New Montgomery County Bill Would Likely Result in More Accessory Apartments

• January 16th 2019

by Nena Perry-Brown

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As Montgomery County continues to inventory ways to creatively add housing, the council is considering legislation regarding accessory dwelling units (ADUs).

At-Large Councilmember Hans Riemer introduced a bill on Tuesday to amend restrictions surrounding accessory apartments. Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA) 19-01 would allow for basement accessory apartments in the county, remove the one-acre lot minimum requirement, and allow detached accessory buildings in six of the seven areas of the county that are zoned as “residential detached.”

Any accessory building constructed before May 31, 2012 would be grandfathered in under the new rules. The amendment will also mandate that owners of ADUs live on the premises and provide two off-street parking spaces. ZTA 19-01 would also enact several technical changes, including:

• removing the maximum size of ADUs or additions for accessory use.
• removing the requirement that the primary dwelling on-site be at least five years old.
• removing the required distance between ADUs.

Councilmember Riemer is holding an ADU policy forum this Saturday in advance of a public hearing on February 26th.

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/montgomery-county-bill-would-allow-additional-accessory-apartments/14891.