Several Salem residents have pointed to California, or more specifically Los Angeles, as an example of why Accessory Dwelling Units do not work. So, we wanted to find out what happened in California, and if there were negative outcomes from ADU rule changes.
In 2017, California enacted legislation favorable to ADUs. In late 2019, California signed five bills into law expanding the ability for homeowners to build accessory structures in their backyards. The new bills allow residents to convert garages or in-suite areas, build new structures, or BOTH. The Salem ordinance is not nearly as progressive or aggressive (depending on your viewpoint) as the California legislation.
What was the motivating factor for this legislation?
Gov. Newsom said California needs 3 million homes by 2025. There are 9 million R1 [residential 1] zoned properties in California. Nearly two-thirds of the residences in California are single-family homes, according to U.S. Census data. And between half and three-quarters of the developable land in much of the state is zoned only for single-family housing, according to a recent survey by UC Berkeley’s Terner Center for Housing Innovation.
TL:DR rule changes
The new laws allow homeowners to build an additional unit detached from a single-family home and turn part of an existing structure into a third living space. State policies have eased the way for property owners to build such housing by stripping away local government and homeowners’ association requirements that previously blocked or slowed construction, and by curtailing other rules that forced homeowners to pay fees, install parking spots, or live on the property prior to building the units. Salem’s ordinance would not allow most of this. The ordinance does not allow for two ADUs on a single lot, association approval is required, and property owners must live on the property, which may not even be legal.
Data from 2017 (after the first round of ADU legislation)
In Los Angeles, annual permit applications for backyard homes increased more than 2,000% since the initial state laws took effect. Since 2017, the city has received almost 13,300 requests to build ADUs. San Francisco, spurred by recent changes to its local rules, has seen a boost of a similar percentage, weighing 639 new units in just over a year.
Permits in California grew nearly 50 percent between 2017 and 2018, and roughly 7,000 ADUs were permitted across the state last year, according to figures gathered by Abodu, a San Jose-based ADU construction firm.
It is difficult to compare Salem (population 43,873) to Los Angeles (pop. 12,447,000) or San Francisco (3,314,000). In addition to the size differences, there are large disparities between what is allowable, both by right and by permit in the proposed Salem ordinance and what has been passed in California.
Final thoughts on California
Some interesting developments, such as innovative financing models and homeless programs have evolved in the state’s cities in the years between the ADU laws.
Read about COVID-19 and Urban Planning
Read about Single-Family Residential Zoning