Page 42 - Green Builder Magazine May-June 2019 Issue

drawings. This expense easily totals thousands of dollars, something
that a professional developer have come to expect. An amateur
homeowner, on the other hand, would probably throw in the towel.
“This type of development uncertainty deters them from initially
even pursuing the idea,” Peterson says. “In what other circumstances
would a homeowner be forced to spend [thousands] on an application
where permission may not be granted?”
In addition to the three “poison pill regulations,” there are the
typical development standards faced by all homebuilders, which
can hinder ADUs: setbacks, size limits, minimum lot sizes, structural
forms, sewer and water connections, and development fee costs.
“Rules like these are so restrictive that it would be remarkable if any
resident tried to develop a permitted ADU,” Peterson notes.
But not every city agrees in poison pills.

WHERE REFORM’S BECOMING THE NORM
ADUs were originally viewed as a way to ease a housing crunch
in many of the fastest growing—and expensive—areas. Cities like
CREDIT: RAINBOW VALLEY CONSTRUCTION British Columbia, made ADUs an option for homeowners, although
Portland, Ore., Santa Cruz, Calif., Austin, Texas, and Vancouver,

they didn’t take o at rst. Changes in building regulations, along
with growing word of mouth and promotional e orts, have made
them a bit more popular. But they’re still a miniscule part of the

Peterson has seen the di erence. When he began his housing
Time to grow up. Accessory Dwelling Units are slowly gaining acceptance housing market.
with jurisdictions nationwide, as laws restricting their construction are project in 2010, his was one of only 86 such permits Portland issued
eliminated or relaxed. that year—and Portland was one of the less-restrictive cities. But by
2016, the annual number had grown to 615. The di erence? The city
PACKING IT IN eliminated development impact fees, which cut the cost of building
An o -street parking requirement basically mandates that there be a
parking space available on or near the property for the occupant of
the ADU. Some cities require as many as three covered spaces. Others
require any parking spaces to be side by side, or capable of two-car
tandem (end-to-end) parking. “For many lots where you would want
to build an ADU, adding an additional 9-by-18-foot parking space is
impossible, nearly impossible or highly undesirable,” Peterson writes.
“Fitting two or three parking spaces is harder still.”
Adam Peterson, an architect with Muddy River Design in Bend,
Ore., recalls a time when he had to con gure a property to t ve
parking spaces for one single-family house with an ADU. “It was a
2,000-square-foot house with an ADU above the attached garage,” he
notes. “It was on an improved alleyway, so it was a challenge with the
planning department to make all of the parking spaces work. They
required two in the garage, two outside the garage for the house, and
then one o to the side for the ADU. So there’s no yard, because it
has to be hardscaped for that parking stall.”

YES YOU CAN’T
The conditional/discretionary review or conditional-use permit allows
a property owner to ask the city for permission to use a property in CREDIT JEFFREY FREEMAN
a speci c way. But it does not necessarily grant the owner the right
to build anything on it. The lengthy process can require neighbor
noti cation, a public hearing, and written and oral justi cation. It can Make no mistake. There are distinct differences between ADUs and tiny
also result in a lot of lost money upfront. For example, there are non- houses, such as the latter typically being built on wheels for easy
refundable permit fees, as well as the costs of site plans and elevation transport.

40 GREEN BUILDER May/June 2019 www.greenbuildermedia.com

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