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FAQs

Housing FAQs

  1. If duplexes, triplexes, and fourplexes are allowed in residential districts, will every property be eligible?
    1. Practically speaking, not every property will be eligible. Applicants would have to meet dimensional limits, including lot coverage, setback, and parking layout requirements. It’ll likely be difficult or impossible to design additional units around the dimensional requirements on some smaller lots.
  2. Under these Land Development Code amendments, would owners of existing single-family homes be required to convert their homes to duplexes, triplexes or fourplexes?
    1. No, the changes would be optional. Homeowners would be able to keep things as they are if they preferred.
  3. Under the Land Development Code amendments, would an Accessory Apartment be allowed in addition to a triplex for a total of four units on one lot?
    1. No, an Accessory Apartment can only be added to a single-family home under the proposed rules.
  4. Will parking on lawns be allowed?
    1. No, parking on lawns is prohibited. The City will continue to enforce violations based on a complaint. Homeowners wishing to modify their single-family house into a duplex or triplex will have to designate a parking area using less than 30 percent or 20 feet of the linear frontage of the lot, whichever is less.
  5. Can a homeowner retrofit existing space within a single-family house to create a duplex instead of re-building their house or constructing additional space?
    1. Yes, but a zoning permit would still be required.
  6. If the Land Development Code amendments are approved, will my neighborhood change immediately?
    1. Probably not. On most lots, legalizing triplexes would mean nothing at all for many years. Homeowners are not obligated to make any changes, and we anticipate that many people will continue to be happy with their homes the way they are. An analysis from Portland, Oregon, with a similarly expensive real-estate market as ours, shows that even with more density legalized, in most circumstances, it would not be profitable for a developer to buy and demolish a habitable structure and then replace it with a triplex rental property. The intent of allowing triplexes on any lot isn’t to make every lot a triplex. It is to open the opportunity to create more homes through incremental change. We see the proposed changes to the Land Development Code as just one step towards solving our housing crisis. There are many more barriers to ensuring abundant, affordable, and equitable housing, and we will have to take additional measures in the coming years to address these issues.
  7. If these new rules are passed, how would I apply to turn my house into a duplex or triplex?
    1. You would need to get a zoning permit before starting any construction. If you are unfamiliar with the process, please contact our Community Development department, and we’ll guide you through the process.

Parking Requirements FAQs

  1. Wouldn’t this make parking in the City more difficult than it already is?
    1. We face a geometric reality that cities have relatively little space per person, and cars take up a lot of space per person. To welcome more people and businesses into our city of four square miles, we must accommodate more of our transportation needs through public transit and by building the density and infrastructure that makes it possible for some people to get around by walking and cycling. Re-thinking our policies around parking is one step in this gradual transition, but it also means the City might experience some growing pains. Under the proposed rules, we still anticipate that developers will build enough parking to meet the needs of their tenants most of the time, but it is possible that occasionally, parking may become more challenging to find.
  2. What other cities have recently changed their policies around parking mandates?
    1. ​​​​​Here in Vermont, the City of Burlington has eliminated parking mandates citywide and has even imposed maximum parking limits for many uses. South Burlington has eliminated parking minimums citywide in most cases. The entire State of Maine has eliminated parking requirements for accessory dwelling units and relaxed its parking requirements for affordable housing developments in growth centers.  Click here for an interactive map of how parking mandates have recently changed in cities throughout the US and Canada.

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