City Of Cupertino: Pre-Approved ADU Program Expected To Bring Much Needed Affordable Housing To Cupertino

Press release from the City of Cupertino:

09/22/2021

The City of Cupertino is pleased to announce the implementation of a Pre-Approved Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) Program, which is expected to bring much-needed affordable housing to Cupertino. The program, created at the direction of the Cupertino City Council, provides for a streamlined process that saves applicants time, and potentially money.

“As demonstrated here, our City Council will work with staff and anyone else to find safe and effective ways to encourage the creation of more affordable housing in Cupertino, with our aim being to have an honest and positive net impact on the issue of housing,” Mayor Darcy Paul said. “This program provides an expedited way for homeowners to ensure a code compliant design during the building permit process.”

The City is currently on track to double its permitted ADUs compared to last year, even before the pre-approved ADUs program was implemented. The City has also exceeded its projected number of ADUs by more than 250%. This follows the City’s actions in 2018 to slash its permit fees by upwards of 75% down to less than $2,000. In addition, the City has flexible ADU standards that allow ADUs in all single-family and residential hillside districts, with less required setback than required by state law and minimal parking requirements.

Accessory Dwelling Units Permitted by Year and Type

Can't see the table below? Click here to view the original story.

*Numbers reflect only half of 2021

In addition, the City’s Housing Element encourages the increased supply of ADUs to provide affordable housing opportunities that meet the City’s Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA). To implement this General Plan policy, the City has worked to incentivize the production of ADUs. As part of these efforts, the City has reduced building permit and impact fees and adopted modifications to development standards.

For more information on the pre-approved ADU plans, visit cupertino.org/aduplans.

This press release was produced by the City of Cupertino. The views expressed here are the author’s own.