Alexandria residents will soon be able to build a separate living space for granny in their backyard.
At Saturday’s meeting, City Council approved a zoning text amendment for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) with some changes to the text City staff originally provided. The Planning Commission had unanimously recommended approval of the zoning text amendment without changes on Jan. 5.
15 members of the public testified at the meeting, eight in favor of the ADU zoning text amendment, and seven who wanted to see significant changes made to the amendment before approval.
The most commonly voiced concerns included setbacks of 3 feet or less with the ability of ADUs to reach heights of 20 feet, short-term rental allowances, and the last-minute elimination of an owner-occupancy requirement.
Members of the public and City Council members questioned if the ADUs would effectively serve the policy’s goal of providing more affordable housing options for workforce, aging and intergenerational populations. They seem contradictory to the fourth goal of providing income support for Alexandria homeowners, who can make more money offering short-term rentals through sites like Airbnb than from long-term rentals.
Some speakers, including Councilman John Chapman, brought up the concern of having a one-size-fits all approach to ADUs. Alexandria has a variety of unique neighborhoods, some of which have flooding, parking, density and other issues that could be exacerbated by the construction of ADUs under the proposed policy.
“I really want us to do this and do this right. For council in the future to have to probably come back and address things as we see more ADUs pop up and communities have concerns, I don’t think is right and fair if we have the opportunity to really address this,” said Chapman.
Following a lengthy discussion period, Councilman Mo Seifeldein initiated a motion to approve the ADU zoning text amendment with certain stipulations. Chapman seconded the motion. The following stipulations were finally incorporated with the approval:
- A prohibition against exclusive use for short-term rentals.
- Owner-occupancy requirement at time of application and construction of the ADU, meaning the owner must live on site.
- Requirement for notice to be given to neighbors of ADU construction.
- A tiered setback requirement. Buildings under 13.5 feet in height only require a 1 foot setback, buildings between 13.5 feet and 16 feet require a 2.5 foot setback and structures between 16-20 feet require a 5 foot setback.
- City Council will revisit ADU policy in 18 months.
An administrative permit fee between $75-$100 will be charged for ADU permit but will not be part of the text amendment to allow for it to change without requiring an amendment.
The motion passed 6-1 with Councilwoman Amy Jackson opposed.
