Design Standards for Single Family Homes (Memo)MEMO
To: City Council
From: Nancy Anderson
Date: October 31, 2013
Subject: Design Standards for Single Family Homes
At their October Zoning and Planning meeting the Planning Commission discussed the
following memo. The consensus of the Commission was not to adopt any design
standards.
This past summer a contemporary home was constructed at 111 - 11th Avenue North. A
neighbor expressed concern regarding the fit for the neighborhood. The question came
up regarding design standards for single-family homes within the City. The City Council
referred this topic to the Planning Commission for review.
During the discussion at the Council meeting it was mentioned that the City of Edina
has design standards for their homes. In reality they do not. A few years ago Edina
adopted an ordinance amendment for floor area ratio (FAR) and building height to the
ridge line for single-family homes. FAR is defined in the zoning ordinance as the
numerical value obtained through dividing the floor area of a building or buildings by the
lot area on which such building or buildings are located. These standards were adopted
because of a concern about the large homes that were being constructed in the City of
Edina in established neighborhoods.
Staff reviewed the research that Edina considered. Sixteen cities' zoning ordinances
were reviewed regarding the standards for single family homes. Hopkins was one of
the eight cities that had a standard for building coverage for single-family homes.
Hopkins building coverage is 35 percent. This means that all buildings can cover no
more than 35 percent of the lot. This building percentage limits the mass of the home.
The new standards adopted in Edina, are a FAR maximum of .5 and maximum height of
35 feet. The new home on 11 th Avenue has a FAR of .33 and height of 22 feet, both far
below the maximum limits if Hopkins were to adopt similar standards to Edina.
There are similar homes to the one that is being constructed and varying styles of
homes on 11 th Avenue.
It was also suggested that Wayzata has design standards for single family homes; they
do not. Wayzata has design standards for commercial buildings.
Staff's research on design standards for single family homes also found, many were
guidelines that went above the zoning requirements. Guidelines were found for the
following items:
• Garage locations and driveways
• Retaining walls
• Relationship of building to existing topography
• Scale and proportion
• Roof forms
• Entryways and porches
• Windows and doors
• Finish materials
• Wall thickness
• Color
• Paving materials
• Balconies and decks
One set of guidelines stated that highly subjective areas such as architectural styles and
other items are not addressed and are best left to individual preference.
Because Hopkins was developed over many years, there is not a distinct architectural
style to use for a guideline. Other than Parkside or Regency that are townhome
developments, the areas with the most consistent style homes are in the Park Valley
neighborhood. In the past five years there have been eight building permits for single
family homes.
Staff recommends that design standards not be adopted for single family homes. If the
Planning Commission determines that additional regulations are needed, the staff would
suggest that an FAR be adopted. With this in mind, the home constructed on 11th
Avenue would comply with Edina's FAR. The City has not had the same problem as
Edina with large homes in established neighborhoods because, I believe, the zoning
ordinance has a building coverage requirement.
Attached are photos of homes, most on 11th Avenue. There are some that are similar to
the new home being discussed; they just have a different style roof. Other photos
were taken showing the diversity of the housing on 11th Avenue, and there really is no
one type of style. Also there are photos showing of the new home showing the
relationship to the homes to the north and south.
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Homes on 11th Avenue North
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New home on 11th Avenue comparing north and south sides