Planning staff outlines RM zoning rewrite, citing moratorium and 'missing middle' goals

Planning staff presented an initial framework May 21 for rewriting Murray’s multifamily (RM) zoning and the R210 two‑family standard, citing a temporary land‑use ordinance the city council adopted April 21 that paused multifamily applications while the city updates standards.

"The city council on April, I think exactly a month, April 21st passed a temporary land use ordinance, which is pretty much a moratorium on all multifamily zones," staff member Ruth Ruok told commissioners, explaining the pause gives staff time to rewrite code provisions that do not work well for infill redevelopment. Ruok identified recurring problems: inconsistent spacing between buildings, inadequate pedestrian and bicycle circulation, setbacks that are hard to measure on irregular lots, minimal or token open space, and building heights next to single‑family zones.

Staff framed the rewrite around 'missing middle' housing types — duplexes, triplexes, cottage courts and townhomes — and recommended consolidating RM10/15/20/25 and R210 into a single, streamlined chapter with clearer form‑based guidance for massing, new minimum lot widths, and parking metrics keyed to bedroom count rather than a flat 2.5‑spaces-per‑unit rule. Ruok also described a potential density bonus that would allow additional units if developers recorded deed restrictions reserving a share of units for owner‑occupancy for a set period (for example, additional units in exchange for 10 years of owner‑occupancy restrictions).

Commissioners pressed staff on enforceability (how deed restrictions and CCRs would be monitored and what penalties would apply), where higher density would be appropriate and how the revised rules would protect adjacent single‑family neighborhoods. Staff said enforcement details (fine structure and deed restrictions) remain to be worked out and reiterated that the proposed changes would not automatically rezone properties; they would rewrite the standards that apply within existing RM districts and help guide future rezoning discussions.

Ruok said the next steps include another commission workshop in June, a Planning Commission public hearing set for July 16, and an anticipated city council adoption target of Sept. 1. Staff emphasized the moratorium’s purpose: to avoid approving projects under suboptimal standards that could set undesirable precedents during a period of active redevelopment interest.