Study seeks to add ‘missing middle’ housing options

Zoning changes meant to make it easier to add dwelling units in single-family neighborhoods won unanimous St. Paul City Council approval Jan.19, 2022. Now the second phase of work on the one- to four-unit infill zoning study is underway, with virtual meetings planned for community input.
Both studies are seen as helping to address St. Paul’s housing shortage and allowing for smaller-scale additions to the city’s housing stock in small ways. City staff have described the effort as meeting a “missing middle” type of housing, and to add housing in ways outside of building larger-scale apartment buildings.
The public can attend any of the meetings, although meetings are planned in different parts of the city for geographic focus. One session is 6:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb.10, hosted by Hamline Midway Coalition, Como Community Council and North End Neighborhood Organization. The third is 6:30 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, March 2, hosted by Dayton’s Bluff Community Council. Links for the online meetings will be posted at engagestpaul.org/1to4housingstudy.
The city will also use the Engage St. Paul web pages to seek additional feedback on changes, and the public will be invited to weigh in there.
Changes approved Jan. 19 will make it easier to add accessory dwelling units or ADUs in existing homes, above a garage or on a lot now zoned for a single dwelling unit.
Several changes approved Jan.19 apply to ADUs. One key change is that a property no longer needs to be owner-occupied to have such a dwelling unit added. Size restrictions on units are also eased.
Other changes also allow physically smaller houses and allow more than one dwelling unit on a lot, in so-called cluster developments.
New houses will now be allowed to be smaller than the current 22-foot minimum width. Changes to setbacks and distance requirements between buildings are also seen as making it easier to add new dwelling units. Changes could be helpful in older neighborhoods, including parts of the West End where small lots left behind due to housing demolition didn’t meet the zoning code.
The first phase of the study has found widespread support throughout the city, with several district councils weighing in with support and suggestions for more changes. The advocacy group Sustain St. Paul had three members testify in support at a Jan. 12 public hearing.
“We need to make it easier for our entire community to participate in development,” said Sustain St. Paul member Luke Hanson.
Most of those who testified and wrote letters in support of the zoning changes asked that the second phase of the study be done more quickly. City council members agreed and urged planning staff to get feedback and make changes as quickly as possible.
Planning Director Luis Pereira and other planning staff have explained that the first phase of the infill zoning study was meant to address easier changes to the zoning code, instead of focusing on longer-term policy issues. The second phase of the study will focus on the potential to further change sizing and other standards to increase the amount of housing options and allow more types of single-family homes, such as cluster developments, townhomes, and ADUs. Making it easier to convert larger homes for multi-family use is one idea that is drawing interest. Another focus will be to allow duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes in more places.
Tied to these changes is the Planning Commission decision in late 2021 to discontinue use of its longstanding duplex and triplex conversion. Versions of the guidelines have been in place since 1981, developed largely to address the illegal conversion of units. In recent years the guidelines have been seen as preventing property owners from using added dwelling units that meet zoning and property code standards. Planning staff will still use zoning and building codes to make decisions, but will no longer have to deal with guidelines that some view as anti-density.