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Commission questions ADU feasibility: costs, financing and treatment of possible informal units
Summary
Commissioners discussed ADU construction costs and financing barriers after staff suggested earlier low estimates may be understated; the Commission also heard that the City is not aware of any formally authorized ADUs and that an existing informal unit would likely be treated as legal nonconforming rather than automatically legalized.
Commissioners raised practical questions about whether ADUs would be feasible for homeowners and how the city should treat potentially existing informal units.
Commissioner Gercken noted earlier estimates that detached ADU construction could cost between $20,000 and $30,000, but ACM/DCD Glen Cole cautioned that actual costs are likely higher, citing a current new-residential construction cost of "approximately $300 per square foot." Commissioners observed that conventional lenders often hesitate to finance detached ADU construction, which, combined with permit and plan costs, may deter potential applicants.
Staff reported that they are not aware of any formally authorized ADUs in Rolling Meadows; where an informal unit may exist, staff said the ordinance as drafted would likely treat that structure as legal nonconforming in practice, and that staff is cautious about declaring structures definitively "legal" when historic documentation is uncertain.
The Commission adopted a motion directing staff to include explicit building-permit and architect-prepared-plan requirements in the ADU ordinance text; the matter will now be forwarded to City Council.
