City officials think they might have hit a upon the formula for reaching consensus on the contentious issue of accessory dwellings, also known as mother-in-law apartments and alley cottages.
“If you stick with owner occupancy, strong enforcement and a no-lot-size minimum for south of College (Drive), you probably won’t have marathon (public) hearings,” said Greg Hoch, Durango’s director of community development, at the end of a three-hour joint session of the Planning Commission and City Council on Tuesday.
Officials worked out the last details of allowing accessory dwellings as well as legalizing existing accessory dwellings because the city’s current code does not address them.
The proposal now will go to public hearings Monday with the Planning Commission and again Oct. 15 with the City Council.
Accessory dwellings represent just a few pages of the proposed 500-page Land Use Development Code, but officials have decided to break it out as a separate issue because it has been so controversial.
While supporters want to create more opportunities for housing as well as income, critics are afraid that a green light for accessory dwellings will result in a proliferation of substandard rentals, parking congestion and a loss of privacy in the neighborhoods.
To placate critics, officials have promised strong code enforcement. On Tuesday, councilors Dick White and Sweetie Marbury suggested the city should discuss adding a third code enforcement officer for 2014 during upcoming budget workshops.
As a quality-control measure supported by those who fear substandard housing, officials also decided to reinsert an owner-occupancy requirement, or requiring the owner of the property to live in either the main house or the subordinate, accessory dwelling.
City staff members did not think owner-occupancy would be so hard to enforce because they could check the address of the person paying the property taxes.
To make the requirement more palatable, the city would allow a hardship exception in cases where an owner needs to move out of town as well as a waiver for existing accessory dwellings if the owners register with the city and otherwise follow the code.
For the sake of starting out with a modest proposal for accessory dwellings, the city for now has decided to allow them only in the original neighborhoods just east of downtown and along the residential avenues that run parallel to north Main.
Because accessory dwellings have gotten such a mixed reaction in the Animas City neighborhood, the city wants to survey that area before allowing them there. Under the land code, Animas City is considered to be the neighborhood east of the river and north of 29th Street.
In the avenues that run parallel to downtown, they would be limited to lot sizes that are a minimum of 7,000 square feet.
Accessory dwellings also would be limited to lot sizes that are a minimum of 5,000 square feet in the neighborhood east of downtown, except south of College Drive where there would be no lot-size requirement.
Owners still would have to comply with other regulations, such as requirements for parking or green space, before they would be allowed to build an accessory dwelling.
Officials decided to make an exception for south of College because this neighborhood has less of a parking issue. It also has a different character with its apartments, condominiums and affordable housing.
The residents there also have been very supportive of accessory dwellings.
White also thought the neighborhood south of College Drive would make for a “living experiment” to test the need for lot-size requirements.
Under the proposed schedule, the City Council could adopt the land code, including new accessory dwelling regulations, in November. But when the code might go into effect is up in the air because of the complexities of the issues.
jhaug@durangoherald.com
