Committee advances ordinance to permit accessory dwelling units citywide

The St. Louis City Housing, Urban Development and Zoning Committee on Tuesday advanced Board Bill 60, an ordinance that would add definitions and site rules for accessory dwelling units and permit them in residential districts, by a 7–0 vote with a do-pass recommendation to the full Board.

Planning staff and the bill sponsor said the changes are intended to reduce time and cost for homeowners who convert or build small secondary units on the same lot as a single-family or duplex. "[T]he proposed approach ... is to reduce barriers and the need for any special approval to facilitate the construction of ADUs," said Miriam Keller, City Planning Executive for General Planning and Design.

The bill as read into the record is titled in part as an ordinance "amending chapter 26 of the zoning code defining, permitting, and regulating accessory dwelling units" and includes a severability and emergency clause. Committee members and members of the public described ADUs as a tool for multi-generational living, supplemental rental income and a housing option useful to tornado recovery and rebuilding in affected neighborhoods.

Board Bill 60 would add distinct definitions for attached and detached ADUs; set a height limit of 25 feet; set area limits that generally allow ADUs of at least 750 square…