Hooper City Council reviews proposed size increases for oversized accessory structures and ADUs

Hooper City Council members on Tuesday reviewed Planning Commission recommendations to increase permitted sizes for accessory (oversized) structures and to change how accessory dwelling units (ADUs) are measured and monitored.

City planning staff presented draft changes that would raise maximum accessory-structure sizes in several residential zones and allow ADU living area to increase from a fixed cap to up to 50% of the associated accessory-structure allowance.

Malcolm, a city staff member, said the Planning Commission recommended raising the size caps to simplify administration and reduce the number of conditional-use permit applications. "These are the averages of sizes we're seeing for the 2 different zones for oversized structures: 3,600 in an R1 and 2,000 in an R2," Malcolm said, then described proposed new maximums: 5,000 square feet in R1, 3,000 in R2, and 2,500 in R3 (as summarized by staff).

Why it matters: Councilmembers said the changes could speed approvals and improve the city's ability to map and count ADUs, a stated strategy for increasing the available housing stock. At the same time, several councilmembers and staff raised concerns about parking, stormwater impacts and the need to preserve staff review for structures that raise…