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<br />Staff and the Planning Commission are recommending additional modifications to <br />Article 37 (Accessory Dwelling Units) not strictly mandated by State Law. These <br />amendments are based on issues that have arisen in the past year and further <br />information. Changes to Article 30 (Off-Street Parking and Loading), Section 36.5 <br />(Accessory Building) and Section 33.13 (Nonconforming Parking-Single Family <br />Residential) are also recommended for amendments to be consistent with these <br />changes. <br /> <br />ANALYSIS <br />Additional Modifications to Accessory Dwelling Unit Restrictions (Article 37) – <br />While not specifically required by State law, staff and the Planning Commission <br />recommend two additional changes to the ordinance to increase flexibility and further <br />encourage accessory dwelling units. <br /> <br />ADU Size - The State has created ADU size maximums of 1,200 square feet or 50 <br />percent of existing living area of the main home, though it allows cities to set their own <br />minimum and maximum sizes. The City currently has a tiered structure for unit size, <br />allowing bonus square footage for accessible units and lots of 10,000 sq. ft. or more in <br />the R-1 and R-H zoning districts. The current basic restriction is 640 sq. ft., <br />approximately the size of a studio apartment. <br /> <br />Staff is recommending an increase of 60 sq. ft., while allowing 100 sq. ft. bonus square <br />footage for accessible units. The 700 sq. ft. minimum is consistent with the size a one- <br />bedroom apartment. This expansion is keeping with the State’s intent to not burden the <br />development of ADUs and provides significant incentive to design accessible units that <br />could meet the needs of disabled residents. <br /> <br />Recommendation: Increase the maximum ADU size to the following: <br />· 700 sq. ft. for all ADUs <br />· 800 sq. ft. for accessible ADUs <br />· 900 sq. ft. for R1 and RH properties in 10,000 sq. ft. or more. <br /> <br />Staff also recommends removing the restriction on the number of bedrooms, as the <br />square footage limitation ensures that the unit is secondary to the main unit and the <br />building code ensures certain minimum sizes for bedrooms. <br /> <br />Modifications to Other Areas of the Zoning Ordinance: The State law allows <br />accessory dwelling units in configurations that are not currently allowed for other home <br />additions. With the new changes, in certain cases it would be easier to put in an <br />accessory dwelling unit than it would be to add a bedroom. For example, the City would <br />not allow conversion of a garage into a bedroom without replacing the covered parking. <br />Also, the addition of a fifth bedroom requires a third covered parking space – often a <br />significant challenge due to the lot width constraints and existing floor plans. However, <br />with the new law, an accessory dwelling unit would require no additional parking, and <br />8.B. - Page 4