“Backyard homes” are about to become easier and faster to build for residents living in unincorporated areas of Santa Clara County.
On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors unanimously approved providing residents within its jurisdiction with two sets of pre-approved plans to build accessory dwelling units (ADUs), also known as granny flats or in-law units, on their residential properties by the end of the year. One model is 800 square feet and another is 1,200 square feet. Officials said the streamlined process could make important strides toward opening up a more affordable housing supply in such an expensive region.
It could also generate more property tax revenue, the shortage of which has fueled a $250 million budget shortfall that county leaders must absorb this year. In the coming years, the problem could force cuts to critical safety net programs and services.
“We will definitely generate additional tax revenue,” Supervisor Otto Lee, who led the discussion, said at the meeting.
Residents can still build ADUs without pre-approved plans, but it is a longer process as county employees have to review applications on a case-by-case basis. Changing that could save residents and the county time and money.
San Jose, the county’s largest city, has already revisited the idea with a different approach: launching a pool of 23 pre-approved construction contractors in 2019, where permits for standardized construction plans can be approved within an estimated three-year timeframe. months after presentation. Projects must begin construction within 12 months of approval or the permit will expire. City officials say less than 1% of permits expire.
San Jose’s program has seen approximately 1,400 backyard homes built over the past five years, Mayor Matt Mahan said in a letter to county supervisors.
“ADUs represent a significant proportion of San Jose’s housing production that is affordable by design,” Mahan wrote. “This figure represents approximately 23% of San José’s new housing stock during that period.”
For the past nine months, the county Department of Planning and Development has been working on pre-approved plans with $300,000 in federal grant funds. The plans are expected to be publicly released in December. Lee, calling on the county to act faster, requested an update from the department in September.
Some supervisors questioned whether the county could simply use pre-approved designs from other cities or follow San Jose’s model by using a set of pre-approved manufacturers for models such as manufactured homes. County employees responded that using pre-approved designs from other cities could legally force them to pay the architects who made them and that pre-approved manufacturers would be the next step. For now, they’re sticking with 800- and 1,200-square-foot designs.
The plans would only apply to urban lots and not to rural areas that generally tend to have less access to necessary energy, water and sewer infrastructure.
That raised more questions for Supervisor Sylvia Arenas, whose District 1 encompasses the county’s southern crops and fields, and farmworker communities. She questioned whether there are opportunities to connect unincorporated rural residents to the infrastructure of nearby cities.
“I’m concerned that we might leave some people out,” Arenas said at the meeting. “I know water and wastewater is a big issue that we’re already dealing with quite a bit around farmworker housing.”
Arenas also questioned whether the county could impose restrictions on homes with backyards to keep rents affordable.
“We are investigating the limitations and the legality of that,” Planning and Development Director Jacqueline Onciano said.
Contact Brandon Pho at [email protected] or @brandonphooo on X, formerly known as Twitter.
