Since 2007, the City of Saint Paul has explored the future of the Ford Site.  Below are information and links about the work done to date and what’s to come.  The results of this work will inform the public, the Ford Site Planning Task Force, developers and policy makers about the opportunities, impacts, and alternatives for redevelopment.

Identification of Vision, Goals, and Five Redevelopment Scenarios (2007)
In 2007, a consultant team hired by the City of Saint Paul worked with the Ford Site Planning Task Force, stakeholders, and the public to identify a general vision and goals for the site and to create alternative development scenarios for a potentially redeveloped Ford site.  This work is described in the Phase I Summary Report: 5 Major Development Scenarios, and all meeting information is provided in this table. The five scenarios intentionally represent a wide range of distinctive reuse options, and were developed for the purposes of analyzing the benefits and impacts of different land use and infrastructure choices. 

• Scenario 1: Primary Reuse for Industry
• Scenario 2: Mixed Use - Light Industrial / Flex Tech
• Scenario 3: Mixed Use - Office / Institutional Campus
• Scenario 4: Mixed Use - Urban Village
• Scenario 5: High Density Urban Transit Village

• Descriptive Matrix of the Five Scenarios
• Job Analysis of the Five Scenarios
• Traffic Charts of the Five Scenarios

Ford Site Zoning Study (2012-13)

It’s critical that the City of Saint Paul ensure it has the proper tools, including zoning, at its disposal to efficiently and effectively facilitate site redevelopment that reflects the comprehensive and ambitious vision and goals for the Ford site.  The Ford Site Zoning Framework Study* will consider whether or not the City’s current zoning districts can effectively provide for:

    1. the range and mix of uses and scale of development contemplated in the five redevelopment scenarios;

    2. economic, social and environmental sustainability that relates to the surrounding neighborhood; and 

    3. flexibility to respond to market changes that occur over the years it takes to redevelop the site.


Consultants from SEH, Cornejo Consulting and DPZ & Company are conducting the study and sharing information with the Ford Task Force.   A final report to the Planning Commission will detail the analysis and recommend potential zoning tools for the site. City staff will subsequently work with policy makers to determine if any of the recommendations contained in the report should be pursued, and if so, the timing for doing so. 

Three presentations were made by the consultant team to the Ford Site Planning Task Force describing the Ford Zoning Study process, interim findings, and evaluation of zoning approaches that will inform the final report.

*Financing for this project was provided by the Metropolitan Council Metropolitan Livable Communities Fund.

Alternative Urban Areawide Review - AUAR (2015)
An AUAR is similar to an Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW) for multiple development scenarios on the same property and typically takes 12 months to complete.  The City of Saint Paul is expected to request an AUAR, paid for by the property owner, to be conducted on the redevelopment scenarios once the site environmental assessment is nearly complete and a prospective developer is identified.   The AUAR will provide analyses that inform the community, developers and decisions makers about potential environmental and traffic impacts of redevelopment and mitigation measures that may be needed in response. 

Master Developer Search (2015)
Ford plans to issue a Request for Proposals in mid-2014, represented by broker CB Richard Ellis.