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CAP Board tables proposed zoning and design rule updates for more stakeholder work
Summary
Board members voted to pause formal approval of a large rewrite of the Capital Area zoning and design rules and directed staff to continue stakeholder coordination on several notable items, including stormwater, congregate living standards and parking maximums.
The Capitol Area Architectural and Planning Board on April 3 declined to approve proposed updates to the Capital Area zoning and design rules and directed staff to continue work with stakeholders before beginning formal rulemaking under the Administrative Procedure Act.
Staff and consultant Opticos presented an extensive update to Minnesota Rules 2400 (CAP Board zoning and design rules). The proposed draft bundles non-substantive reorganizations (relocations, graphics and clarifying edits) with substantive changes intended to clarify intended built form, incorporate greater flexibility for lot coverage and parking standards, and add new sections (including stormwater management and historic preservation). Cecilia Kim (Opticos) described the approach as focusing on clarity of intent, more predictable built form standards and greater flexibility to encourage infill and diverse housing.
Several notable items drew sustained board discussion and requests for more work: stormwater management language (consolidation of standards and a staff proposal to rely on City of Saint Paul or Capitol Region Watershed District standards rather than add a separate exception for state buildings), historic-preservation refinements (earlier, more formal identification of resources and coordination with the State Historic Preservation Office), and congregate-living rules (the board struck stand-alone congregate-living text but has not yet proposed replacement language aligned to recent Saint Paul ordinances). Staff also said the city recommended work on parking limits: removing minimum parking but adding flexible maximums tied to local approaches.
"We're not asking the board to approve the proposed rules today," Executive Secretary Eric Cederliffdal said. Instead, staff asked the board to direct continued work with the city, Department of Administration, State Historic Preservation Office and other stakeholders. The Department of Administration's Commissioner Tamara Grama also addressed the board to emphasize that any rules must not conflict with Department of Administration statutes and that state-owned facilities vary in condition and funding availability for upgrades.
After discussion the board voted by roll call to table the proposal and have staff return with revisions after further consultation. Staff said the rulemaking financing provided by the legislature aided drafting but that the formal Administrative Procedure Act process (notice, SONAR/statement of need and reasonableness, comment periods and ALJ review) will follow when the board agrees to proceed.
Why it matters: the rewrite would modernize the CAP Board's regulatory document to reflect the 2040 comprehensive plan, align with updated Saint Paul ordinances and add standards to guide future development on Capitol-area parcels. The board's decision to pause means more stakeholder consultation and additional edits before those changes are put into an official rulemaking notice.
Provenance: CAP Board staff and Opticos consultants presented and the board voted to table the proposed rules during the zoning-and-design agenda item.
