StaffReport_ADU-2008-76_+Attachments.pdf
CITY OF EDMONDS
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121 5 Avenue North, Edmonds WA 98020
Phone: 425.771.0220 • Fax: 425.771.0221 • Web: www.ci.edmonds.wa.us
DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT • PLANNING DIVISION
PLANNING DIVISION ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW
FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS, & DECISION
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Project:
Hamm Accessory Dwelling Unit at 22829 108 Avenue West (RS-8)
File Number:
ADU-2008-76
Date of Report:
February 18, 2009
I have determined that the application is complete and have reviewed the
Accessory Dwelling Unit application pursuant to Chapters 20.21 and 20.95 of
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the Edmonds Community Development Code .
Reviewed By:
____________________________
Gina Coccia, Associate Planner
I.INTRODUCTION
A.SUMMARY OF APPLICATION:
The purpose of the Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) chapter is to regulate the establishment
of ADUs within single-family dwellings while preserving the character of single-family
neighborhoods. The request for additional living quarters within single-family
neighborhoods is to (1) make it possible for adult children to provide care and support to a
parent or other relatives in need of assistance, or (2) provide increased security and
companionship for homeowners, or (3) provide the opportunity for homeowners to gain the
extra income necessary to meet the rising costs of home ownership, or (4) to provide for the
care of disabled persons within their own homes.
This site is located in a single-family neighborhood near Sherwood Elementary School, and
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Avenue West borders the Town of Woodway. All of the homes within the Edmonds
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city limits in this neighborhood are also zoned Single-Family Residential (RS-8). The owner
is proposing to create a one-bedroom Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) in the upstairs portion
of her home. The only exterior changes proposed involve the replacement of existing entry
stairs and their landing, in order to safely access the proposed ADU. The floor plan indicates
that the owner intends to remodel the upstairs to include one bedroom, a kitchen, breakfast
nook, living room, closet, and a bathroom. Because the owner is proposing to have separate
kitchen, bath, and sleeping facilities within the existing residence, an Accessory Dwelling
Unit (ADU) permit is required. Approval of an ADU permit requires compliance with
Edmonds Community Development Code (ECDC) Chapters 16.20 and 20.21. After land use
approval is obtained for the ADU, the owner will need to apply for and receive Building
Compliance permit approval (at that time, the stair/landing replacement will be reviewed).
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All Edmonds Community Development Code (ECDC) citations can be accessed online at www.ci.edmonds.wa.us.
Hamm ADU
File ADU-2008-76
II.FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
A.GENERAL INFORMATION
1.Request:
To create an ADU in the upstairs portion of the owner’s home, located in the
Single-Family Residential (RS-8) zone (Attachment 5).
2.Review Process:
Accessory Dwelling Unit – Planning staff reviews the project and
issues an administrative decision.
3.Owner/Applicant:
Shirley Hamm (Attachment 2).
4.Tax Parcel Number:
00637800000400.
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5.Location:
22829 108 Avenue West, Edmonds WA 98020 (Attachment 1).
6.Zoning:
Single-Family Residential (RS-8).
7.Acreage / Square Footage:
Approximately 0.25 Acres / Approximately 11,071 square
feet (Attachment 4).
8.Existing Use:
One single-family home.
9.Proposed Use:
One single-family home with one ADU in the upstairs.
10.Shoreline Management:
The site is not subject to Shorelines of the State regulations.
11.Comprehensive Plan Designation:
“Single Family – Urban 1.”
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12.Access / Street:
108 Avenue West is considered a “Local Street” and provides access to
the property.
B.TECHNICAL COMMITTEE:
This application was reviewed by the City’s Fire Department, Engineering Division, Parks
and Recreation Department, and the Public Works Department. The Building Division
provided the comments which include the condition that a Building Compliance Permit is
required for the proposed ADU. The Fire Department required a condition that
interconnected smoke alarms must be provided throughout both dwellings (Attachment 6).
