Tiny homes could be built behind a historic adobe in San Luis Obispo as part of an affordable housing project.
Mavis Wong from Smart Share Housing Solutions, the nonprofit behind the project, says they are hoping the property will house 20 fully electric affordable homes.
"This demonstration unit is about 150 square feet and the actual units will be a bit larger like 220 to 250 square feet," said Wong.
The city-owned 1-acre property has large trees and an adobe on it. As part of Smart Share Housing Solutions' partnership with the city, they will have to refurbish it.
The current rendering of the project shows the refurbished adobe as the centerpiece of the property, with the 20 tiny homes surrounding it.
Wong said the front of the property will be a park for the tiny home community as well as the surrounding area.
KSBY spoke with two community members from Odd Fellow's Hall, an event venue nearby. They say they are in favor of the idea but are disappointed the large persimmon trees will have to be removed.
"We've all agreed on everything, and yeah I got no problems," said Albert Lewis. "It's going to work out fine."
Other community members raised concerns about the project at Monday's architectural review committee meeting, including the property owner next door.
He voiced concerns about the potential for fire danger with how close the units are to one another.
Anne Wyatt, the executive director of Smart Share Housing Solutions says the rendered plan has passed inspections.
"They'll meet or exceed fire codes with class A-rated metal roofs," said Wyatt. "The siding will be fire-resistant concrete board. There will be fire separations between them and all the electrical will be to code. They've met the approval from the city fire chief and so we're not worried about fire issues."
At the meeting, the architectural review committee voted in favor of the plan, with the change of making the units a darker color, to add emphasis to the adobe.
The next step for the project is a meeting with the planning committee on Dec. 11.
