HomeMy WebLinkAbout020221-08.1 LetterCalifornia Renters Legal Advocacy and Education Fund
360 Grand Ave, #323
Oakland, CA 94612
hi@carlaef.org
February 1, 2021
Town of Danville
Town Council
510 La Gonda Way
Danville, CA 94526
Re: Proposal to Enact Update to Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) Ordinance
Dear Town Council,
The California Renters Legal Advocacy and Education Fund (CaRLA) submits
this letter to provide comments on Danville's proposed Accessory Dwelling Unit
(ADU) ordinance. The ordinance under consideration reflects a good faith effort to not
only comply with the new state laws, but in many cases to go beyond the requirements
of state law and provide more flexibility to homeowners seeking to develop ADUs. I
submit this letter to commend the city's efforts so far, identify a few areas of potential
conflict with state laws, and encourage the Council to adopt the ordinance with a few
minor amendments.
There are really only two issues of concern with the proposed ordinance. First,
the proposed ordinance includes design standards that would require ADUs to match
the "architectural style" of the primary dwelling (Ord. Section 32-76.5(e)). While
design requirements are permitted for ADUs under a valid local ordinance, these
standards must be objective in order to comply with state law's ministerial permitting
requirement. The city acknowledges this requirement, and even correctly defines
objective standards in the ordinance. The proposed ordinance would require staff to
determine whether the architectural style of an ADU matches the primary dwelling by
matching of paint color and materials. This type of determination unavoidably
involves a level or "personal or subjective judgement by a public official." The design
requirements as proposed would therefore not meet the objectivity requirements of
state law. I would urge the Council to consider more specific design requirements that
would avoid the extended back and forth delay that would result from this more
subjective design review.
The second issue is that the proposed ordinance should recognize that
Statewide Exemption ADUs are exempt from all development standards. This means
that the text of Section 32-76.12 should make clear that these ADUs are exempt from
Section 32-76.5 of the proposed ordinance, not only Sections 32-76.6 and 76.7.
Aside from these two relatively minor issues, the proposed ordinance goes
above and beyond state law in many respects. The proposed ordinance provides
homeowners needed flexibility with allowing for larger unit sizes, parking
exemptions, extra height for two story ADUs, and doing away with the
owner -occupancy requirement for JADUs. Overall, this proposed ordinance is one of
the most pro-ADU efforts I have reviewed. I urge the Council to consider making
minor amendments to respond to my comments above, and enact this ordinance to
provide a great opportunity for homeowners and future tenants in Danville.
CaRLA is a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation whose mission includes advocating
for increased access to housing for Californians at all income levels, including
low-income households. You may learn more about CaRLA at www.carlaef.org.
Sincerely,
Dylan Casey
Executive Director
California Renters Legal Advocacy and Education Fund
California Renters Legal Advocacy and Education Fund - hi@carlaef.org
36o Grand Ave, #323, Oakland, CA 94612