Download - Zoning in Downtown Minneapolis
Downtown Incentive ZoningInternational Downtown Association
September 22, 2012Jason Wittenberg, AICP
Zoning in Downtown Minneapolis
Policy 10.1: Promote building designs and heights that enhance and complement the image and form of the Downtown skyline, provide transition to the edges of Downtown and protect the scale and quality in areas of distinctive physical or historical character.
Policy 10.2: Integrate pedestrian scale design features into Downtown site and building designs and infrastructure improvements.
Policy 10.3: Use skyways to connect buildings Downtown.
Intersections: Downtown 2025 Planhttp://www.downtownmpls.com/page/show/423275-2025-plan
Zoning in Downtown Minneapolis
The Basic Idea • Zoning bonuses allow a developer to build a project that
would not normally be allowed by the city’s land use regulations in exchange for providing a something that is in the community’s interest—something the city would not otherwise require of the developer.
“Incentive Zoning: Meeting Urban Design and Affordable Housing Objectives”
Author: Marya MorrisAmerican Planning Association
2000
Bonuses Outside of Downtown
• Mixed use
• Enclosed/underground parking
• Affordable housing
ARTICLE II. FLOOR AREA RATIO PREMIUMS
549.190. Purpose. These regulations are established to promote development of exceptional quality by allowing the maximum floor area ratio of structures on a zoning lot to be increased where it is determined that the development on such zoning lot includes amenities that benefit the public and that contribute positively to the design and function of the downtown districts.
Downtown Bonuses (“Premiums”)
Skyway Connections
Extra Credit?
Indoor Open Space
Through-Block Connections
Outdoor Open Space
Retail Sales & Services
Public Art
Public Art
Historic Preservation
Arcades – No Longer Eligible for Bonus
Large Buildings Can Be Built Without Bonuses
Lessons and Questions
- Many of Minneapolis’ downtown bonuses have not been used thoroughly because of the timing of the ordinance
- Plazas - The difficulty of getting it right
- What amenities should be required rather than offered as an incentive?- For example:
- Bicycle amenities- Landscaping & green infrastructure
Downtown Incentive ZoningJason WittenbergCity of Minneapolis
Interim Planning Director
