Updated: An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported the outcome of the ADU vote. The story has been corrected.
FAIRFAX CITY, VA — The Fairfax City Council voted 4-2 Tuesday night to allow detached accessory dwelling units on qualifying residential properties, after Mayor Catherine Read broke a tie on a motion to postpone the decision.
Councilmembers Anthony Amos, Billy Bates, Stacey Hardy-Chandler and Tom Peterson voted to approve the zoning amendments. Councilmembers Stacy Hall and Rachel McQuillen voted against the ordinance, although both said they supported accessory dwelling units and objected primarily to taking action without giving residents more time to review the proposal.
Before the final vote, Peterson offered a substitute motion to postpone consideration until Sept. 8. Hall seconded the motion.
The six councilmembers split 3-3, with Hall, McQuillen and Peterson supporting postponement and Amos, Bates and Hardy-Chandler voting against it. Read then cast the tie-breaking vote against delaying the matter, returning the council to Hardy-Chandler's original motion to approve the ordinance.
Accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, are smaller residences located on the same property as a primary home. Fairfax City has allowed ADUs within or attached to homes, but the newly approved amendments also permit them in separate structures.
The ordinance allows detached ADUs on properties with single-family or duplex homes in the city's RH, RM and RL residential districts. City staff described the proposal as an effort to expand housing opportunities while limiting effects on neighboring properties. The Planning Commission unanimously recommended approval following a June public hearing.
Detached units must be at least 20 feet from the rear property line. Side setbacks will generally be eight feet in the RH and RM districts and 12 feet in the RL district.
The maximum height will be 20 feet, or the height of the primary house, whichever is lower. An ADU's floor area cannot exceed 35 percent of the primary home's gross floor area, and no unit may contain more than two bedrooms.
The property owner must live in either the main house or the accessory unit. The combined occupants of both residences also must meet the city's definition of one household.
Properties with an ADU must provide at least the city's existing minimum of two off-street parking spaces. Detached units used as rentals will be included in the city's rental occupancy permit program, which includes periodic inspections and verification that the property remains owner-occupied.
Staff estimated that Fairfax could see a few dozen detached ADUs during the next decade, or approximately five per year, based on permit activity in Arlington, Alexandria, Falls Church and Fairfax County.
Parking, enforcement and whether homeowners should need special use permits generated much of Tuesday's debate.
Hall argued that requiring only two off-street spaces might worsen parking conditions in neighborhoods that already have crowded streets. She also questioned whether the city had sufficient tools and staff to enforce occupancy and owner-residency requirements.
Hall favored requiring homeowners to obtain a special use permit, which would give neighbors notice and allow the council to review each application.
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"I would have a much easier ability to accept this if it was by special use," Hall said, adding that detached units could affect surrounding homeowners differently than units built inside an existing house.
Hardy-Chandler opposed adding another approval process.
"What concerns me is adding a burden to people who may want to pursue this option, and a burden that would not be in place if they were doing something else, like simply improving their property in a different way," she said.
Bates said residents may build additions, attached ADUs and other permitted structures without appearing before the council. Requiring a special use permit for detached units would add costs and uncertainty, he said.
Read also opposed placing additional restrictions on ADUs because of parking concerns when the city does not impose equivalent vehicle limits on other rental properties.
"I don't think there should be a greater burden on properties with an ADU than we are placing on lots of rental properties that have lots of vehicles," Read said.
Peterson said his proposal to postpone the vote was not necessarily intended to add a special use permit requirement. Instead, he said residents should have more time to consider information presented during Tuesday's hearing.
"It's difficult for people to be able to access some of this information ahead of time and digest it," Peterson said. "We're actually getting explanations here that help them do that, and then we turn right around and we vote."
Hall and McQuillen agreed, saying summer vacations may have prevented residents from following the proposal closely.
After Read broke the tie against postponement, Hall said her final vote should not be interpreted as opposition to ADUs.
"My vote tonight is not a no against ADUs," Hall said. "It's a no against the process that is not allowing our residents sufficient time to absorb this information."
McQuillen similarly said she supported increasing housing options but wanted additional time to speak with constituents about the proposal and the possibility of requiring special use permits.
Peterson ultimately voted for the ordinance while expressing reservations about the process. He called implementation an early "period of discovery" and said city officials should remain willing to respond to concerns that emerge after detached ADUs begin to be built.
Two residents spoke during the hearing. Katie Johnson urged council to require special use permits and stronger safeguards concerning inspections, parking and neighborhood impacts. Jim Gillespie supported the ordinance, saying detached ADUs could provide housing for seniors, younger adults and people with disabilities while allowing them greater independence.
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