adjacent properties and the neighborhood; and B. The proposed amendment does not involve spot zoning. 21. The permitted uses in the R-2x are primarily residential, allowing for other housing types (single family, duplex, cottages, and multi-family) rather than just single family. The non-residential uses permitted include live-work, offices, and retail, all small-scale non-residential uses that would be appropriate on a corner lot along a busy street to appropriately provide neighborhood services. The proposed zone is appropriate for the site and compatible with the surrounding neighborhood. 22. No evidence was presented to the Council, at the public hearing or otherwise, that approval of the zone change would lead to any diminution in property values for abutting properties or other neighbors. 7 23. Community Development reviewed this request in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph 60.338 of the Rochester Land Development Manual for Zone Change Map Amendment and recommended approval of the zone change. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. The applicant is entitled to the requested zone change, pursuant to R.C.O. § 60.388, which states that the Common Council “shall approve a request to amend the zoning map or the text of the zoning ordinance if the amendment satisfies the criteria provided in this section.” 2. The application satisfies R.C.O. § 60.388, subd. 2C. The proposed change to R-2x district better furthers the goals of the Comprehensive Plan by promoting “Infill” and “Missing Middle” housing options that are more walkable, transit supportive, and compact. 3. The application satisfies R.C.O. § 60.388, subd. 3. The permitted uses of the R-2x district are appropriate on the subject property and are compatible with adjacent properties and the neighborhood. The proposed change would not constitute spot zoning; the zone change is from residential to residential, has a rational basis relating to the promotion of public welfare, AND there is no evidence that the zone change will have a negative effect on nearby property. 8 ORDER The Common Council of the City of Rochester, pursuant to R.C.O. §60.388, does hereby approve Zone Change No. CD2022-003ZC. PASSED AND ADOPTED BY THE COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ROCHESTER, MINNESOTA, THIS __________ DAY OF _______________, 2022. ___________________________________ PRESIDENT OF SAID COMMON COUNCIL ATTEST: __________________________ CITY CLERK APPROVED THIS _____ DAY OF ______________________, 2022. ___________________________________ MAYOR OF SAID CITY (Seal of the City of Rochester, Minnesota) 9