State Senate Passes Bill to Encourage Building More In-Law Units

How to go about addressing the affordable housing crisis has been a contentious issue in the Bay Area to say the least, with public & private interest groups butting heads on virtually every solution that has been offered up.  At the end of April however, state legislators were able to make some progress by passing a bill that many are calling a "common sense solution".  

SB 1069 passed in April, and reduced many of the regulatory roadblocks to constructing an accessory dwelling

Senate Bill 1069, introduced by State Senator Bob Wieckowski (D-Fremont),  will do away with many of the regulatory roadblocks that homeowners face when trying to construct accessory dwellings on their property.  This will limit parking restrictions, fees for water and sewer hookups, as well as take 30 days off of the maximum amount of time a city can take to process permits, with the ultimate goal being to encourage and expedite the construction of these units.

Accessory dwellings are unique in that they offer a way to increase much needed inventory, without actually having to visibly increase density.  Karen Chapple, a professor of city planning at UC Berkeley, and a proponent of the bill, refers to these units as "hidden density", since most of them are tucked away in backyards and don't affect a block's curb appeal.  For this reason their increased construction is much less likely to be opposed by others in the community.

Further, unlike rent control or other tenant protection ordinances which their opponents argue unfairly tilt the playing field in favor of the tenant, facilitating the construction of accessory dwellings has benefits for both the homeowner and the tenant.  The obvious benefit for the tenant would be the increase in smaller, more affordable rentals.  On the flip side, homeowners with "too much home" are now able to more easily leverage that excess space into rental income.  It's a mutually beneficial approach to addressing an issue that has proven to be very divisive.

At the end of the day, spurring the construction of accessory dwellings is just a drop in the bucket when it comes to alleviating our housing shortage, but at least legislators are finding ways to work together to achieve some sort of progress.