Council approves ordinance to allow residential conversion of historic accessory structures

The Northampton City Council on Oct. 16 approved Ordinance 25.315 to permit residential conversion of existing nonconforming historic accessory structures such as carriage houses, garages and barns built in 1975 or earlier. The ordinance passed unanimously after a second-reading debate and prior referrals to the Historical Commission, Housing Partnership and Planning Board.

Council President Alex Jarrett and Councilor Elkins, co-sponsors of the ordinance, said the measure aims to preserve historic outbuildings and add housing without expanding the city—s footprint. "The greenest building is the building that already exists," Jarrett said as he explained the dual goals of preservation and housing supply. The ordinance includes an amendment clarifying that "uninspected nonpermitted additions to historic structures in the setback built after 1975 shall not be included in the conversion."

Supporters told the council the change unlocks a large existing resource of structures that are otherwise underused or at risk. Councilor Elkins said: "It's one of the things I've most enjoyed working on in my time as Council. ... We hope to bring all of this in to make these things that are already in our community ... part of our legitimate housing market." Councilor Maiori noted that public testimony indicated "some 900 structures in Northampton would fall under this," citing the hearing record.

The ordinance also contemplates preserving "key character-defining features" of historic buildings to the extent feasible. Planning staff and the Historical Commission will provide technical input to the Planning Board during administrative review to help assess character-defining elements.

On short-term rentals and housing impact, Jarrett cited data from the Donahue Institute saying Hampshire County contains roughly 0.5% short-term rentals and that Northampton recorded fees used for affordable housing; councilors said the conversions would add housing stock and were not expected to worsen short-term rental pressures.

Action: Motion to approve was made by Councilor Rothenberg and seconded by Councilor Elkins; the ordinance passed by unanimous roll-call vote. The measure received positive recommendations from the Historical Commission, the Northampton Housing Partnership and the Planning Board during prior review.

Ending: Councilors said the ordinance will create a legal, code-compliant path for owners who currently use or seek to use accessory structures as housing, and that the measure supports preservation, options for aging in place, and modest additions to the city's housing supply.