Solvang’s housing stock will be bolstered by accessory dwelling units (ADUs) for the foreseeable future, but first the city must grapple with how best to regulate them.
“This is a big discussion happening all around the United States,” said Holly Owen, the city’s Planning and Community Development director. Owen told City Council members on Sept. 24 that multiple ADUs could already be found throughout the community but that more were sure to come due to a change in state law.
SB 1069 went into effect in January of this year and permits ADUs in all jurisdictions and specified what type of limitations can be placed on the buildings. The state defines an ADU as “an attached or detached residential dwelling unit which provides complete independent living facilities for one or more persons.”
It is for that reason that Owen brought forward a series of methods to help regulate how the structures are built, look, and maintained.
“We just want to make sure they’re compatible with existing neighborhoods,” she said, adding that any ordinance the council passed could get superseded by higher laws.
“It is a moving target, and as time goes by, precedent and legal cases will set the path for what we can and cannot do for this type of housing,” Owen explained. “That changes all the time but at some point you just have to draw the line in the sand and say, ‘Let’s move forward with our ordinance and if we have to revise because of some future legislation, well then so be it.’”
No action was taken at the meeting. Council directed staff to look at several issues pertaining to the units, including the impact of connecting new structures to the city’s sewer and water systems. The matter is expected to be addressed within the next month.
Solvang staff approved only six ADUs in the past year, a sign that owners are waiting to see what the city does before going through a formal approval process, according to Owen.
One requirement already in place by the city is for owners of a property with a house and ADU to sign a written agreement saying they will live in at least one of the structures.
“The reason for that I think is for those of us who believe that the residential neighborhoods serve first and foremost the citizens who pay taxes here, who shop here, who vote here, and who have an investment in the community,” Owen said.
She told the council that if the city was not diligent in keeping track of its housing stock, it could end up like Healdsburg in Sonoma County, where a large portion of residential units were snapped up by investors and are now vacation and long-term rentals.
“What you have [there] is a hollowing out of your community,” Owen said. “But what you want for a strong, stable, healthy, diverse community is places to live for young and old people, and families who have investments in it.”
This article appears in Sep 27 – Oct 4, 2018.
