City of Cedar Rapids

Overview

The City of Cedar Rapids currently has three Design Review Overlay Districts. These districts are located in core area neighborhoods where redevelopment is occurring. The overlay districts create:

• Uniform development standards which encourage high quality infill development appropriate for an urban setting.
• A Design Review Technical Advisory Committee comprised of neighborhood stakeholders which reviews and provides comments on proposed development.

• Site Plan Review

• Rezoning

• Preliminary Plat

• Variance

• Conditional Use

• Building permits (which change the exterior of a structure)

• Sign Permits (where a new sign or the size of a sign is proposed)

• Concept or Pre-Application Review (optional, though highly encouraged)

Overlay district standards do not apply to single or two-family construction.

Overlay Districts

• Czech Bohemia Overlay District (CB-O) | Map | Czech Bohemia Standards

• Ellis Area Overlay District (EA-O) | Map | Ellis Area Standards

• Kingston Village Overlay District (KV-O) | Map | Kingston Village Standards

• MedQuarter Overlay District (MQ-O) | Map | MedQuarter Standards

Each overlay district has a Design Review Technical Advisory Committee (DRTAC) established to review. The Committee members for each are listed below.

Review Process

There is no application for design review by a DRTAC.  Cases are forwarded to the committees by Building Services or Development Services Staff.  

For projects located within an Overlay District, please apply for review as you would for a project located anywhere in Cedar Rapids.  

DRTAC meetings are typically held on Monday afternoons at 4:00 p.m. as needed. For more information please refer to the Overlay District Process and Schedule.

If you have questions about the Design Review process or Overlay District standards, you may contact Community Development at (319) 286-5041 or communitydevelopment@cedar-rapids.org.

For information on developing in Cedar Rapids, please visit Development Services