The Bloomington Planning Commission unanimously approved the city's annual Miscellaneous Issues Ordinance during its October 23 meeting, advancing a package of code cleanup items and policy changes to the City Council for final consideration.

The ordinance contains 25 cleanup items addressing grammatical errors and technical corrections, along with six policy changes. Key policy amendments include updated exterior lighting requirements, allowances for multifamily residential uses in four zoning districts, and revised garage height limits allowing accessory structures up to 15 feet when exceeding the height of the principal dwelling.

The commission also removed a requirement for architectural unity among commercial buildings on the same site, a change Commissioner Cunningham strongly supported. "We've seen development applications come before us and we've had to ask the applicant to change because they wanted to build what they would consider a modern building but because of the code they have to actually meet the standards of the buildings that are already there," he said.

In a separate study session, the commission reviewed proposed changes to the city's Official Building Height Map, which would increase allowable building heights in medium and high-density residential areas and near major intersections. Staff proposed raising height limits from the current two-story, 40-foot maximum to three stories or 50 feet in medium-density areas, with higher limits near planning nodes like Old Cedar Avenue and Lyndale Avenue intersections.

Commissioners expressed support for the height increases but recommended eliminating story limits in favor of footage-only regulations. They also suggested exempting rooftop equipment and elevator penthouses from height calculations. The height map study will be presented to the City Council on November 17, with public hearings on any ordinance changes planned for late December.