Two Community Meetings This Week as City Prepares New “Accessory Dwelling Unit” Regulations

Pasadena residents will have a chance to ask questions and give their input during two community meetings scheduled by the Department of Planning and Community Development for next week, before a final ordinance is drafted amending the City’s accessory dwelling regulations,

Planning Director David Reyes said the meetings will be conducted in an open-house format where members of the community could visit information stations anytime between 6 and 8 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday, April 4 and 6, and ask questions and provide input.

The contents of both meetings will be the same, so community members can choose to attend the meeting that is more convenient for them, Reyes said.

In January, the Pasadena City Council adopted targeted changes to the City’s accessory dwelling unit regulations to keep it in compliance with newly amended state law, specifically State Assembly Bill 2299 and State Senate Bill 1069, both of which regulate parking, type and size of units, as well as water and sewer utility requirements for all second dwelling units.

The amended state law also invalidates any city’s existing second unit ordinance if they don’t comply with all of the requirements of the newly adopted state standards.
Planning staff were directed to review the City’s regulations entirely and come up with a more comprehensive report by the end of June. The City Council stressed that staff should strive to maintain the character of Pasadena’s single-family neighborhoods.

As announced by the Planning Department, the community meeting on Tuesday, April 4, will be at the Gilmore Hall of the First Church of the Nazarene Pasadena, located at 3700 E. Sierra Madre Blvd., from 6 to 8 p.m.

On Thursday, April 6, the community meeting will be at the Pasadena Senior Center’ss West Pavilion, at 85 E. Holly Street, between 6 and 8 p.m.

After the community meetings, the Planning Department will use the community input, along with other information, to prepare draft changes to the existing accessory dwelling unit regulations which will then be presented to the City’s Planning Commission and the City Council at separate public hearings.

For more detailed information about the community meetings, visit www.cityofpasadena.net/Upcoming_Community_Divison_Meetings.