Agenda - Council Work Session - 04/11/2023

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CC Work Session Meeting Date: 04/ 11 /2023 Information Title: Zoning Code Update Purpose/Background: 2.3. Over the past nine months, the Planning Commission and Planning Staff have been working on updating the Zoning Code. Review of a city's Zoning Code is required following the adoption of a Comprehensive Plan. The 2040 Comprehensive Plan is Ramsey's guiding policy document that identifies general land use, transportation, utility, and natural resource visions for the next twenty years. The Zoning Code is the toolbox that is used to implement the Comprehensive Plan. The Zoning Code is a compilation of regulations relating to the use of land and structures in the community. The current Code, Chapter 117, is long, difficult to navigate, and has several inconsistent (and undefined) terms. The goals of the Update are based on the ease of use by property owners, developers, and staff: •Consistency in terms with definitions •Clear purpose and intent of zoning districts *Clear distinctions between districts *Get regulations to align with the Comprehensive Plan *Get it organized/Eliminate redundancies and contradictions *Streamline processes Attached is the working draft of the proposed new Zoning Code. Much of the content has remained, though re -organized for better efficiency and eliminated redundancies. There are still pieces of it that are being worked on such as the tree preservation, landscape standards, and bufferyards that will be on an upcoming EPB agenda. A proposed zoning map will be prepared in the upcoming weeks as well. There are several new concepts in the draft. Most notably is the Urban Reserve zoning district. This district acknowledges that land is within the MUSA, but due to lack of infrastructure or utilities, is not considered developable until such time as utilities are extended. Also, staff is proposing to streamline processes to make it easier to conduct business in Ramsey by eliminating zoning permits and allowing more opportunities for administrative site plan reviews. Timeframe: 20 minutes. Tonight's discussion is intended to be an overview of the process to date with some highlights of the work the Commission and Staff have done. The Council is welcome to dive into the sections at future meetings. Funding Source: This work is being done as a part of staff s normal duties. Responsible Party(ies): Outcome: Please provide staff direction on topics or sections that the Council would like to discuss more in-depth at future works sessions. The Planning Commission is anticipating a public hearing at its June 22 meeting. Attachments