The University of Minnesota FarmHouse Fraternity is planning to construct a new three-story home to replace the 1960s-era building at 1505 Cleveland Ave., across from the St. Paul Campus. FarmHouse representatives attended the Sept. 3 Land Use Committee meeting to outline their plans.
The new 18,700-square-foot building will provide living space for 44 fraternity members, a housemother suite and an elevator to help with accessibility. The current building is 9,600 square feet. The new building would also address problems the current building has had with the water tower at Dudley and Cleveland avenues, which leaks water into the building when it is periodically drained by the City of St. Paul.
The project would allow for 10 parking spaces (three spaces more than the current parking) off the alley and parking for bicycles.
The fraternity will be asking for variances from the City of St. Paul on the front yard setback on Cleveland Avenue (the proposed covered porch may project 6 feet into the required setback), on the side yard setbacks (20 feet is required, but the south-side existing setback is currently 10 feet and the proposal is to leave it at 10 feet; the Dudley Avenue side is proposed to be set back 37 feet), lot coverage (the maximum allowed coverage for the house excluding a porch is 4,328 square feet; the proposed coverage is 4,688 square feet) and on the building’s height. The maximum height for a three-story home is 40 feet and the project’s proposed height is 45 feet.
The project will require reviews from the city’s zoning committing and planning commission before being approved by the St. Paul City Council.
The fraternity hosted a barbecue for neighbors to learn about the project on Sept. 9. To learn more about the project go to www.minnesotafh.org/building-project.
