Asheville for All

The following is Asheville For All’s public comment letter to Asheville’s Planning and Zoning Commission, ahead of its July 2nd meeting.

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Dear Commissioners,

Your July 2nd agenda includes Item #8, Board Of Adjustment UDO Text Amendment Clean Ups, which includes updates to Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) standards.

Asheville For All is in full support of these updates. We recognize that these text amendments are narrowly tailored toward minimizing the need for variances for ADUs utilizing existing non-conforming structures (i.e. garages, sheds), a positive step forward for housing creation.

Still, there are ADU reform items that remain, such as those suggested on pg. 146 of Asheville’s 2023 Missing Middle Housing Study:

Allow ADUs More Broadly. The small footprint of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) allows them to provide more housing choices in existing neighborhoods without dramatically impacting the character of the neighborhood’s existing built form. Consider the following standards:

• Allow ADUs with all MMH types, instead of just single-family.
• Limit unit size to 1000 gsf.
• Limit height to 1.5 stories or 2 stories if above a garage.
• Reduce minimum parking requirements for ADUs to 0 spaces/unit.

That study’s cost was $115,000, and was delivered to City Council nearly two years ago. Its completion depended on countless hours of planning staff and volunteer community members’ time.

Additionally, the Planning & Zoning Commission recommended a 1,200 SF size limit for ADUs, and voiced support for removing minimum parking requirements for ADUs, at their May 1, 2024 meeting.

The current size limitation of 70% of the principal dwelling or 800 square feet for detached ADUs is a limiting factor for family-sized housing. Oddly enough, the current ADU text amendment under consideration would allow existing structures greater than 800 square feet in size to be converted into ADUs. These existing structures are likely to suffer from various states of disrepair or neglect; but new and more efficient 2025 construction is still limited to 800 SF. An effective ordinance aims to be both equal and objective in its application and impact, so existing structures and new structures should get equal treatment.

We encourage Planning & Zoning Commissioners and Planning staff to keep the conversation going with the City Manager, Mayor, and City Council on zoning reform, as “clean up” text amendments are reminders of remaining work to be done on more substantive reforms for housing availability and affordability.