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Page 1 of 10 <br />AGENDA ITEM – 3A <br /> <br />MEMORANDUM <br /> <br />DATE: April 8, 2026 <br /> <br />TO: Planning Commission Chair and Commissioners <br /> <br />FROM: Jake Reilly, Community Development Director <br /> <br />SUBJECT: Planning Case #26-006 – Public Hearing Required <br /> Applicant: City of Arden Hills <br />Request: Ordinance Amendments to Zoning Code Section 1320.16 – <br />Requirements for Affordable Housing (Draft inclusionary housing ordinance) <br /> <br /> Budgeted Amount: Actual Amount: Funding Source: <br /> N/A N/A N/A <br /> <br />Commission Should Consider <br /> <br />The City of Arden Hills is proposing amendments to City Zoning Code Chapter 13 within Section <br />1320, adding a new Section 1320.16 – Requirements for Affordable Housing. The Planning <br />Commission should review and consider a draft inclusionary housing ordinance designed to <br />address affordability in new residential construction. During the discussion the Commission <br />should also consider any public hearing testimony related to the ordinance. <br /> <br />Background <br /> <br />In the fall of 2025, the City Council requested staff begin developing an affordable housing policy <br />for new residential developments in the City of Arden Hills. Staff prepared several presentations <br />about the history of and existing market conditions related to construction, cost, and affordability <br />of new housing in the nation, state of Minnesota, the Twin Cities metropolitan region, Ramsey <br />County and Arden Hills. <br />At the October 2025 work sessions, the City Council received information about affordable <br />housing in Arden Hills and the relation to the housing market nationwide. Two memos, <br />summarized below, were produced detailing the root causes of the nationwide housing crisis, the <br />effect specific to Arden Hills and potential solutions. <br />Arden Hills faces a significant housing affordability challenge across all income levels and age <br />groups. About 21% of all households are cost-burdened (spending more than 30% of income on <br />housing), rising to 52% among renters. This includes more than a quarter of households making <br />between 60% of the Area Median Income (AMI) and 80% AMI. In real dollars that is a four-