Dissatisfied with revised plans for a “strip mall”-like series of squat, one-story commercial buildings along Ford Parkway, the St. Paul Board of Zoning Appeals voted 4-2 on Monday to deny a developer’s requested zoning variances at the Highland Bridge development.
The Minneapolis-based Ryan Cos. had planned four one-story commercial buildings at Ford Parkway and Cretin Avenue, laid out in a row in front of a new four-story, 97-unit apartment building.
The city’s Ford Site Zoning and Public Realm Master Plan, adopted in 2017, had called for each of the commercial or mixed-use structures to be 40 feet tall, but the developer said finding financing would be challenging in the current environment.
The variance requests sought to keep the retail buildings to 12, 15, 15 and 18 feet in height where at least 40 feet is currently required, increase maximum lot coverage, reduce minimum floor area ratios and the percentage of required door or window openings on the ground level, and reduce the amount of transparent glazing required along certain portions of the ground floor.
4-2 vote
City planning staff had recommended allowing the developer’s 19 variance requests, but board member Brian Martinson emphasized that the neighborhood would have to live with the outcome of the decision for decades.
“We could certainly envision a more dense building on this site that could provide more housing we desperately need,” said Martinson, noting the location is zoned for development up to 65 feet in height, or 75 feet with a conditional use permit. “There are numerous inconsistencies with the Comprehensive Plan.”
Fellow board member Chris Schweitzer likened the company’s proposal to a strip mall. In contrast, “the city is starving for high-density housing,” he said. At his and Martinson’s urging, the board voted 4-2, twice, to deny the variance requests.
The Ryan Cos. indicated through a spokesperson on Monday they planned to appeal the Board of Zoning Appeals decision to the St. Paul City Council.
Ryan Cos. responds
Maureen Michalski, senior vice president of real estate development for the Ryan Cos., said in a written statement that adding additional floors to the retail buildings “would exacerbate the design and financing challenges of this block.” She also said the revised proposals for shorter buildings align with the overall intent of the master plan.
As for the window glazing and lot coverage, Michalski said “the site’s complex slope and grading require creative design and engineering solutions to ensure that buildings integrate well into the surrounding environment, while providing a pedestrian-friendly experience.”
In November, the company’s revised plans received a letter of support from the Highland District Council’s development review committee, which noted a slowdown in construction of mixed-use apartment buildings citywide.
The committee said residents in the area were eager to see retail move forward — a daycare had expressed interest in moving into the building at 0 Cretin Ave. — and to see better pedestrian connections into Highland Bridge, including a completed connection from the site’s civic square to its civic plaza.
Officials with the Ryan Cos. noted the original vision for “Block 2” called for a total of 100,000 square feet of retail and 287 housing units. The revised proposal would span 40,500 square feet of retail, including 4,000 square feet of retail in a planned Marvella senior housing building, and 222 housing units. The block would also include a 30,000 square foot planned medical office building.
Renderings of the four one-story retail structures situated in front of a four-story apartment building drew mixed reaction on social media, with some expressing interest in seeing any development move forward after years of anticipation and others dissatisfied with what they described as a “strip mall” effect.
“Hate the strip mall. Bring back the four stories,” wrote a social media user on the platform X. “We can wait if needed until rent control is further amended and they get financing.”
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