Takoma Park Council to Discuss Accessory Apartment Zoning

Rollie Smith June 11, 2012 at 12:37 pm

I am definitely for "granny flats" and accessory apartments as long as the codes for maintenance and noise are kept up. Density is not a problem, and is in fact a solution, as long as we all are aware of and do not permit some of the potential consequences of it. I support the amendment.

Ken Norkin June 11, 2012 at 03:28 pm

So right now we have an accessory apartment application process that takes 9 to 13 months that results in very few being denied -- and people are questioning the appropriateness of a by-right standard? Just one more example of the not in my back yard; I've got mine, you can't have yours; and your business is my business attitude that is so pervasive throughout Montgomery County and in Takoma Park in particular.
Should you as a neighbor have any say as to whether my brother, mother-in-law, nephew or married child come to live with me -- sleeping in a spare bedroom and sharing my kitchen? Of course not. Why, then, should you have any say as to whether I add a kitchen and bath to give them more privacy? If the law already says that I can only legally provide such an apartment to a relative and that I must continue to live on the premises, why should there be any public hearing as long as I comply with all other applicable permitting standards? If the concern is that the mother-in-law suite will turn into an illegally rented apartment, that's easily remedied. The neighbors who so much want a say and role in the approval process can have their role instead in the enforcement process by reporting suspected violations. Mark Elrich's constitutional concerns are easily addressed by making agreement to inspections and waiver of warrants part of the apartment licensing process.

Ryan McDermott (Editor) June 11, 2012 at 04:39 pm

Thanks for the comments. I know this is a contentious issue among many Montgomery County residents.

Caroline R. Alderson June 12, 2012 at 11:54 pm

With shrinking family sizes, increased property taxes, and rising maintenance costs, it makes sense for many families to take in boarders as they historically did in Takoma Park and elsewhere in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Accessory apartments provides quality housing options for individuals who are not suited to high density housing and aren't up to buying and maintaining a house. Rental units within owner-occupied houses are different than rental units maintained by owners who live elsewhere, because accessory apartment owners are part of the community and owners generally set the highest standards for the places where they live. To my knowledge, the maintenance track record for owner-occupied houses containing accessory apartments in Takoma Park has been as good or better, on the whole, than for maintenance of other houses in the City, in part because of the county's rigorous annual inspection of buildings containing rental units.