Accessory Dwelling Units
Should ADUs Count as Affordable Housing?
Without regulations or monitoring systems to ensure accessory dwelling units are rented at affordable rates, citing ADU construction toward affordable housing goals is a disingenuous way to avoid building multi-family housing.
What Caused the Failure of Zoning Reform in Colorado?
Land use reform bills that gained bipartisan support in the Montana legislature were strongly opposed by Colorado Republicans.
Opinion: Failed Housing Bills Could Signal California-Style Housing Crisis in Texas
Legislators in a state that so often touts its policies as the opposite of California’s defeated several bills that would have made housing construction easier, leading to concerns that a constricted housing market may exacerbate the housing crisis.
Denver Makes ADU Rules More Flexible
The city hopes adjusting its regulations for accessory dwelling units will make the process more affordable for residents and help ease the city’s housing crunch.
Albuquerque Poised to Legalize Accessory Dwelling Units
Allowing ADU construction on parcels previously zoned exclusively for single-family detached housing is one component of the Housing Forward ABQ initiative, a larger effort to reform zoning practices in Albuquerque.
California Sees Spike in ADU Permits
Homeowners in the state are eagerly taking advantage of new laws allowing them to build additional housing units, making a small but significant impact on the housing supply.
Montana Governor Signs Zoning Reform Bills
Four bills that target housing production promise to streamline permitting processes, reform ADU regulations, and loosen zoning restrictions in commercially zoned areas.
Landmark Land Use Bill Fails in Colorado Legislature
Colorado Governor Jared Polis’s effort to allow for more housing construction by preempting local control of zoning failed to achieve the required level of political support in the state legislature.
California Growth Report: Housing Up, Population Down
Good and bad news can be found in the most recent demographic report from the California Department of Finance. The population dropped by nearly 140,000 last year while housing grew at the highest rate in 14 years.
Bill Legalizing ADUs Passes Texas Senate
If passed by the full state legislature, the bill would eliminate local restrictions on ‘mother-in-law’ units.
Fort Collins Code Update Rescinded Due to ADU Opposition
It’s back to the drawing board for a development code update in Fort Collins, Colorado, after residents revolted against zoning reforms that include by-right development of accessory dwelling units.
Op-Ed: How ADUs Can Ease the Housing Crunch
With the right policies in place, basement apartments, converted garages, and backyard cottages can create a significant number of affordable housing units.
Code Reforms to Ease the Housing Crisis
Ten recommendations for zoning code changes that could make housing more affordable.
The Return of ‘Catalog Homes’
Sets of pre-approved housing plans can lower construction costs, shorten timelines, and encourage more badly needed housing production.
With New ADU Rules, Anchorage Leading U.S. Zoning Reform Efforts
Anchorage recently passed a package of laws that will allow accessory dwelling units in commercial and residential zones, and, in a rare move, on residential lots with existing multi-family housing.
Arizona Housing Bill Fails in State Senate
The bill would have eliminated some parking requirements, legalized more types of affordable housing, and promoted increased housing production.
More ADUs Than Single Homes Being Built in Seattle
Permits for accessory dwelling units jumped by 250 percent between 2019 and 2022.
Huntington Beach Mounts Legal Challenge to State-Mandated Density
The Orange County beachfront community has had enough of the California State Legislature’s preemption of local zoning laws.
San Diego Expands Transit Oriented Zoning From a Half-Mile to a Mile
A recent package of code changes by the city of San Diego will make it possible to build high-rise residential buildings and accessory dwelling units in larger areas around public transit.
Op-Ed: Boston Needs Zoning Reform Now
The Boston Globe’s editorial board calls on the city to take on citywide zoning reform to boost housing construction and revitalize areas that have faced historical underinvestment.
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This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
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Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
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