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Council hears phase-one ADU proposal; staff recommends monitoring short-term rental impacts
Summary
Planning staff proposed a phased approach to accessory dwelling units (ADUs), focusing now on short-term rental implications and delaying deed-restricted ADU incentives for a later phase; staff said existing STR rules tie occupancy and fees to bedroom counts and that most zone-one lots have limited build envelopes, so ADU changes alone are unlikely to drive major new STR capacity.
Council discussed a phase-one approach to ADU rules on June 9 that focuses on clarifying potential impacts on short-term rental (STR) occupancy and licensing.
Planning staff explained existing STR licensing ties occupancy and fees to bedroom counts (studios default to four occupants, plus two per additional bedroom) and that any added bedroom that qualifies under the town's bedroom definition increases the licensed occupancy and associated fee. Staff said a typical example in zone one might increase a four-bedroom home to five bedrooms and raise advertising capacity from 12 to 14 people, but would not increase the number of STR licenses in a neighborhood.
Staff and council noted the constraints on many single-family lots (building or disturbance envelopes) that make detached ADUs unlikely in many zone-one properties and said the market and site limitations are often the primary constraint on ADU creation. Planning staff recommended proceeding with an unrestricted-ADU approach in phase one and returning later with a more detailed program of incentives for deed-restricted ADUs that would prioritize local workforce occupancy.
On enforcement and potential gaming of occupancy, planning staff said current regulations and existing operational checks (parking requirements, building permits, and property-site constraints) limit the practical ability to split a single license into multiple simultaneous rentals; Bella (planning staff) noted, "We don't have anything in our current regulation that will prevent, for example, somebody to rent... multiple different people as long as it does not exceed that maximum... occupancy." The Council asked staff to provide periodic checks on ADU uptake and impacts (suggested 90-day or six-month reviews) if changes are adopted.
What's next: staff said they will return on a short timeline with draft code language for phase-one changes and will develop a monitoring plan and potential incentive package for deed-restricted ADUs in a later phase.
