Planning commission backs ADU revisions, adds occupancy condition to 30‑day rental rule

SPRINGDALE, Utah — The Springdale Planning Commission voted May 21 to recommend changes to the town’s accessory dwelling unit (ADU) standards and added a direction for staff to work with the town attorney to clarify enforcement language requiring at least one night of occupancy in addition to the 30‑day minimum lease period.

The commission’s motion, made by Jennifer McCullough and seconded by Terry Kruschke, approved the housing committee’s draft ADU ordinance with three conditions: correct a code cross‑reference (to 10‑22‑9E2A2), amend section e.2.c to read “a lower building height if required by other sections of this title,” and direct staff to work with the town attorney to add the occupancy clarification to the 30‑day requirement. Vote: Jennifer McCullough, Terry Kruschke, Tom Dancy, Paul Zimmerman and Rich Swanson — all aye.

Tom Dancy, presenting the item for the town, said the housing committee carried forward clarifying language the town council had previously asked to retain while removing the more contentious proposal that would have allowed external ADUs in the Foothill Residential Zone. “The changes are that we are adding height limit for external ADUs, increasing the property size required for an external ADU, making an allowance for family members and non‑paying guests to occupy a guest house without needing an ADU permit, revising the allowable size of an external ADU to be 50% of the area of the main building on property with a maximum size of 1,500 square feet, clarifying the minimum rental periods for both internal and external ADUs, adding a parking requirement for external ADUs that requires all ADU parking to be contained on the site, and making some edits to existing ADU standards for clarity and consistency with the proposed new standards,” Dancy said.

Commissioners discussed several technical corrections and enforcement questions. Dancy acknowledged a drafting error in one paragraph and the commission directed staff to replace the garbled sentence with clear language: “a lower building height if required by other sections of this title.” Commissioners also asked staff to fix an incorrect section reference in the draft (from 10‑20‑9E2A2 to 10‑22‑9E2A2).

Discussion on enforcement focused on preventing short‑term nightly rentals under the guise of 30‑day minimum leases. Commissioners proposed requiring that a 30‑day rental show at least one night of occupancy before the 30‑day clock runs, so that repeated, unsigned or unoccupied lease drafts could not be used to circumvent the rule. Staff noted enforcement practicalities but said recent state legislative changes (effective May 7) allow a short‑term rental listing on a website to be used as supporting evidence of commercial rental activity, although it cannot be the sole evidence. The commission directed staff to work with the town attorney to craft enforceable language.

The recommended ADU revisions include (per staff summary): an external ADU height limit; an increased minimum lot size for external ADUs; allowance for family members or guests to occupy a guest house without an ADU permit; external ADU size capped at 50% of the main building with a 1,500‑square‑foot maximum; clarified minimum rental periods (30 days) with the added occupancy condition to be drafted; and an on‑site parking requirement for ADUs. The commission noted potential future state legislation that could affect external ADU rules and said the town may revisit the topic.

Next steps: The commission’s recommendation, including its three conditions and the staff direction to consult the town attorney on occupancy wording, will be forwarded to the Springdale Town Council for final action.