The city expanded the areas where homeowners can build ADUs in an effort to boost housing supply and affordable rental units.

Two bills passed by the Jacksonville City Council will legalize accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in most Jacksonville neighborhoods, except where prohibited by homeowners associations. As Mike Mendenhall reports in the Jacksonville Daily Record, council member Rory Diamond, who sponsored the bills, says “the new structures would increase property values where they’re built, particularly in Jacksonville’s urban neighborhoods where advocates say the need is greatest.”
Restrictions in the bills include an owner-occupancy requirement and a rule stating that the ADU must adhere to a similar aesthetic style as the main home. The addition’s footprint must be limited to 25 percent of the house or 750 square feet, and the structure cannot be taller than the house.
Opponents say the proliferation of ADUs could “ruin the ‘ambiance’” of the city’s traditional single-family neighborhoods, a common concern among ADU detractors. Yet ADUs, once known as carriage houses, are common in some of Jacksonville’s most historic neighborhoods. Accessory units only fell out of favor more recently, when single-family zoning began to dominate America’s residential neighborhoods.
Other supporters of the bills say many Jacksonville residents were already building ADUs, and that legalizing the process would make their construction safer while adding sorely needed housing stock.
FULL STORY: Council approves plan to expand accessory dwelling units in Jacksonville

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Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?

HSR Reaches Key Settlement in Northern California City
The state’s high-speed rail authority reached an agreement with Millbrae, a key city on the train’s proposed route to San Francisco.

Washington State Legislature Passes Parking Reform Bill
A bill that would limit parking requirements for new developments is headed to the governor’s desk.

Missouri Law Would Ban Protections for Housing Voucher Users
A state law seeks to overturn source-of-income discrimination bans passed by several Missouri cities.
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