Encinitas continues to pave the way for accessory dwelling unit permitting

Encinitas Mayor Catherine Blakespear appeared in front of the Housing and Community Development Committee in Sacramento on June 20 with author Senator Patricia Bates to support a bill that will give residents an additional tool to permit their existing accessory dwelling units. According to Blakespear, the committee unanimously approved the bill.

The bill, SB 1226, will direct the California Building Standards Commission to adopt a building standard that would clarify the authority for a local building official to permit an existing residential unit based on the date of construction. This would allow a homeowner with an older, unpermitted accessory dwelling units to use the building code from the year the unit was constructed to get a permit. The City of Encinitas has estimated that there are at least 1,000 unpermitted accessory dwelling units throughout the city. Earlier this year the city loosened regulations around the size and setback requirements for accessory units, in addition to waiving all city fees.

“This bill expands the opportunities for residents to permit their granny flats in Encinitas,” Blakespear said. “We are working diligently to move the needle on the number of permitted accessory units in the city. I’m excited about the possibilities this opens up.”

The City of Encinitas has not sponsored a bill in the state legislature in the past 20 years. The bill is expected to be presented to the Assembly Appropriations Committee for fiscal consideration in early August and to the Assembly for final consideration in late August, before going to Governor Jerry Brown in September. The bill earlier passed on consent in the state Senate.

For more information, please visit https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov.

— Submitted news release