Agenda Packet 2-20-19 Work Session

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Eugene Housing Tools & Strategies Evaluation 33 Recommendations on ADUs The factors limiting ADU production in Eugene are multi-faceted, and there is no one silver bullet that alone would better support their development. To encourage ADU production, the City of Eugene would need to take a number of steps, depending on the political appetite for increasing their supply. Options include adjusting the land use code and the structure of SDCs and other city fees as they apply to ADUs, increasing community outreach and education efforts regarding ADUs, and exploring ways to support applicants trying to build ADUs, who typically are preempted from taking advantage of traditional financing mechanisms available to professional developers. Specific options include:  Adjust Lot Size Requirements: The median lot size for a single-family home in Eugene is approximately one-fifth of an acre, or 8,430 square feet, which is considered well-suited to accommodate an ADU. After eliminating the 1,470 single-family lots that may be too small to incorporate an ADU, and the 73 ADUs that have been permitted since 2008, crafting policies to encourage ADUs on all single-family lots could potentially add 43,344 units to Eugene’s housing stock.32 While it is unlikely, of course, that every homeowner that is able would choose to build an ADU, the sheer number of potential ADUs points to the great impact ADU-supportive policy could have. If owners of just five percent of potential ADU lots were to build one, the number of units added would be 2,150, which is equivalent to about one-third of all dwelling units permitted in Eugene from 2008 through 2017.  Reduce Costs: The City of Eugene should consider scaling or reducing SDCs for ADUs. Reduced SDCs would reflect the fact that ADUs typically have lower occupancy than single family detached homes and that small-scale infill development capitalizes on existing infrastructure rather than requiring system expansions.  Improve Site Design Flexibility: In cities like Eugene where a majority of residential lots are occupied by detached single-family homes, ADU-supportive policy can substantially increase the housing stock if there is a clear path to build them. If Eugene wants to see more ADUs developed, then ADU requirements need to be more flexible. For example, under current requirements it’s very difficult to convert a portion of an existing building into an accessory unit, because it’s typical that the existing building does not follow the requirements and there is no grandfathering of existing conditions or flexibility with this. Also, building height requirements do not translate well to sloped lots, making it very cumbersome for homeowners of these lots to incorporate ADUs. The requirement that ADUs have a minimum of one off-street parking space can impede site design possibilities and may make lots that could easily accommodate ADUs otherwise ineligible from doing so. The maximum square footage and bedroom count regulations are not context-sensitive and can be overly restrictive depending on the lot size.  Eliminate Owner Occupancy Requirement: The owner occupancy requirement should be eliminated. Almost one-quarter of single-family detached units are not occupied by the property owner. This requirement is burdensome and discriminatory against renter households, which make up over half of all households in Eugene. 32 While ADU development standards vary between municipalities, there are examples of well-designed ADUs on lots as small as 4,000 square feet. There are 1,470 lots that are smaller than 4,000 square feet, which may be considered too small to accommodate an ADU. February 20, 2019, Work Session – Item 1