Planning staff outlines broad changes to zoning ordinance, highlighting short-term rental rules and housing definitions

Planning staff presented a multi-part package of proposed text amendments to the City of Chester zoning ordinance during the March 11, 2026 Planning Commission meeting, asking commissioners to review definitions and the amendment summary before the next meeting.

Paul Fritz, a planning staff presenter, said the redline and a summary table together document roughly 60 edits, about 20 of which add new policy language. Fritz said the package focuses on text changes rather than map changes and is intended to address three problems: new uses that have emerged since the ordinance’s 2015 adoption, inconsistent or ambiguous language that hampers enforcement, and outdated technical standards such as landscape and parking requirements.

Fritz introduced several substantive areas commissioners should review. He read the proposed short-term rental definition, saying it would treat a short-term rental as "a rental dwelling unit…for less than 30 consecutive days." He told the commission that the draft places short-term rentals in the use table with a footnote limiting them to single-family detached dwellings and recommends treating them as a special exception so the zoning hearing board can assess neighborhood compatibility and impacts. "We're actually requiring this as a special exception," he said, describing the extra layer of review.

Housing definitions and classifications are prominent in the draft. Fritz explained the proposed approach distinguishes group homes, single-room-occupancy units, boarding houses, transitional housing and short-term rentals using factors such as length of stay, household structure and whether supervision or services are provided. For transitional or sober-living homes, staff proposed a form of density control and separation distance to avoid clustering; Fritz cited separation distances used in other communities and noted staff had seen a high density of such uses in parts of the city.

The redline also adds or clarifies definitions for portable storage containers (shipping containers), outdoor storage and recreational vehicles; Fritz said the ordinance will make clear when RVs may be stored and that they are not meant to be used as dwellings in driveways.

Fritz pointed commissioners to procedural materials — a redline, a one-page amendment summary table, and a full article packet — and asked them to read the definitions first. He requested that commissioners email a short list of questions or doubts before the next meeting so staff can prioritize topics for discussion and public review.

Next steps: commissioners were asked to review the packet, flag items for clarification, and return comments in advance of the April meeting; staff said public review and further workshops may follow depending on topics flagged by the commission.