Roanoke planners report early gains from zoning changes that allow ‘missing‑middle’ housing

City planning staff reported Thursday that changes to Roanoke’s zoning code intended to expand housing types across neighborhoods are producing early, measurable results.

Wayne Leftwich, planning manager for the City of Roanoke, told the joint City Council and Planning Commission meeting that from March 2024 to March 2025 the city recorded 123 new single‑unit dwellings and that the zoning changes have contributed to an estimated 26 to 40 additional units created as a direct result of the text amendments. “In a lot of ways, we’re right in line with what we expected to happen,” Leftwich said.

Why it matters: The amendments, adopted by council in March 2024 and again in September 2024 after Planning Commission review, were designed to remove barriers to housing choice by allowing a wider range of dwelling types in more districts and by regulating development by lot size and location rather than blanket prohibitions. City staff and commission members said the reforms aim to add smaller, lower‑cost units — accessory dwelling units (ADUs), duplexes and small multifamily buildings — in already developed neighborhoods where new single‑family lots are rare.

Key facts and early results

- The planning office counted 123 single‑unit dwellings from March 2024–March 2025; staff said this is higher than typical recent years. Leftwich said multifamily growth also is substantial but is driven largely by projects already in permitting and not directly by the 2024 text changes.

- Large projects in permitting cited by staff include a planned project on Orange Avenue of about 768 apartments, a Riverdale project of about 267 units, a Hershberger Meadows project of about 170 units, and several smaller developments (for example Trinity Commons, 15 units).

- The “red dots” on the staff map identifying units affected by the text amendments were primarily ADUs and duplexes; staff said ADUs were the most common impacted type. Under the city zoning standard cited in the meeting, an ADU is limited to about 800 square feet.

- Staff estimated the net additional units created specifically because of the text amendments at between 26 and 40 units in the first year of tracking, roughly matching staff’s prior high‑end estimate of 40 additional units.

Debate and concerns

Council members raised questions about how many of the new units will be affordable to lower‑income households and whether projects enabled by the new rules could displace existing, lower‑cost units in some neighborhoods. Staff said some projects are subsidized and clearly affordable (for example Trinity Commons, a 15‑unit senior affordable development in Old Southwest), but for many ADUs and duplexes the city does not yet have data tying those units to a specific affordability level. Leftwich told the meeting that the smaller size of many ADUs and duplexes suggests they will likely command lower rents than larger, newer single‑family houses but that the city cannot guarantee rent levels absent subsidy programs.

Staff also discussed a Richelieu site where a redevelopment initially planned for 36 units may be redesigned; Leftwich said recent developer discussions indicate a revised plan of at least 22 units, and staff noted the uncertainty when a project is redesigning during permitting.

What was decided or directed

No new ordinance was adopted at the meeting; the briefing was informational. Staff said it will continue annual tracking of units created, refine the public dashboard, and report back with follow‑up data on ADU and duplex trends and the historical counts for 2022–2023 requested by council.

Ending

Planning staff said the city will post the interactive map and unit data online and continue an annual monitoring report; council members asked staff to pursue better metrics on affordability and to include the zoning outcomes on the city’s metrics dashboard. Leftwich and other planning staff said they will report back with the requested breakdowns and continued yearly updates.