Background and Purpose
In 2001, the Metropolitan Council initiated the Plat Monitoring Program (Program) with input from the Builders Association of the Twin Cities (BATC) and MetroCities (formerly the Association of Metropolitan Municipalities). The program started with 12 volunteer communities, and now includes 45 communities.
The purpose of the Program is to track and monitor residential development patterns on the region’s developing edge, including the number of units and acres platted, the mix of single-family and multi-family housing, land consumption, and average residential density.
Participating communities complete an annual summary worksheet and submit copies of plats approved during the calendar year. This information allows the Council to assess the available land supply in participating communities and monitor the density of new development for consistency with Council policies. Communities also receive credit for residential plats meeting the Council’s density policy. This credit gives them flexibility to approve plats at lower residential densities within the MUSA, so long as the overall net density remains above 3 units per acre.
Plat Monitoring in 2022
From 2000 to 2022, participant communities platted an average of 5,968 single-family and multi-family housing units each year. After peaking in 2003 with over 10,000 housing units platted, this number declined until 2009 when participants platted only 286 total units. This was the lowest number of units recorded for a single year in the history of the Program. Since 2009, participant communities have seen an overall increase in the number of platted units. In 2022, communities continued this trend by recording a total of 151 plats consisting of 11,187 housing units.
For more information regarding the 2022 Report and presentation to the Community Development Committee, please see the links below: