The Dallas City Council on June 2 approved development-code text amendments that change residential accessory-structure setbacks and loosen sign-code rules for flags, directing the city attorney to prepare an ordinance for first and second reading.

City economic and community development director Charlie Mitchell told the council the planning commission had recommended the changes and that the amendments have been the subject of a council work session. The changes separate rules for accessory dwellings (habitable units) and non-habitable accessory structures: accessory dwellings would require a 3-foot side/rear setback while non-habitable structures (sheds, similar outbuildings) could be built to a zero setback in some residential zones, staff said, noting the change better aligns local code with building-code fire-safety requirements.

Mitchell also summarized sign-code changes that allow a broader set of flags to be displayed and relax size limits for flags in commercial zones compared with residential zones. “The new code is less restrictive, meaning you can fly any flag,” Mitchell told the council, adding that the changes followed the planning commission’s recommendations and council work-session feedback.

No members of the public offered testimony on the item. A motion to approve the amendments and direct the city attorney to draft an ordinance passed unanimously at the meeting; the city will take the ordinance through the normal two-reading adoption process.