C.ZONING COMPLIANCE (ECDC 16.20):
The property is located in the single-family residential (RS-8) zone. Pursuant to ECDC
16.20.010(D)(4), Accessory Dwelling Units are a permitted secondary use requiring a
Conditional Use permit. The ADU application is processed as an administrative Conditional
Use permit and reviewed against specific ADU criteria listed in ECDC 20.21.030. The
proposed ADU is consistent with the zoning ordinance.
D.APPLICATION AND STAFF REVIEW COMPLIANCE (ECDC 20.95):
This ADU application is processed pursuant to ECDC 20.95.040 (Staff Decision – Notice
Required). A complete application was received on December 16, 2008, which satisfies the
requirements of ECDC 20.95.
E.CRITERIA FOR ADU COMPLIANCE (ECDC 20.21.030):
The following specific criteria must be met in order for an ADU to be approved. The criteria
as applied to this permit is discussed below.
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1.Permit Required:
Any person who occupies or permits another person to occupy an
attached ADU as a place of residence shall first obtain a permit.
The owner applied for an ADU permit on December 16, 2008 (Attachment 2). The
application was considered complete upon submittal, however, additional information
was requested on January 6, 2009 and January 16, 2009. The City’s outstanding
questions were satisfied on January 27, 2009 and staff began the two week comment
period on February 2, 2009. A building compliance permit is also required, but has not
yet been applied for or received. A condition of approval will be that the owner follows
through with the required Building Compliance Permit in order to meet this criterion.
2.Number of Units:
A single-family dwelling may have no more than 1 ADU per lot.
Only one ADU is proposed for this lot, therefore this criterion has been met.
Size:
3.In no case shall an ADU be (1) larger than 40 percent of the livable floor area of
the principal dwelling (2) nor more than 800 square feet, (3) nor have more than two
bedrooms; provided, if the ADU is completely located on a single floor, the planning
manager may allow increased size up to 50 percent of the floor area of the principal
dwelling in order to efficiently use all floor area, so long as all other standards set forth
in this chapter are met.
The Snohomish County Assessor’s parcel data indicates that the second floor (where the
ADU will be located) is 742 square feet (880 square feet shown on the applicant’s floor
plan). The County’s records indicate that the first floor is 1,862 square feet (1,852 shown
on the owner’s floor plan). In any event, the County’s records indicate that the ADU will
be slightly less than 40 percent of the principle dwelling and less than 800 square feet in
size. Even if this figure is off by a little bit, as the owner has indicated on her floor plans,
it still meets the intent of the code, because the ADU will be completely located on a
single floor (in order to efficiently use all of the floor area), only one bedroom is
proposed, and the ADU will still be under 50 percent of the floor area of the principal
dwelling (47 percent maximum, according to owner’s floor plans; 39 percent minimum,
according to County’s records). See Attachments 4 and 5 for details. Staff feels the
application meets the size criteria.
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4.Location and AppearanceThe single-family appearance and character of the
residence shall be maintained when viewed from the surrounding neighborhood. The
design of the ADU shall be incorporated into the design of the principal dwelling unit
and shall be designed to maintain the architectural design, style, appearance and
character of the main building as a single-family residence using matching materials,
colors, window style, and roof design. The primary entrance to the ADU shall be located
in such a manner as to be unobtrusive when viewed from the street. Whenever possible,
new entrances should be placed at the side or rear of the building. Only one electric and
one water meter shall be allowed for the entire building, serving both the primary
residence and the ADU. ADUs must be located within or attached to single-family
dwelling units.
The proposed ADU will maintain the single-family appearance and character of the
residence, because no exterior changes are proposed (except for the
maintenance/replacement of the existing stairs and landing). The property does not have
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frontage along 108 Avenue West, so the ADU entry is unobtrusive when viewed from
the street. The ADU is proposed within the single-family dwelling unit. A condition of
approval will address the requirement of having only one mail box, water meter, and
electric meter.
