Attorney Jake Steen testified to the Minnesota House’s Housing Finance and Policy Committee on April 2, 2025 in favor of a bill that would make housing in Minnesota more affordable by addressing the use of Planned Unit Developments (PUDs). The bill proposes that municipalities should not require a PUD agreement if the proposed residential community already complies with the city’s zoning ordinance. This would help prevent duplicative efforts in the development of single-family homes in Minnesota.

Steen, a former city planner and chair of Larkin Hoffman's Real Estate and Land Use Department, testified on behalf of Housing First Minnesota in favor of the bill. Steen's testimony noted that while PUDs have traditionally been used sparingly, they have recently become standard practice in many cities due to lofty and unrealistic zoning restrictions, which force developers into the PUD process. He argued that these planned unit developments can make development of housing more difficult to achieve and force developers into cumbersome processes that can impose additional costs on developers, driving up the cost of homes for would-be buyers. The bill was introduced by Representative Jim Nash, as one of many bipartisan bills brought forward this session in an effort to increase the available housing stock in the state and make housing affordable for all Minnesotans. 

Click here to watch Steen’s full testimony: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFyrUlQU5AU