The City of Arroyo Grande is working to increase rental inventory.
The city wants to streamline the process of adding extra units to an existing property.
It's part of a statewide effort to offer more affordable housing.
This week, the city council will consider a new ordinance regulating accessory dwelling units or ADUs.
These are add-ons that can be outbuildings or attached units. They can also be built within an existing home.
“ADUs are a good, affordable housing option and that fits in the city’s framework of providing additional options for housing,” said Arroyo Grande Community Development Director Brian Pedrotti.
The draft ordinance lists several requirements including that the building, outside walls, and roof all match the appearance of the main residence.
The owner must offer one off-street parking spot with certain exceptions.
The maximum height is 16 ft., and the building can’t be within 4 ft. of the property line.
The square footage ranges from a minimum of 150 square feet to a maximum of 1,000 if there is more than one bedroom.
The requirement to increase rental inventory is impacting cities across the state.
“I think that it should be an option,” said Dana Ruiz, who is visiting family in Pismo Beach and is from the Central Valley. “I don’t think we need to build more. We should utilize the space that we already have.”
The Arroyo Grande City Council will also consider design standards to make sure that these units fit in with the character of the city.
“The city council previously directed us to look at how we could incentivize ADUs as much as possible while still fitting them into the character of the city,” Pedrotti said.
As for what’s next, the city council will discuss the proposal at Tuesday night’s meeting.
It will go before the council again sometime in the fall.
The City of Arroyo Grande is working with Atascadero, Grover Beach and Morro Bay to expedite pre-approved applications for these units.
