Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning And Planning topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Middleton adopts wide-ranging zoning changes easing downtown development, ADU addressing and street naming
Summary
City Council unanimously approved Ordinance 715 to remove certain commercial side-lot utility easements, allow separate addresses for second dwellings, loosen parking for constrained downtown lots, and add clearer street-naming conventions for new subdivisions.
Middleton City Council unanimously adopted Ordinance 715 on March 18, 2026, approving several amendments to the city code intended to ease infill development and clarify addressing and street-naming rules.
The ordinance removes the automatic 5-foot side-lot utility easement requirement for commercial and industrial final plats while retaining front and rear easements and the 5-foot side easements on residential plats. Planning staff told the council that side easements have proven rarely used and can hinder commercial parcel redevelopment. Staff said Idaho Power initially urged retaining side easements but later agreed to the compromise after staff and the city engineer confirmed commercial plats could be planned without that blanket easement.
The council also changed how second dwellings (accessory dwelling units) are addressed. Under the adopted code, a second dwelling may be assigned a separate street address at the city’s discretion to avoid emergency-response confusion; staff noted shared meters and utilities generally remain unchanged for existing units.
To spur downtown infill, the council approved a limited reduction in off-street parking requirements for constrained commercial lots near Main Street (a targeted 20 percent reduction in the corridor identified by staff). The code also lowers the off-street space requirement for duplexes and triplexes to two spaces per unit in small infill situations and sets an expectation of one off-street space for accessory units.
Finally, the ordinance establishes modernized street-naming conventions for newly created streets—adding categories such as parkways and boulevards and allowing a single name to follow a meandering road rather than forcing name changes at each bend. Staff emphasized the changes apply to future streets only and will not rename existing roads.
Staff framed the package as “housekeeping” changes that align with the city’s comprehensive plan goals on transportation coordination, utility resilience and business investment. Council members and three public commenters—Don Reynolds, Jennifer Williams and local business owner Tyson Sappah—supported the downtown parking flexibility and naming changes during the public hearing.
The ordinance was read by title, the three-reading rule was waived, and council adopted the measure by unanimous roll-call vote. The city attorney and planning staff will finalize ordinance text for codification.
