Planning commission recommends code change to allow accessory dwelling units in front buildable areas with limits

Hurricane City Planning Commission recommended Sept. 11 that the City Council adopt a revision to Title 10 allowing accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and accessory buildings in the front buildable area of lots in specified zones under defined limits.

The commission’s recommendation covers three principal points: (1) allow accessory buildings in the front buildable area in agricultural and residential agricultural zones; (2) allow ADUs in the front buildable area in zones where ADUs already are permitted; and (3) require a conditional‑use permit for any front‑yard ADU on lots 0.5 acres or smaller. The draft also preserves the applicable front setbacks and includes a standard that at least 50% of the lot must remain free of buildings when a larger ADU is sought.

The measure grew out of a recent case in which an ADU was constructed in a front buildable area and staff concluded the city could not deny it because the current code did not explicitly prohibit the configuration. “We had no choice but to approve it the way our code's written because it doesn't explicitly prohibit an ADU in a front yard,” planning staff member Fred (staff name in transcript) said, summarizing the legal constraint that prompted the rewrite.

Dayton (planning staff) told the commission the draft before them reflects several rounds of internal revision: “Gary and I have worked through several revisions to ADUs in front yards, and we've settled on a draft that he and I are both very comfortable with. ... we're ready to make a recommendation on the ordinance in front of you.”

Commission discussion focused on limits and outstanding edge cases. Multiple commissioners asked about flag lots — parcels that access the street by a narrow ‘flag’ strip — and whether the change would unintentionally allow buildings near neighbors’ yards. Resident/councilmember Kevin asked whether the change would let a property owner build an ADU “within 2 feet of [a] fence” on a flag lot; staff replied that setback standards and the 50% open‑lot requirement would still apply and that flag‑lot specifics would be studied separately. Commissioners asked staff to return with proposed language or a separate draft to address flag‑lot situations and visual/privacy issues raised by two‑story additions.

The commission voted by voice to recommend the City Council adopt the code update as drafted and to direct staff to prepare a focused follow‑up addressing flag‑lot frontages and any needed clarifications. The motion passed with all commissioners voting in favor.

What happens next: the recommendation will be transmitted to the Hurricane City Council for public hearing(s) and final action. Staff said the commission’s action covers only the front‑yard ADU rule; staff will prepare separate language and public notices if the council asks for a flag‑lot amendment.

Why it matters: the change clarifies how ADUs may be sited in front buildable areas and removes the current legal ambiguity that allowed a front‑yard ADU under the existing code. That clarification affects homeowners, developers and neighbors on infill and irregular lots and creates a follow‑up task for the city to handle flag‑lot exceptions and privacy controls.