Council advances overhaul of Lafayette land‑use code on first reading

Lafayette City Council voted unanimously on Aug. 18 to pass the city's proposed Land Use Code on first reading, advancing a major rewrite that would replace Chapter 26 of the municipal code and remap zoning citywide.

"This will repeal and replace Chapter 26 of the Lafayette Code of Ordinances with the Lafayette Land Use Code," Planning and Building Director Phil Plicellar told the council as he introduced the ordinance and described a schedule that includes a joint Planning Commission workshop on Sept. 9, a second council reading on Sept. 15 and a recommended 90‑day deferred effective date to allow follow‑up edits.

The meeting stretched for hours as Clarion/Clary Associates consultant Elizabeth Garvin walked council through sweeping changes: a shift from negotiated planned‑unit development to more objective, standards‑based approvals; three "form‑based" zoning districts for Old Town; an "adaptable mixed‑use" approach for larger commercial sites; and a housing mix point system intended to encourage a variety of missing‑middle housing types.

Councilors asked technical and policy questions about the housing point calculations, building height caps, parking adjustments, and how nonconforming uses would be handled. Staff said many items could be refined between first and second reading and that the 90‑day deferred effective date would allow outreach to affected property owners and additional clean‑up amendments.

The public hearing produced dozens of comments for and against elements of the draft code. Residents and business owners raised particular alarm about the OTX3 Old Town mixed‑use category, saying certain lot‑size and footprint allowances could enable much larger buildings than what exists today. Others — including housing and sustainability advocates — urged the council to embrace middle‑housing changes that would allow ADUs, duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes more easily in residential neighborhoods.

Council members ultimately instructed staff to prepare targeted redlines on several items before second reading, including eliminating private‑facility credits in the public‑land‑dedication rules, reviewing childcare and short‑term rental language for manufactured‑home communities, and bringing back clearer options on OTX mapping. "We can pass the ordinance with direction to prepare specific amendments for the second reading," Plicellar said during the discussion.

The ordinance passed on a roll call vote as introduced on first reading. Next steps include the Sept. 9 joint workshop with the Planning Commission and staff return with the proposed amendments for the second reading. The council set a tentative effective date of Dec. 15, 2026 subject to further adjustments based on the follow‑up process.