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Page 11 of 17 <br />City of Redwood City 1017 Middlefield Road, Redwood City, CA. 94063 Tel: 650-780-7000 www.redwoodcity.org <br />permitting of ADUs. In addition, jurisdictions are required to send their ADU ordinances to <br />the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) for confirmation <br />that they comply with State law; HCD will request amendments of the local ADU Ordinance <br />if it is not found to be compliant with State law. The State legislature updates State ADU <br />law annually and allows a limited window between when State bills are signed in the Fall <br />and when the State laws go into effect at the beginning of the following year for the City to <br />update its Zoning Code and remain compliant with State ADU law. If a local jurisdiction’s <br />ADU ordinance fails to comply with State law, HCD could declare the ordinance to be void. <br />Given the ongoing changes to State law and the limited discretion that State law provides <br />to the City to evaluate and approve ADU applications, staff recommends revising the City’s <br />ADU Ordinance to defer to State law to ensure ongoing compliance. For reference, the <br />following summarizes recent updates to State law: <br />1.Number of Detached ADUs - Previously, State law required jurisdictions to allow up to <br />two detached ADUs when paired with a multifamily building. Changes to State law now <br />require jurisdictions to allow up to eight (8) detached ADUs on a multifamily site. <br />2.Appeal of Incompleteness or Denial Determination - State ADU law requires jurisdictions <br />within 15 days of receipt of an ADU application to provide a written determination on <br />whether or not an applicant has provided all of the required application submittal <br />materials necessary, (i.e. whether an application is complete or incomplete) for the <br />jurisdiction to be able to start review of the ADU application’s compliance with applicable <br />development standards. State law has been updated to require jurisdictions to allow <br />appeals of determinations of incompleteness or application denials to a higher governing <br />body, in this case, the Planning Commission. <br />3.JADU Owner Occupancy – Changes to State law now clarify that owner occupancy is not <br />required to build a JADU if independent sanitation facilities are provided for the JADU. <br />Owner occupancy would still be required if a JADU shares sanitation facilities with the <br />primary dwelling. <br />4.Unpermitted ADUs - A recent State law update requires jurisdictions to allow for an <br />unpermitted ADU constructed prior to January 1, 2020, to be permitted if it meets specific <br />Health and Safety Code standards. The ADU would not be required to comply fully with <br />the Building Code and would not be required to pay any impact, utility connection, or <br />utility capacity fees. <br />5.Prohibit Short-Term Rentals in JADUs - Recent updates to State law clarify that short- <br />term rentals are not allowed in JADUs. <br />6.Floor Area Measurement - Recent updates to State law clarify that the measurement of <br />allowable maximum square footage for an ADU is to be measured using interior livable <br />space, excluding exterior walls. <br />b.Short-Term Rentals – The City has experienced challenges in enforcing short-term rental <br />regulations, in particular regulations requiring that short-term rental hosts reside in the <br />8.B. - Page 11 of 212 <br />326