Planning commission backs ordinance to allow some permanent hoop structures in industrial and institutional zones, recommends excluding equipment
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Summary
After extended discussion and public comment, the commission voted 6‑1 to recommend a zoning amendment to clarify where permanent hoop structures are allowed, limit their use to outdoor supplies, and asked staff to add explicit exclusions for equipment and to clarify cover material standards.
The Inver Grove Heights Planning Commission on June 3 recommended approval, 6‑1, of an ordinance amendment to clarify rules for hoop structures — frequently called hoop houses — and to allow permanent hoop structures in certain nonresidential districts under specific limits.
Staff presentation traced the item to an August 2024 variance denial for a hoop structure on industrial property and said the City Council asked staff to research code changes. Under current code, permanent and temporary hoop structures are generally prohibited in residential, public and industrial districts but are allowed with conditions in agricultural E‑1 and E‑2 districts on lots meeting a size threshold. Staff proposed changes to (1) tie exemptions to the district’s minimum lot size rather than a flat 2.5‑acre threshold, and (2) allow permanent hoop structures in industrial and institutional districts only to store outdoor supplies such as salt, sand, landscape materials, mulch and special soils, with the zoning administrator having discretion to add similar materials. Building‑code rules would still require permanent hoop structures to be structurally engineered; temporary structures (180 days or less) require no structural engineering but are limited by building code.
During public comment a contractor who had previously sought a variance spoke in favor of creating a code pathway for durable hoop structures, saying they provide weather protection for materials and reduce erosion from exposed piles. Commission discussion focused on preserving industrial land for a range of uses, preventing hoop houses from becoming de‑facto storage for vehicles or heavy machinery, and on whether the proposed language was sufficiently specific about cover materials. Several commissioners asked staff to add clear language explicitly excluding storage of trucks, trailers and large equipment from hoop structures in industrial and institutional districts.
Commissioner Schaeffer moved to approve the draft ordinance and to recommend that the council explicitly exclude equipment and machinery from hoop structures and clarify cover‑material language; the motion passed 6‑1 (Chair Weber voted no). Commissioners also discussed an exemption in agricultural districts (E‑1/E‑2) tied to minimum lot size and confirmed commercial greenhouses remain treated separately under the zoning code.
The commission asked staff to add text exempting hoop structures from the preceding 50% exterior‑material standard for conventional buildings (so the membrane cover does not trigger that standard) and to clarify that permanent hoop structures must meet building‑code engineering requirements. The item was scheduled to go to the City Council for final action; staff said the council date had been adjusted and would occur in mid‑June.
Votes at a glance: motion to recommend approval of the hoop‑structure ordinance amendment with recommended edits (exclude equipment/machinery; clarify covering materials) — motion passed 6‑1.
