IMPORTANT: On September 11 at 7:30 pm the County Council is holding a pubic hearing on new, relaxed standards for accessory apartments.
Meredith Wellington
Dear Neighbors,
On September 11th—the first day that the County Council returns from its August recess--Council will hold a public hearing on Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA) 12-11 at 7:30 pm at the County Office Building, 100 Maryland Avenue in Rockville. ZTA 12-11 relaxes the standards for the approval of accessory apartments.
If you would like to testify, you can sign up by calling the Council at 240-777-7803. This is an opportunity to raise any concerns you may have about accessory apartments, and you should take advantage of this opportunity. ZTA 12-11 raises many questions that can best be fleshed out through a public dialogue.
OVERVIEW: The ZTA relaxes the standards for accessory apartments, and permits a large category of apartments to be approved “by right” without either notice to or participation by adjoining property owners. It makes no changes in the current system for enforcing the rules for accessory apartments. In fact, enforcement is not mentioned at all. To address concerns about over concentration of accessory apartments in a neighborhood, ZTA 12-11 requires a separation of 300 feet between accessory apartments in the smaller lot zones, and 500 feet in the larger lot zones. The ZTA also “sunsets” the “by right” provision after 2,000 accessory apartments have been approved. Thereafter, all approvals for new accessory apartments would be by special exception. Currently, Council Staff estimates that there are approximately 400 accessory apartments in the County that have been approved by special exception.
Surprisingly, ZTA
12-11 is different from the provisions for accessory apartments currently
proposed in the Zoning Rewrite! That
again raises the question—why are accessory apartments being considered
separately from the Zoning Code Rewrite—even though the first draft of the
Rewrite is almost complete, and will be considered by the Planning Board this
fall? (More on the Rewrite later—keep an eye on your emails!)
Questions: Why does ZTA 12-11 make certain kinds of accessory apartments “by right” such that adjoining property owners lose the right to notice and to participate in the decision to approve an accessory apartment? And, on the other hand, for other kinds of accessory apartments, why does ZTA 12-11 retain the special exception process as is without addressing any of the concerns of applicants for accessory apartments?
Why is there no longer a compatibility requirement such that any new construction for the apartment must be compatible with the existing home, and those that are nearby? What is the reason that the number of on site parking spaces has been reduced without regard to the particular location of the new apartment? How narrow are the streets? Is public transit a viable option? How many people are living in the apartment and in the primary residence? If there is the maximum of three people in the apartment, how many of them have a car? If there is the maximum of five people in the primary residence, how many cars do they have? Why has the ZTA dropped the requirement that a homeowner must be in the primary residence for 5 years before applying for an accessory apartment? This means that new homes may be built with an accessory apartment included. Will the builder have to get a special exception if the apartment is within 300 feet or 500 feet, respectively, of another accessory apartment?
How will DHCA enforce the requirements for accessory apartments? For example, how will it enforce the requirement that no more than 3 people may occupy an accessory apartment? If the occupants are unrelated, how will DHCA keep track of how many persons are living in the apartment? Does this limit apply to families with children? If a couple in an accessory apartment has twins, will they be evicted?
When one applies for a “by right” accessory apartment, is information in the application independently verified? Once an apartment is approved, how long does the approval last? If the home is sold, does the approval remain? How will rules be enforced? What will be the penalties for violation of the rules? Are there sufficient resources to enforce the current standards for accessory apartments much less these new, relaxed standards? How will the County handle the administrative burden of a much anticipated and desired increase in the number of accessory apartments?
These are just a few of the questions raised by the changes in the standards for accessory apartments. I am sure you have other questions, as well. It’s a good idea to get these questions to the County Council as soon as possible.
I'll be back in touch soon.
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Neighborhood Montgomery
A Neighborhood Network for Sensible Growth
http://groups.google.com/group/neighborhood-montgomery