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Orderly and Efficient Land Use <br />Align land use, development patterns, and infrastructure to make the best use of public <br />and private investment. <br />Orderly and efficient land uses lay the <br />foundation for a prosperous region. The <br />Council sets the framework for land use <br />patterns and guide development in the <br />region, as directed by the Metropolitan <br />Land Planning Act.10 This means being <br />fiscally responsible by guiding land uses <br />and development patterns that make the <br />most of the region's investments in <br />infrastructure. Directing growth where <br />infrastructure already exists also reduces <br />the need to add roads and expand the <br />regional wastewater system to support <br />the same growth elsewhere. <br />Making efficient use of land and <br />capitalizing upon existing infrastructure <br />also reduces outward development pressures in rural and natural resource areas. Planning for <br />and supporting growth where infrastructure is already in place allows these rural areas to <br />continue to maintain large tracts of natural resources, agricultural production, and a sparsely <br />developed rural environment. <br />Table 1. Overall Density Expectations for New Growth, <br />Development, and Redevelopment <br />Metropolitan Urban Service Area <br />Minimum Average Net Density <br />Urban Center 20 units / acre <br />Urban 10 units / acre <br />Suburban 5 units / acre <br />Suburban Edge 3-5 units / acre <br />Emerging Suburban Edge 3-5 units / acre <br />Rural Service Area <br />Maximum Allowed Density, except Rural Centers <br />Rural Center 3-5 units/acre minimum <br />1-2.5-acre lots existing, <br />Rural Residential 1 unit / 10 acres where <br />possible <br />Diversified Rural 4 units / 40 acres <br />Agricultural 1 unit / 40 acres <br />Aligning land uses, development patterns, and infrastructure is important at the local level, too. <br />Orderly and efficient does not just mean wise use of regional infrastructure, it also means <br />planning livable neighborhoods connected to places to work and play. While traditionally <br />planning has separated residential neighborhoods from commercial and industrial areas, <br />residents still need to access these places to meet their daily needs and to get to work. <br />Communities should continue to consider strategic locations for integrating different uses into <br />neighborhoods and to make it easier for more people to access parks and provide places to pick <br />up a bag of groceries without needing to rely on a car. Compact development patterns, <br />integrating natural resources, and local interconnected street networks all add to the livability of <br />our communities. <br />The region is able to provide cost-effective infrastructure and services when it is able to <br />anticipate where, when, and to what extent regional growth will occur. The region establishes <br />overall density expectations for communities based on their community designation, as well as <br />expectations near transit stations. Density thresholds are based on an understanding of future <br />regional growth, market demand in different parts of the region, existing development patterns <br />and redevelopment opportunities, and regional policies to support the concentration of higher <br />density growth around transit stations. Because each community and its values are unique, <br />precisely how and where density is guided is determined by each community consistent with <br />1° Minn. Stat. 473.145 <br />DRAFT FOR PUBLIC COMMENT <br />Last revised: February 21, 2014 64 <br />