A resolution urging Mayor Kirk Caldwell to introduce legislation making it easier for Oahu homeowners to put up a second dwelling on their lots was approved unanimously by the Hono-lulu City Council this week.

Caldwell already has proposed expanding the number of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) on the island as one of three major initiatives of his draft Islandwide Housing Strategy.

Currently, the city allows a type of ADU known as "ohana" dwelling units, which can be rented only to family members in certain Oahu neighborhoods.

Resolution 14-200, introduced by Councilman Ron Menor, calls for scrapping the family requirement and loosening other rules. For instance, second dwellings could be allowed to be attached to primary units and ADUs would be allowed in more areas already zoned for residential use.

A number of key issues still need to be ironed out, such as whether to allow the many existing "non-compliant" ADUs to be made legal or "grandfathered;" pinpointing maximum allowable ADU size; and setting a minimum number for required on-site parking stalls.

Supporters argue that expanding the ADU program would be the quickest and most efficient way to create more affordable units during the ongoing housing crunch. It also would require the least expensive government cash outlay. But the proposal is drawing opposition from homeowners who say they’re already subjected to neighbors who have created illegal second-dwellings that create headaches in their communities.

Scott Fujii, project manager for the community advocacy group PHOCUSED, told Council members on Wednesday that his nonprofit’s recent survey of 1,800 homeless individuals and families found that nearly one-fourth of them do not require case management or intensive social services but simply a home they can afford. "We strongly believe that ADUs can be one of the parts of the solution to addressing that need," Fujii said.

But Foster Village resident Larry Baird testified that he moved next door to a three-bedroom, single-family house in 1972. Today, he said, he lives next to "a 12-bedroom hotel," with 24 cars that crowd two sides of his one-lane street and has managed to avoid the city’s detection.

The city does not have enough inspectors to regulate what’s going on, Baird said. "Who’s going to control this? You have no checks and balances. This thing has gotten out of control," he said.

Menor and Council Zoning Chairman Ikaika Anderson said there will be many opportunities for the public to provide input as the bill is introduced in the coming year or so.

Also approved by the Council Wednesday:

» Bill 61, on final reading, allowing the city to take over maintenance of privately owned streets. The administration objected strongly to the bill, suggesting it could open up the city to major liability concerns. Councilman Brandon Elefante opposed the measure. Four others voted "yes" with reservations.

» Bill 65, allowing the city to establish programs that would promote car-sharing services, passed the second of three readings at the City Council Wednesday.

» Bill 81 and 82, on the first of three readings, establishing a special improvement district in Waikiki requiring landowners in the district to pay into a fund aimed at sand restoration at Waikiki Beach and other related shoreline improvements.