Expanding housing opportunities in the city limits

7/4/15, 5:43 PM

Expanding housing opportunities in the city limits

Alan Glines , GUEST COLUMNIST

10:15 a.m. EDT June 26, 2015

With the lack of affordable rental housing, the City of Asheville is working toward solutions. On June 23, City
Council adopted updated regulations in its Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) to provide a path toward
creation of more housing options.
Council voted to allow more flexibility in the building of accessory dwelling units or ADUs in Asheville.
What is an ADU? These are the garage, basement or attic apartments located in neighborhoods throughout the
city. Sometimes an ADU is provided as a smaller detached cottage behind the primary dwelling.
The addition of ADUs may expand housing options to residents classified as "rent burdened." These are renters who spend 30 percent (or more) of their
income on housing costs alone. The thinking is if you can increase the housing supply you can take some of the pressure off the affordable housing
problem. More units offer more options and variety in pricing and reduce the rental housing shortfall overall.
Because of Asheville's affordable housing crisis, City Council has asked staff to look for more affordable housing options for our residents.
A recent Housing Needs Assessment (the Bowen Report released in January 2015) shows Asheville's housing market has less than a 1% vacancy rate
for all rental housing throughout the city. Because of this limited availability, the city's Affordable Housing Advisory Committee recommended that city
planners review the UDO and look for ways to remove barriers to the creation of additional residential units.
The recent changes focused on ADU requirements to encourage this housing option because it has a smaller impact on neighborhoods. For those who
may not know, the UDO is a collection of standards that specify allowable uses, building sizes and setbacks and other development requirements.
ADUs are not new to Asheville. They've been around for years. In fact, they were mentioned in 1948 when the city's first zoning ordinance was adopted.
That's because by then they were already a part of the community fabric and were found in residential areas throughout Asheville.
The rules were further clarified through the adoption of the UDO in 1997 when size limitations were introduced for the first time.
The new changes provide for more flexibility in ADU size, allowing for structures that could serve the needs of a family, not just a couple or single person.
The amendment to the ADU ordinance focused on the following issues:
Size: Detached ADUs (garage apartment or cottage) may not be larger than 800 square feet or 70 percent of the size of the primary dwelling unit;
attached ADUs (within the same structure as the primary dwelling, basement or attic for example) may not exceed 1,000 square feet or 70 percent of the
size of the primary dwelling unit.
Height: Detached ADUs may not be taller than 25 feet; attached ADUs follow the height restrictions for the primary dwelling unit since they are a part of
the primary residential structure.
Parking: One space required* for the ADU, provided at the side or rear of the primary dwelling (*for locations where residential parking is specified in the
UDO).
Number: No more than one ADU allowed on a residential lot.
As planners, we enjoy considering citizen feedback when we make policy recommendations to City Council. As we drafted the ADU changes, staff
followed up with the Coalition of Asheville Neighborhoods, providing background on the project and getting their feedback. We presented this concept at
the City Manager's Development Forum in May. Staffers met with both the Planning and Economic Development Committee and the Housing and
Community Development Committee to share drafts of the proposal.

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Expanding housing opportunities in the city limits

7/4/15, 5:43 PM

The Planning and Zoning Commission reviewed the changes to the UDO at its June 3 meeting. Along the way, staff refined the proposal to address
concerns raised with each group.
To roll out the changes, we're taking a "road show" approach. That is we will come make presentations before civic and neighborhood groups to outline
the changes and answer questions. Just call Neighborhood Services Coordinator Marsha Stickford at 828-259-5506 or email mstickford@ashevillenc.gov
(mailto:mstickford@ashevillenc.gov) to set up a road show for your group.
Look for more information by the end of this week at www.ashevillenc.gov/projects (http://www.ashevillenc.gov/projects).
Alan Glines is interim planning director for the City of Asheville.

ADU Presentation to City Council (https://www.scribd.com/doc/269680544/ADUPresentation-to-City-Council)

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