St. Paul finalizes its riverfront regulations

On December 10, St. Paul's city council finally voted to approve the city's Mississippi River Corridor Critical Area (MRCCA) ordinance. This updated set of riverfront development regulations is nearly five years overdue. St. Paul is the last of 25 metro Mississippi cities and townships to adopt this ordinance required by the Minnesota Legislature and DNR.

We're excited to celebrate this milestone — and we're pretty pleased with how the final ordinance turned out. 

Clear standards for new development

One of the most crucial elements of these new riverfront rules is the guidance for building heights. The critical area regulations standardize building heights throughout the metro river corridor. Different "districts" have different height limits based on their current and planned development patterns. In downtown areas, building heights are unlimited. In areas like the gorge, heights are shorter to protect special natural views.

This is the aspect of the ordinance most likely to see requests for exemptions over time in each city. We wanted St. Paul's ordinance to include straightforward standards and clear criteria for determining when an exception is appropriate.

For the most part, St. Paul's ordinance does this very well. Numeric height standards across most of the riverfront make it easy to assess whether a project is in compliance. If a developer requests an exception to the limit, the city will consider whether the taller height would negatively impact public views and whether the builder has attempted to minimize the visual impact through design and building materials.

There was some disagreement about how to address the state's requirement that downtown building heights be tiered (shorter buildings closer to the river), despite there not being an ultimate height limit in downtown. St. Paul's downtown, situated on the edge of a bluff, is unique and presents some unusual development and riverfront access challenges.

FMR, city councilmembers and many advocates agreed that we want the critical area ordinance to allow creative projects (such as River's Edge) that enhance public enjoyment of the riverfront. We had different perspectives on the best ordinance language to meet that goal, and the council ultimately opted for some wording that went against what FMR recommended.

While we believe that the ordinance could have had clearer wording to provide more predictable guidance for developers and decision-makers, the final language keeps the door open for good outcomes. Most downtown riverfront projects will go through a public comment and review process due to their unique nature.

Still to come: bird-safe standards?

FMR, the St. Paul Bird Alliance and many residents have spent years asking the city to include a requirement for bird-safe glass in new construction within the critical area. The city even included this in a 2023 draft of the ordinance, but removed it from the final version.

Instead, the city has promised to begin a deeper study on where and how it might implement bird-safe building requirements. The study will include more detailed consideration of the types of buildings that should be subject to new glass requirements, how to harmonize such a requirement with other existing city codes and how a new requirement could impact development. 

The bright side is that this study will consider bird-safe glass requirements citywide, rather than only in the narrow band of the city subject to critical area regulations. If residents advocate for it, St. Paul could adopt a better bird-safe glass ordinance than what we could have achieved through this process.

However, we also have concerns. The city planning department's leaders stalled on adopting a critical area ordinance for nearly five years past the DNR's deadline. Given that history, it's hard to know whether they will take a bird-safe ordinance seriously and complete it in a timely manner.

The city council's intense interest in seeing this study completed gives us hope. Councilmembers have been vocal about this being an important issue for St. Paul. We also hope to see Mayor-elect Kaohly Her be more supportive of this ordinance than Mayor Carter's administration has been. 

Planning staff have said that the bird-safe zoning study could be completed in a year. FMR and our partners will continue to hold city leaders accountable for seeing this process through.

River Guardians lead the way

Throughout this process, FMR River Guardians and other advocates were vocal about their wish for a good ordinance, and it made a huge difference.

We're proud that 262 St. Paul residents signed FMR's petition to the city council asking for bird-safe standards and clear building height guidelines. Nearly 200 River Guardians attended town hall meetings this year with St. Paul councilmembers and Mayor Carter to discuss the Mississippi River Corridor Critical Area rules. Dozens of residents spoke at city meetings or contacted their councilmembers.

All of this advocacy made a significant impression on the city council.

St. Paul City Council President Rebecca Noecker said, "In a time when political discourse is increasingly divisive and vitriolic, Friends of the Mississippi River is a shining example of how to do advocacy well.  Throughout the process of adopting our MRCCA ordinance, FMR staff and members have been direct, professional, informative and collaborative – clear about their position, open to hearing other points of view and with an eye toward long-term change and long-lasting relationships.  With FMR, I always feel comfortable sharing my thoughts and asking for feedback, because I know it will be accepted with a spirit of generosity.  We are fortunate to have a group like FMR advocating for our river and our community."

Ordinances like this one often pass with little community input. By participating so consistently in this lengthy process, River Guardians made it clear that these new regulations are important to St. Paul.

City leaders know that their residents are concerned about these issues and will be closely monitoring to ensure enforcement of the ordinance and the timely completion of the bird-safe glass study.