Latest draft of Rochester zoning code update released
Dec. 4—The batch of updates to Rochester's zoning ordinance has been released.
The new Unified Development Code, which regulates how private property can be developed, is being drafted in three installments, and the final installment was released Thursday.
Installment 3 includes Procedures and Administration, which regulate how project proposals will be reviewed and approved.
The city's goal is to have a consolidated Unified Development Code draft ready for public review in early 2022, with final approval expected later in the year.
The approval process is expected to include opportunities for community, organization and business feedback.
The first installment of the code covered zoning districts and uses, while the second covered development standards and installment three will cover approval processes.
Each of the installments is meant to help answer the following questions:
— Installment 1: What kind of place is it, and what can I do
— Installment 2: How do I lay it out and build it?
— Installment 3: Whose approval do I need?
Included in the third installment are descriptions of common procedures, processes for staff-level, Commission and Council reviews, criteria for all review levels, criteria for flexibility and relief, requirements for nonconformities, zoning enforcement, and penalties for violations.
The latest draft section is available via the project website.
Community members will have the opportunity to review the draft through mid-January, and members of the city's Community Development department are slated to present it to the Rochester City Council on Jan. 3.
Questions related to the code installments can be directed to Community Development planner Emma Miller-Shindelar at 507-328-2962 or emshindelar@rochestermn.gov.
