Cupertino council approves first reading of ADU ordinance updates to comply with state law

Mayor Chow convened the Cupertino City Council to consider amendments to the city's ADU ordinance, and the council conducted a first reading of Ordinance No. 2522.74 to align municipal code chapters 19.08 and 19.112 with recent changes in state law and comments from the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD).

Senior Planner John Martier summarized staff's work and the HCD review, saying the city submitted its ordinance for HCD review and "HCD sent a letter to the city on April 24th" that prompted staff to propose revisions. Martier told the council that state bills enacted while HCD reviewed the prior draft (including SB 1211 and AB 2533) required reorganizing code sections and changing how duplexes and multifamily properties are treated.

Why it matters: The changes respond to state law and HCD interpretation that affect allowable ADUs on duplexes and multifamily parcels, parking and setback rules, and what the city may require as objective design standards. Council members raised concerns about whether the city can impose a numerical square-foot cap on ADUs in multifamily settings after HCD rejected the city's earlier 1,200-square-foot limit. Councilmember Mohan said the city should comply with the state while also "ask[ing] the lawyers who were working with our planners" whether alternative objective limits (percentages, FAR, or setback-linked limits) would be defensible.

What the council did: Councilmember Mohan moved — and Councilmember Frewin seconded — to conduct the first reading of Ordinance No. 2522.74 with the Planning Commission's recommended edits removing the broad design-matching requirement for non-streamlined detached ADUs in most zoning districts. Vice Mayor Moore offered a friendly amendment asking staff to prepare an informational memo summarizing how ADUs are actually used in Cupertino (family vs. rental; rents collected) and to research whether enforceable maximum-size options are available for multifamily ADUs before the second reading. The motion, as amended, was accepted and placed for a second reading per the ordinance schedule.

What remains unresolved: Staff said HCD's letter cites Government Code section 66323 and interprets objective standards narrowly; the city attorney and planning counsel will be asked to provide a focused legal opinion about whether the city can set alternative numeric limits (for example, a percentage of existing unit counts, a floor-area ratio, or setback-dependent caps) without running afoul of state law. Council also asked staff to provide current permit and rent-use data; planning staff said the regional ADU survey and an internally collected permit inventory exist but a fuller year-end summary will be provided.

Quotes: "HCD sent a letter to the city on April 24th," John Martier said, framing the need for amendments. Councilmember Wong criticized state-level changes but underscored that staff had done a good job, saying in part, "the state continues to make everyone's lives more miserable with more regulation." Public commenter Jennifer Griffin described neighborhood parking strains she attributes to poorly designed ADU policy.

Next steps: The council scheduled a second reading (tentatively the council's next hearing) and asked staff to return with (1) a legal memo about enforceable size limits for multifamily ADUs and (2) an informational memo with early survey data on how ADUs are used and rent levels in Cupertino. The ordinance will not be effective until after the second reading and adoption.