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Council approves first reading of RPUD rule changes, cuts acreage threshold from 10 to 4 acres
Summary
On first reading council approved updates to the residential PUD chapter that lower the minimum acreage from 10 to 4 acres, add a 15-dwelling-unit minimum, and streamline application steps; members asked staff to clarify height limits and compile parcels affected before second reading.
Council gave first reading approval to an ordinance (O-7-2025) revising the city's residential planned unit development (RPUD) rules, voting 5-0 to advance changes intended to make the RPUD process usable in the largely built-out city.
The ordinance reduces the minimum parcel size to qualify for an RPUD from 10 acres to 4 acres and adds a minimum-build threshold of 15 dwelling units to ensure projects are substantive. The update also streamlines procedural steps, allowing developers the option to submit a combined preliminary-and-final application provided they meet all final-plan requirements, and clarifies that the RPUD is a zoning designation requiring council approval.
Council members raised multiple concerns during first-reading debate. They sought clearer provisions on maximum building height and design compatibility with adjacent neighborhoods. City Attorney (speaker label S10) and staff told council the ordinance language would be refined before second reading to address height limits and to make clear that RPUD projects remain subject to applicable underlying future land use rules and council oversight.
Council requested staff compile a list of parcels that would meet a 4-acre residential threshold and to flag which of those parcels lie inside the city's Economic Opportunity Overlay District or have other land-use constraints. The city also asked staff to separate purely editorial or cleanup revisions from substantive policy changes for the second reading so councilors could see which lines are technical clarifications and which change policy.
What comes next: staff will return with clarified height language, parcel lists filtered by future land-use designation, and a marked-up ordinance that highlights substantive changes ahead of the Nov. 18 second reading.
