St. Cloud is moving to make it easier to build apartments downtown and along the city's busiest commercial roads, with a zoning change that would let stand-alone apartment buildings rise in three commercial districts where today housing is confined to upper floors above shops and offices. The proposal goes before the city's Planning Commission Tuesday, and if it clears that hurdle, it still faces a City Council public hearing and vote before anything changes.
What the Zoning Change Would Allow
Right now, apartments are permitted only on the second floor and above in the districts under review, according to KNSI. The zoning change on the table would allow stand-alone apartment buildings — not just housing stacked above commercial space — across three commercial districts, per the outlet's report. Those districts include the downtown core, the edges of downtown along East and West St. Germain Street, and highway corridors covering Division Street, Highway 10, Roosevelt Road and 2nd Street South, the report notes.
St. Cloud's Land Development Code Article 9 already lists “Dwelling, Above the Ground Floor” as a residential use in its commercial-district use table, according to the City of St. Cloud's Land Development Code. That same code explains that a “C” designation in the use table marks a conditional use requiring a conditional use permit, though the code excerpt alone does not establish how stand-alone apartments would be classified under the newly proposed change.
Design Rules Borrowed From a University Corridor
New projects built under the proposed zoning would have to meet design standards borrowed from the 5th Avenue corridor near St. Cloud State University, the station's report states. Those standards include minimum building heights and a ban on parking in front of buildings, according to the same account.
Community Development Director Matt Glaesman said the zoning change follows the city's new comprehensive plan, per the article. That comprehensive plan calls for filling underused lots with housing to ease a shortage, and the city sees new apartments as a way to bring customers closer to local businesses as fewer people shop in stores and work in offices, the report notes.
How the Plan Got Here
The push traces back to the spring, when St. Cloud's Planning Commission approved the downtown comprehensive plan and a companion Division Street subarea plan on a 5-1 vote, according to an earlier KNSI report. Commissioners then sent the plans to the City Council for final consideration the following month. At the time, Glaesman said the plans do not give the city authority to force any property owner to sell or redevelop — they're a vision document, not a mandate, he told the outlet.
That earlier report also noted one of the most notable shifts from the city's last comprehensive plan in 2015 is the emphasis on housing over office space, a change tied to broader post-pandemic shifts in how people shop and work. The city has already acted on similar housing proposals before: in November 2024, the City Council approved rezoning and a development-plan amendment for a four-story mixed-use building with 70 apartments and 30,000 square feet of commercial space, according to City of St. Cloud council records. That same meeting, the council approved a measure addressing a proposed reduction in required off-street parking for residential uses and set a public hearing for December of that year, the city's record shows.
What Happens Next
Tuesday's Planning Commission meeting starts at 6 p.m. at St. Cloud City Hall, where commissioners could make a recommendation on the zoning change or hold off for more discussion, per the KNSI report. Either way, the City Council must still hold a public hearing and vote on the zoning changes before they take effect. What the commission decides Tuesday — and whether the council ultimately follows through — remains to be seen.
