Moline council advances ordinance to allow much smaller single‑family lots, prompting questions about setbacks and parking

A proposed change to Moline’s zoning and land‑development code that would shrink the minimum buildable lot size and loosen bulk‑standards advanced to second reading Wednesday after a council public hearing with no members of the public speaking. Alderperson Timmyen, who introduced the text amendment at the public hearing, told the council the proposal responds to changing housing demand and affordability pressures and would let smaller homes fit existing smaller lots. “Thirty percent of the lots within Moline are under 6,000 square feet,” Alderperson Timmyen said, and the current rules force variances and extra steps that he said discourage smaller housing types. The ordinance would change multiple R‑2 single‑family district standards: minimum lot size from 6,000 square feet to 2,000 square feet; maximum lot coverage for a primary residence from 25% to 85%; reduced front‑ and rear‑yard setbacks; and a reduction in required off‑street parking spaces from two to one. Alderperson McNeil is a cosponsor and offered brief remarks supporting the measure as a way to expand attainable housing options. The proposal drew discussion among council members about how the new bulk standards interact with an existing infill provision that in some cases produced a 25% reduction in setbacks. Alderperson Timmyen said he prefers keeping a 5‑foot side yard minimum for smaller lots rather than letting the allowable setback shrink further. City staff and legal counsel clarified that, if adopted as written, the new section would establish the 5‑foot side yard and remove the older infill carve‑out that had produced smaller setbacks in some cases. No public testimony was received during the hearing. After questions and brief discussion, council moved the ordinance to second reading; the motion to advance was offered by Alderperson Timmyen, seconded by Alderperson Finch, and passed on a roll call vote of 8‑0. The ordinance text itself appears in the city code as amendments to Chapter 35, Zoning and Land Development, and would change multiple tables of bulk standards and required parking if adopted on final reading. Council members said they expect more detailed debate during the second‑reading process before any final vote. The zoning amendment replaces the city’s current minimum lot‑size and coverage rules for R‑2 lots and would directly affect homeowners, prospective builders and property owners where lots are smaller than the current 6,000‑square‑foot threshold. The council left the public hearing open only long enough to take questions and then closed it; no formal change to the code was adopted at the meeting.