Commission opens debate on how the code should define a 'dwelling' amid concerns over conversions
Staff framed a foundational question for the code rewrite: what constitutes a dwelling? Commissioners were asked to review whether kitchens, sleeping and sanitation definitions should determine unit counts, citing a rise in internal conversions and safety risks from illegal dwelling creation.
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As part of the land‑use code update, staff asked commissioners to consider a foundational definitional question: what legally constitutes a "dwelling" under the city's code. The issue matters because, in practice, the presence and number of full kitchens has been used to count dwelling units, and that can enable internal conversions that bypass review and create unsafe or illegal dwelling units.
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