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Draft Memorandum September 15, 2017 <br />Redwood City Live/Work Development Feasibility Page 3 <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />While the live/work concept is found in numerous Bay Area jurisdictions, design requirements, <br />allowable uses, and other elements vary from one city to the next. Table 1 below documents <br />how select Bay Area cities choose to define live/work land uses within their respective zoning <br />ordinances. <br />Table 1 Live/Work Definitions (Select Bay Area Cities) <br /> <br />There are a variety of reasons why cities choose to write live/work into their zoning ordinances. <br />The list below includes many, albeit not all, of the inter-related factors that lead cities to allow, <br />encourage, and/or zone for live/work space. <br />Accommodate Live/Work spaces occurring organically <br />In many cases, the live/work concept appears organically within the urban environment as <br />individuals seek alternative living arrangements in areas that are traditionally non-residential. An <br />example of this may be an artist choosing to live in an industrial building that doubles as their <br />work space. A City may choose to permit live/work within these zones in order to regulate these <br />activities which were previously prohibited. Through regulation, cities can subsequently ensure <br />that these structures are safe for both commercial and residential purposes. <br />To advance traffic reduction goals <br />Individuals that occupy a live/work unit do not have to commute daily to their commercial <br />activities; instead, they are able to work on-site which can both reduce transportation service <br />demands and greenhouse gas emissions. <br />City Definition / Intent <br />Redwood City <br />"Live/work environments combine residential occupancy with commercial or light industrial activity <br />in the same building space, generally with the resident using the combined or adjacent workspace <br />for his or her business. Typical uses include artist lofts, studio spaces, small offices, and similar <br />low-intensity uses. Development generally is low to moderate in scale." <br />Oakland <br />"A room or suite of rooms that are internally connected maintaining a common household that <br />includes: (a) cooking space and sanitary facilities that satisfy theprovisions of other applicable <br />codes; and (b) adequate working space reserved for, and regularly used by, one or more persons <br />residing therein. A Live/Work unit is intended to accommodate both residential and nonresidential <br />activities. <br />Milpitas <br />"A live/work unit is defined as a single unit (e.g., studio, loft, or one bedroom) consisting of both a <br />commercial/office and a residential component that is occupied by the same resident. The <br />live/work unit shall be the primary dwelling of the occupant." <br />Sunnyvale <br />"A live/work unit is defined as a single unit consisting of both a commercial/office and a residential <br />component that is occupied by the same resident. The live/work unit shall be the primary dwelling <br />of the occupant." <br />Palo Alto <br />"A rental or ownership unit comprised of both living space and work area, with the living space <br />occupying a minimum of 60% of the total gross floor area of the unit, and such that the resident of <br />the living space is the owner/operator of the work area." <br />Emeryville <br />"A unit that combines a work space and incidental residential occupancy that is occupied and <br />used by a single household in a structure that has been constructed for such use or is converted <br />from commercial or industrial use and altered to accommodate residential occupany and work <br />activity" <br />Source: Definitions for live/work units have been retrieved from each city's respecitve zoning code.