The St. Louis City Housing, Urban Development and Zoning Committee on July 1 voted to give Board Bill 42 a due‑pass recommendation, advancing legislation that would reduce minimum lot‑size requirements for new residential construction in many city zoning districts.

The proposal would change the post‑1950 minimum lot area for single‑family units from 4,000 square feet to 2,000 square feet in A–E districts and reduce the per‑unit requirement for two‑family dwellings from 2,500 square feet to 1,250 square feet (so a two‑family could be built on a 2,500 square‑foot lot). The planning department and the mayor’s office told the committee the change is intended to bring more vacant and substandard lots back into the developable pool and to reduce the number of variance requests that slow projects and add cost.

Miriam Keller of the Planning Department, who presented the staff analysis, said the minimum lot size “is basically like the main approach we have in our existing zoning code to regulating residential density.” She described how the current rule prevents new construction on many smaller vacant lots unless a property predates the code’s 1950 effective date and is therefore grandfathered. Keller summarized the staff recommendation: reduce the post‑1950 single‑family minimum to 2,000 square feet and lower the two‑family per‑unit standard so that a 2,500 square‑foot lot could support a duplex without a variance.

Casey Milberg, policy director in the mayor’s office, told the committee the administration supports the bill. “This is a change that will also reduce the amount of variance requests that our planning folks will have to consider,” Milberg said, adding that fewer variances should shorten the time from permit application to construction and increase housing availability. Evan Winkler of the zoning section noted the city already uses two overlay districts that do not tie use directly to a minimum lot size and said adopting the change citywide would “increase the flexibility throughout the city, to utilize these parcels that already exist.”

A resident caller, Enrique Riojas, testified in support of the bill, saying it would help the city recover from recent tornado damage and reduce vacancy by making redevelopment easier. Several aldermen on the committee expressed support and asked to be added as cosponsors during the hearing.

Staff presented maps and lot‑size data showing many vacant parcels fall between roughly 2,000 and 4,000 square feet; planners said lowering the post‑1950 threshold would place those lots back on the market for infill single‑family or, in many cases, two‑family development without requiring a variance. The presentation included neighborhood examples cited by staff where smaller lots currently host single‑ and two‑family buildings, including Hampton Heights, Hyde Park, Forest Park Southeast, Shaw and Baden.

The motion to advance Board Bill 42 carried without objection in committee. The committee recorded seven members present; the committee proceeded on a call for the previous roll with no objections and moved the bill with a due‑pass recommendation to the full Board of Aldermen.

Next steps: Board Bill 42 will go to the full Board of Aldermen for further consideration. The planning department said materials and updates are posted at z0ue‑stl.com and that applications for a community advisory committee are open.