New Ulm, MN Zoning

Euclidean-zoning. 12 districts · 4 overlays · 1 applicable state preemptions.
This profile is an earlier edition — some fields may be incomplete. An updated profile is in progress.

Overview

Code type
euclidean
Naming convention
letter-code
Naming convention by category
residentialletter-numeric intensity-encoded (R-1 largest lot / lowest density → R-4 smallest lot / highest density; R-1S small-lot subvariant; RT-1/RT-2 townhouse variants)
commercialletter-numeric intensity-encoded (C-1 neighborhood → C-3 highway)
industrialletter-numeric intensity-encoded (I-1 light → I-2 general/heavy)

Conventional euclidean zoning — not form-based, not hybrid-PD, not rewrite-in-flight, not no-zoning. District-code pattern is intensity-encoded letter-numeric (number indicates relative density / intensity, not lot-size-in-thousands). Not the INVERSE pattern. v1 classification (implicit euclidean) retained.

Worth knowing

+ 5 more in Quirks & notes

Districts

res_sf 3res_mf 3com 3ind 2mu 1
CodeNameCategory Min lotHeight CoverageFAR Du/acParking Setbacks F/S/R
R-1Single-Family Residentialres_sf10,000 sf35 ft0.40.44.4125 / 10 / 20
R-2Single-Family Residential — Compactres_sf7,500 sf35 ft0.450.455.81.520 / 8 / 15
R-3Multi-Family Residentialres_mf15,000 sf45 ft0.50.752.9230 / 15 / 20
R-4Downtown Mixed-Use Residentialmu5,000 sf65 ft0.828.710 / 5 / 10
R-1SSingle-Family Residential — Small-lot (inferred semantics)res_sf / /
RT-1Residential Townhouse 1 (inferred semantics)res_mf / /
RT-2Residential Townhouse 2 (inferred semantics)res_mf / /
C-1Neighborhood Commercialcom10,000 sf40 ft0.650.8525 / /
C-2General Commercialcom20,000 sf50 ft0.751.135 / /
C-3Highway Commercialcom40,000 sf55 ft0.81.250 / /
I-1Light Industrialind30,000 sf45 ft0.60.85 / /
I-2General Industrialind80,000 sf55 ft0.50.75 / /

Confidence: confirmed partial under review not found

Overlays

FP
Floodplain Overlay
FP
partial §City of New Ulm Chapter 13 (Zoning); c§FEMA NFHL Brown County panels
AS
Airport Safety Overlay
AP
c§City of New Ulm Zoning Map legend (Airport Safety Zone A + Zone B); partial §Chapter 13 airport safety subsection
HD
Downtown Historic District Overlay
HP
partial §City of New Ulm Chapter 13 (Zoning) historic preservation subsection
PRB
Parks & Recreation Buffer Overlay
ENV
partial §City of New Ulm Chapter 13 (Zoning) — PRB existence not confirmed; carried forward from v1 at under_review pending primary-source verification

State preemptions

MN-SF4-HF1-MISSING-MIDDLE-2023applies
Qualifying condition
New Ulm city population 13,522 (2020 Census DP-1, carried forward from v1 profile). Threshold check per zoning/us/minnesota/preemptions.md: cities >=5,000 must allow duplexes and triplexes by-right in all SF zones. Arithmetic: 13,522 >= 5,000 → TIER A APPLIES. Metro Council tier check: New Ulm is in Brown County (southwest MN). Metropolitan Council jurisdiction covers only 7 counties: Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, Washington. Arithmetic: 'Brown' NOT IN {Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, Washington} → TIER B (quadplex) does NOT APPLY.
Effect
Duplexes and triplexes must be permitted by-right in all single-family residential zones (R-1, R-2, R-1S on New Ulm zoning map; possibly RT-1/RT-2 depending on classification). Minimum lot size for a duplex or triplex may not exceed the minimum lot size for a single-family home in the same zone. Off-street parking requirement capped at 1 space per unit (state cap).

Adopted building codes

Statewide; extensive amendments

2018
2018
2023
2018
IECC (Residential)
MN-specific
IECC (Commercial)
MN-specific

Click a code label to open its state-by-state adoption atlas.

Amendment history

DateKindCitation
pass research date

Quirks & notes

Formulas

Definitions

height
Grade to highest point of structure (Midwest convention; not re-confirmed against Chapter 13 text this pass — FM-P)
lot_coverage
Building footprint / lot area (principal + accessory structures — v1 convention retained)
far
Gross floor area / lot area
du_ac
Dwelling units per gross acre (43,560 sf/acre / min lot sf)
setback_front
Front property line to nearest building face
setback_side
Side property line to nearest building face
setback_rear
Rear property line to nearest building face
parking
Off-street spaces per dwelling unit unless noted

Capacity calculations

max_footprint_sf
lot_area_sf * lot_coverage
max_gfa_sf
lot_area_sf * far
max_units_from_density
lot_area_sf * du_ac / 43560
parking_required
units * parking

Massing explorer

Interactive 3D comparison across every district. Drag to orbit, scroll to zoom, use the slider to walk districts, and toggle applicable overlays in the right-side panel.

Sort by
LOW
HIGH
drag to orbit · scroll to zoom
Max height
ft
Floor area ratio
Lot coverage
%
Setbacks (F / S / R)
ft
Parking
/unit
Max density
du/ac
Min lot size
sf
Copy zoning profile
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District Category Height FAR Coverage Setbacks Parking Density Min lot Overlays

Research status

Data quality

55%completeness6 confirmed38 partial3 not found
Documented gaps
  • Chapter 13 §-level citations for R-1/R-2/R-3/R-4/R-1S/RT-1/RT-2/C-1/C-2/C-3/I-1/I-2 dimensional standards — requires browser-nav of municipalcodeonline SPA, direct PDF from City Hall, or Planning Dept contact (507-359-0504)
  • R-1S, RT-1, RT-2 district SEMANTICS (what exactly differentiates them from R-1/R-3) — not captured
  • PRB (Parks & Recreation Buffer) overlay formal existence as a Chapter 13 section — under_review; may be comprehensive-plan policy rather than coded overlay
  • FP overlay BFE freeboard, floodway no-fill specifics, compensatory storage formula — partial (MN NFIP defaults used)
  • AS overlay Part 77 surface elevations for KULM approach/departure corridors — partial
  • HD overlay Architectural Review Committee name, review timeline, demolition-threshold findings — partial
  • Specific duplex/triplex minimum lot size under MN SF 4/HF 1 as implemented in New Ulm's R-1/R-2/R-1S — partial (state cap is the SF minimum)
  • Parking ratios by land use (non-residential) — not captured
  • Population 13,522 and county population 24,881 figures carried from v1 without re-verifying against 2020 Census primary source this pass

Known issues

schema:v1-legacypriority:lowcohort:needs-dom-retrievalblocker:municipalcodeonlinedata:gaps-present

Other cities in this state

Nearest-alphabetical profiles. Click through to compare zoning patterns side-by-side.