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5.Parking:
One off-street parking space in addition to the parking spaces normally
required for the principal dwelling shall be required to be provided for the ADU, but in
no event less than three spaces per lot.
The garage is shown to be at least 18.5’ wide and at least 16.5’ deep. With these
dimensions, the Engineering Division has found that the garage can accommodate two
parking spaces, as well as one tandem space in front of the garage. With room shown for
at least three parking spaces, the ADU application meets the parking criteria
(Attachments 3, 4, and 5).
6.Occupancy:
Either the primary dwelling or the ADU shall be owner-occupied. “Owner-
occupied” shall mean a property owner who makes his or her legal residence at the site,
as evidenced by voter registration, vehicle registration, or similar means, and actually
resides at the site more than six months out of any given year, and at no time receives
rent for the owner-occupied unit. The owner(s) shall not rent the designated owner-
occupied unit at any time during the pendency of the ADU permit; Any such rental shall
void the permit. The owner(s) shall not rent any portion of the owner-occupied unit for
any period. In no event shall the total number of occupants exceed one family as defined
in the Edmonds Community Development Code; provided, however, that if the ADU is
occupied by a nurse or other caregiver assisting a disabled person who is an occupant of
the principal residence, or the principal residence is occupied by a nurse/caregiver and
the ADU is occupied by a disabled person under the nurse’s care, the occupancy limit of
one family may be in creased by one additional unrelated person to a total of one family
related by genetics, adoption or marriage plus one unrelated person, or a total of six
unrelated persons. In no event shall the total number of occupants exceed one family as
defined in the Edmonds Community Development Code.
The owner has given her oath by signing an affidavit (Attachment 8) stating that she will
reside in the primary or accessory dwelling unit for more than six months of every hear.
An “ADU Covenant” (sample shown in Attachment 9) will also need to be recorded at
the County Auditor’s Office that affirms that the owner will need to reside in the home at
least six months out of every year, it will disclose the ADU to future owners, and it will
notify them of the conditions of approval.
7.Safety, Light, Ventilation, Floor Area and Similar Factors:
ADUs shall comply with
all applicable requirements of the Uniform Housing Code and the Uniform Building
Code adopted by ECDC Title 19 and shall comply in all respects with the provisions of
the ECDC. No permit for an ADU shall be issued to a nonconforming structure unless
that structure is brought into conformance with the then current provisions of this code.
These criteria will be reviewed through the Building Compliance Permit, which the
owner will need to apply for and receive in order for the ADU to be valid. An inspection
by a City Building Inspector will be completed in order to ensure that the ADU meets the
requirements of all life-safety codes and standards. Any conditions or corrections
resulting from the inspection must be complied with. Any approval of an ADU should be
conditioned to require compliance with the Building Division’s inspection requirements.
The proposed replacement of the stairs also requires building permit approval. These
items have been addressed as condition sof approval for the ADU permit. Therefore, this
criteria has been met.
The proposal, with conditions, is compliant with the ADU criteria.
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F.BUILDING CODE COMPLIANCE (ECDC TITLE 19):
The ADU permit can be described in two phases. Phase one of the ADU permitting process
is for land use review and approval – this is the review at hand. The second phase of the
ADU permitting process is building compliance review and approval. Once the applicant
submits and obtains a building permit for the work proposed (new ADU + replacement
stairs/landing, etc.), the Building Division will review the proposal for compliance with the
various building codes, including ECDC Title 19.
III.DECISION
Based on the Findings of Fact, Conclusions, and Attachments to this report, the following
The Accessory Dwelling Unit, as
decision is issued by the City of Edmonds Planning Division.
proposed, is APPROVED with the following conditions:
1.
A Building Compliance Permit must first be obtained from the Building Division and final
inspection must be made and occupancy approval granted by the City Building Inspector
prior to the area used as an ADU. Specific comments from the Building Division will be
addressed during review of the Building Compliance Permit (including the replacement of the
exterior entry stairs). Please contact the Building Division at 425.771.0220 to inquire about
the building permit process. The Building Compliance Permit must be applied for within one
year, otherwise the ADU permit will expire. See ECDC 20.05.010(C) and section IV of this
report for more information.
