OCCUPANCY STANDARDS AND ZONING VARIANCES
(Excerpts from the Health and Safety Code)
17922.9. (a) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the provision
of an adequate level of affordable housing,
in and of itself, is a fundamental responsibility of the state and that
a generally inadequate supply of decent, safe,
and sanitary housing affordable to persons of low and moderate income threatens
orderly community and regional
development, including job creation, attracting new private investment,
and creating the physical, economic,
social, and environmental conditions to support continued growth and security
of all areas of the state.
The Legislature further finds and declares that many rural communities depend
on mortgage financing available
through the Farmers Home Administration and that the continued construction
of affordable housing is a priority
for the state. However, the Legislature, in requiring waiver of certain
local requirements respecting adequacy of
garages and carports, and house size does not endorse the restrictive Farmers
Home Administration regulations
that preclude financing of two-car garages and houses exceeding a maximum
size.
The Legislature further finds and declares that inadequate housing supplies
have a negative impact on regional
development and are, therefore, a matter of statewide interest and concern.
(b) Notwithstanding any local ordinance, charter provision, or regulation
to the contrary, if the applicant for a
building permit for construction of a qualifying residential structure submits
with the application a conditional
loan commitment letter or letter of intent to finance issued by the Farmers
Home Administration of the United
States Department of Agriculture for the structure, the city, county, or
city and county issuing the building permit
shall not impose any requirement on the permit respecting the size or capacity
of any appurtenant garage or
carport or house size which exceeds the size or capacity that the Farmers
Home Administration will finance under
its then applicable regulations and policies. "Qualifying residential
structure," as used in this section, means any single-family or multifamily residential structure financed by the Farmers
Home Administration and which is
restricted pursuant to federal law to ownership or occupancy by households
with incomes not exceeding the
income criteria for persons and families of low and moderate income, as
defined by Section 50093, or more
restrictive income criteria.
(c) This section does not preclude a city, county, or city and county from
requiring the provision of one
uncovered, paved parking space located outside the required setback and
outside the driveway approach to the
garage or covered parking space plus a garage or covered parking space that
does not exceed the size and capacity
allowed for Farmers Home Administration financing. However, this setback
requirement may not exceed the
setbacks applicable to single-family dwelling units in the same zoning district
that have two-car garages.
(Added by Stats. 1988, Ch. 97; Amended by Stats. 1994, Ch. 198.)
17959.5. The housing appeals board may, upon appeal or upon application
by the owner, grant variances from local
use zone requirements in order to permit an owner-occupant of a dwelling
to construct an addition to a dwelling to
meet occupancy standards relating the number of persons in a household to
the number of rooms or bedrooms.
This power of the housing appeals board shall be in addition to, and shall
not otherwise affect, the powers of other
governmental boards and agencies to allow local use zone variances.
(Added by Stats. 1977, Ch. 847; Amended by Stats. 1994, Ch. 198.)
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