For three years, the Planning and Development Department has been working with the Livable Places Action Committee (LPAC) to update portions of the City’s development codes to provide a wider variety of homes at a wider variety of price-points. They focus on affordability, equity, and walkability. These changes will have a positive and long-lasting effect on how our city grows and develops for years to come.
The proposed updates to Chapter 26 Article VIII (Off-Street Parking and Loading) include parking reductions for smaller homes that are less than 1,500 SF; market-based parking not included or under consideration. The Chapter 26 amendments are a companion item to the Chapter 42 amendments on this agenda. Both sets of housing amendments work together to scale back some of the rules that increase development costs and encourage more neighborhood-focused homes.
Chapter 26 amendments are as follows:
- Parking will be calculated based on the size of the unit rather than the number of bedrooms for small-scale rental properties. Single family homes are still required to provide two parking spaces except for homes less than 1,500 SF that meet narrowly defined criteria.
- Adds the following definitions:
- Multi-unit residential
- Courtyard style development
- Single-family residential
Planning Commission held a public hearing for the proposed amendments on March 16, 2023, and forwarded them to City Council for consideration with two changes on June 8, 2023. City Council held a public hearing for these amendments on June 21, 2023.
The Planning and Development Department recommends that City Council approve the housing amendments to Chapters 42 and 26.
Note that the proposed changes to Chapter 26 should only be considered after the passage of the Chapter 42 amendments.
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Margaret Wallace Brown, AICP, CNU-A
Director
Planning and Development Department