Two plans aimed at making it easier for Oahu properties to have two living units, and a bill cracking down on illegal vacation rentals, will be aired by the Honolulu Planning Commission at a public hearing Wednesday.
City officials want to bolster the inventory of homes on Oahu. Experts estimate the island has a demand for 24,000 new homes in the coming years, with affordable rentals being the biggest need.
Increasing the number of accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, is a key component of Mayor Kirk Caldwell’s Islandwide Housing Initiative. Meanwhile, City Councilman Ron Menor offered up his own version of an ADU bill. The commission is expected to recommend one of the plans to the Council, which has the final say.
The idea is to create smaller and affordable rentals. Under both bills, an ADU can be attached or detached from the main house and have its own separate kitchen, bedroom and bathroom.
Some have described the drive for more ADUs as an expansion of the existing ohana dwelling program. But unlike ohana units, ADUs could be rented to people outside the family. The two ADU bills carry limits on the size of the units, while there are no restrictions on the size of ohana units. Parking requirements, however, are more lax in the two ADU proposals.
Among the key differences between the two ADU bills being discussed Wednesday:
» The Department of Planning and Permitting has sponsored a bill to carry out Caldwell’s plan. It specifically would allow the city to continue issuing ohana permits where appropriate, while Menor’s bill does not.
» The DPP version would allow ADUs on single-family residential lots that are 3,500 to 20,000 square feet in size. Menor’s version would allow ADUs on residential lots 5,000 square feet and larger and on lands zoned for agriculture.
» The DPP version allows a maximum living area of between 400 and 800 square feet, depending on lot size, containing its own kitchen, bedroom and bathroom facilities. Menor’s bill does not specify a size limit.
» The DPP bill requires one off-street parking stall per ADU, although that requirement can be waived if the ADU is within a half-mile of a rail transit station. The Menor version calls for one off-street stall for a studio or one-bedroom unit, and two stalls for ADUs with more than one bedroom.
The strongest objections to the ADU concept have come from Oahu residents who say their neighborhoods’ roads and other infrastructure are already overtaxed by illegal vacation rentals disguised as ohana units, and who fear that allowing ADUs will only compound the problem.
To deter illegal vacation rentals, the DPP bill would require ADUs to be rented for a minimum of 180 days.
The third bill on Wednesday’s agenda consists of the DPP’s plan to establish stringent enforcement against illegal vacation rentals.
"Certain transient vacation units" would be allowed to continue if they obtain nonconforming-use certificates and abide by strict conditions. One key provision would require vacation rental advertisements to include information that would make it easier for the city to identify illegal operations.
The commission hearing takes place from 1:30 p.m. at Blaisdell Center’s Hawaii Suites. To see the proposals, go to bit.ly/DPPADUagenda.
