Planning Report

Date:	February 15, 2000

Subject:	Zoning Ordinance Amendments - Section 4-040.e. - Floor Area Ratio

(Residential Zoning Districts)

Applicant:	City of New Brighton

Background

The Planning Commission is asked to hold a Public Hearing to consider an ordinance amendment to Section 4.040.e. - Floor Area Ratio (FAR) within the R-1 and R-1A Zoning District.

Over the past year, staff has received complaints regarding the City's 30% FAR requirement within the Residential Zoning Districts. Several New Brighton home owners have inquired about building additions onto their homes and/or completing unfinished portions of their home. There have been instances when the addition/remodel could not be constructed because the FAR requirement is exceeded as a result of the proposed construction.

Analysis

Floor Area Ratio is defined as "the ratio of the gross area of all buildings on a lot to the area of the lot." For example, on a 10,000 square foot lot with a 30% FAR, buildings with a gross floor area up to 3,000 square feet can be constructed (10,000 s.f. x 30% = 3,000 s.f.) Under this definition, gross square footage includes basement and garage space. Most lots in the R-1 District within the City are at or near 10,000 square feet in size, therefore, placing a maximum finished square footage of a home, including the basement and garage, to 3,000 square feet is limiting.

In the R-1A Zoning district, many lots are 40-feet wide and only 5,000 square feet in size, however, the floor area ratio requirement is still the same at 30%, therefore, the maximum size of the homes and garages are even more restricted, as the maximum gross square footage allowed would be 1,500 square feet on a lot that is 5,000 square feet.

There is an increasing demand in New Brighton for additional living and storage space. As an example, we are seeing a lot of building permit requests for additional garage space to store boats, snowmobiles, recreational vehicles, trailers, and second or third cars. Many residents are adding on third stalls to existing attached garages or constructing second garages to prevent these items from being stored outside on the lawn, which is a violation of the New Brighton Ordinance. Additionally, there are numerous home additions being constructed throughout New Brighton for additional living space. However, as mentioned the FAR are causing problems for some residents.

The purpose of the FAR requirement is to limit the size of structures to ensure that there are adequate pervious surfaces to allow for drainage of storm water, and to ensure that homes are relatively uniform in size in a neighborhood.

It is staff's belief that this can be regulated without regulating the finished square footage of a home. One example is to place a maximum building coverage requirement on lots along with an impervious surface requirement. Therefore, the structure footprint would dictate the maximum size of the home, rather than the finished square footage. This allows the flexibility in finishing off basement and/or 2nd story additions. The City's maximum building height requirement and setback requirements then ensure that homes are relatively uniform in height and in location on a lot.

The graphics on the following pages illustrate examples of building and impervious surface coverage for both 10,000 square foot and 5,000 square foot lots.

Staff has also conducted a survey of adjacent cities', and those city's with similar lot sizes to New Brighton, to find how they regulate FAR and/or building coverage. The following are the results:

City	Building Coverage Requirement for Residential Districts

New Brighton	Floor Area Ratio shall not exceed 30%.

Richfield	Structures shall not exceed 35% of the lot.

Fridley	Structures shall not exceed 25% of the lot.

Arden Hills	Structures shall not exceed 25% of the lot & Floor Area Ratio shall not exceed 30%.

Shoreview	Impervious surface (paved surface & structures) shall not exceed 40% of the lot.

Columbia Heights	Structures shall not exceed 30% of the lot on lots larger than 6,500 s.f.

Structures shall not exceed 35% of the lot on lots smaller than 6,500 s.f.

Roseville	Floor Area Ratio shall not exceed 30%.

St. Anthony	Structures shall not exceed 35% of the lot & Floor Area Ratio shall not exceed 30%.

Mankato	Impervious surface (paved surface & structures) shall not exceed 40% of the lot & maximum building coverage is 30%.

While some cities do have a FAR regulation similar to New Brighton, in general, most cities have a structure coverage regulation or an impervious surface coverage regulation, or a combination of the two.

Based on the above, staff and the Planning Commission have drafted an Ordinance Amendment as follows:

SECTION 4-040.	LOT STANDARDS, R-1 DISTRICT

e.

e.	The building coverage (principal and accessory) on a lot shall not exceed 25% of the total lot area.

f.	Total site impervious surfaces shall not exceed 35% of the total lot area.

SECTION 4-140.	LOT STANDARDS, R-1A DISTRICT

a.	The requirements for setbacks, yards, height and building coverage are the same as the requirements in the R-1 district.

b.	The following minimum requirements for lot dimensions shall be observed:

1.	Forty (40) feet wide at front lot line and building setback line.

2.	Five-thousand (5,000) square feet of lot area.

c.	On lots smaller than 7,500 square feet, the building coverage (principal and accessory) on a lot shall not exceed 35% of the total lot area.

d.	On lots smaller than 7,500 square feet, the total site impervious surfaces shall not exceed 40% of the total lot area.

Recommendation

Motion to waive the reading and recommend approval of the attached Ordinance Amendment.

Cary K. Teague, City Planner