Council reviews accessory-dwelling-unit code changes; planning commission’s short-term-rental restriction removed before council review

Senior planner Jeremy Hammer briefed council on proposed code changes to implement state accessory dwelling unit (ADU) requirements and to replace the city’s older accessory-apartment rules. City Attorney review and planning commission review were completed and the commission held a public hearing before forwarding a recommendation.

Hammer said the draft includes new definitions, amends the land-use table to allow ADUs outright, repeals old accessory-apartment criteria, and sets parking at one space per ADU. The planning commission recommended raising the maximum ADU size from 1,000 square feet to 1,200 square feet and added a prohibition on using new ADUs as short-term rentals; Hammer said the draft also clarifies that ADUs are exempt from underlying-zone density limits.

Council questions focused on compliance with state law and on fiscal and infrastructure impacts. Councilmember Stone asked whether the ordinance brings Gig Harbor into compliance with the state ADU bill; staff replied it does, and that a separate transportation-impact-fee update later this year will address required fee reductions. Hammer said the required transportation-impact-fee reduction for ADUs will be handled through the city’s impact-fee update; impact fees otherwise remain a separate public-works item.

Several council members expressed concern that allowing ADUs to be used as short-term rentals would reduce the stock of long-term housing the city needs. After discussion the council directed staff to remove the short-term-rental prohibition that the planning commission had added and to send a draft ordinance to council that does not preclude future owners from seeking short-term-rental permits under existing rules; in effect the council asked staff to remove the planning commission’s short-term‑rental ban from the draft before the ordinance goes to council for formal action.

Key technical changes identified in the study session included: • New municipal-code definitions for ADUs and related housing types; owner-occupancy requirement removed (consistent with state law). • ADUs exempted from the underlying zone density limit (per state statute). • Maximum ADU size increased to 1,200 square feet (planning commission recommendation). • Parking standard: one off‑street parking space per ADU (amendment to Chapter 17.72). • Planning commission had proposed prohibiting STR use of new ADUs; council directed removal of that ban and to proceed without it in the draft ordinance.

Why this matters: The changes implement state law intended to increase housing supply and remove older local restrictions that required owner-occupancy or conditional-use review for accessory apartments. Decisions about parking, unit size and short-term-rental treatment affect how many ADUs are likely to be built and whether they will add long-term housing capacity.

What’s next: Staff will prepare a revised ordinance for council consideration that reflects the council’s direction (including removal of the planning commission’s STR prohibition) and will schedule required hearings and an impact-fee update to address the transportation fee reduction for ADUs.