2.
Pursuant to ECDC 20.21.060, this approval shall expire automatically whenever:
a.
The ADU is substantially altered and is thus no longer in conformance with the plans and
drawings reviewed and approved by the permitting authority and building official.
b.
The subject site ceases to maintain the required number of parking spaces.
c.
The property owner ceases to reside in either the primary residence or the ADU, the
owner-occupied unit is rented, or the current owner fails to file the affidavit required
under ECDC 20.21.025(A)(1).
3.
Hard-wired interconnected smoke detectors with battery back-up shall be required throughout
both the primary and accessory dwelling units.
4.
A single-family dwelling may have no more than one Accessory Dwelling Unit per lot.
5.
The Accessory Dwelling Unit Covenant must be filed with the Snohomish County Auditor.
Prior to occupancy of the ADU, the owner must either:
a.
Provide the City processing fee of $20 plus the County recording fee of $42 (for a total of
$62) and the City will record the Covenant for you; -- OR --
b.
Take the Covenant to the County Auditor’s Office and record it for the County’s
recording fee of $42. Then, return a copy of the recorded Covenant to the Edmonds
Planning Division with the Auditor’s recording sticker on the copy.
6.
Pursuant to ECDC 20.21.040, the Accessory Dwelling Unit permit shall not be transferable to
any site other than the subject site described in the application. The Accessory Dwelling Unit
permit is transferable to new owners of the subject property unless there is a violation of any
conditions of approval listed above. New owners must file a notarized Accessory Dwelling
Unit Affidavit with the City of Edmonds Planning Division.
7.
Only one mail box, one water meter, and one electric meter are permitted for the entire site, in
accordance with ECDC 20.21.030(D).
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IV.APPEALS AND RECONSIDERATIONS:
The following is a summary of the deadlines and procedures for filing requests for
reconsiderations and appeals. Any person wishing to file or respond to an appeal should contact
the Planning Division for further procedural information.
A request for reconsideration or clarification of this decision may be made by filing a letter and
fee with the Planning Department within ten (10) working days of the date of decision.
Section 20.105.010(A) describes how appeals of a staff decision shall be made. The appeal shall
be made in writing, and shall include the decision being appealed along with the name of the
project and the date of the decision, the name of the individual or group appealing the decision,
their interest in the matter, and reasons why the appellant believes the decision to be wrong. The
appeal must be filed with the Community Development Director within fourteen (14) calendar
days after the date of the decision being appealed.
V.LAPSE OF APPROVAL:
ADUs are processed as administrative conditional use permits, and ECDC 20.05.020(C) states,
“Unless the owner obtains a building permit… within one year from the date of approval, the
conditional use permit shall expire and be null and void, unless the owner files an application for
an extension of time before the expiration date.”
VI.NOTICE TO THE COUNTY ASSESSOR:
The property owner may, as a result of the decision rendered by the staff, request a change in the
valuation of the property by the Snohomish County Assessor’s Office.
VII.PARTIES OF RECORD:
Shirley Hamm Planning Division
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22829 108 Avenue West Engineering Division
Edmonds WA 98020 Building Division
VIII.ATTACHMENTS:
1.
Zoning & Vicinity Map
2.
Land Use Application
3.
Letter from Applicant Received 01/09/2009
4.
Site Plan
5.
Floor Plans
6.
Department Memos: Building Division, Engineering Division, and Fire Department
7.
Notices and Affidavits of Posting, Publishing, and Mailing
8.
ADU Affidavit
9.
ADU Covenant
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Attachment1
ShirleyHamm
AccessoryDwellingUnit
Zoning/VicinityMap
FileNumberADU-2008-76
0100200Feet
22829108thAvenueWest(RS-8Zone)