After almost a year of town halls, public comments, surveys, petitions and governmental agency deliberations, recommendations and votes, the Falls Church City Council came together this Monday for a surprising unanimous vote adopting an ordinance permitting the construction of accessory dwelling units on residential properties.

A draft of the ordinance that was introduced at the meeting wound up being amended four times with unanimous 7-0 votes in all but one case (6-1), with one proposal that failed before its final approval.

The matter has to do with the wider, national effort to address a severe housing shortage in the U.S. and especially in terms of affordable housing in the case of this region and the City of Falls Church, where the value of the average single family home is in the range of $1 million.

Accessory dwellings, also called “granny flats,” offer as their intent a lower priced housing option and commonly are considered desirable options for housing inlaws, either young or older, by a single family homeowner. But they can also be used for rentals, which would also help alleviate the housing problem by adding income for an economically-squeezed homeowner.

Mayor Letty Hardi wrapped up the discussion praising the outcome, noting that it will provide “more housing options,” taking less than a year to address a long-standing problem.”

The new law “allows for by-right development, no restrictive parking requirements, and for mutli-generational living addressing the needs of children, parents and more,” she said.

She added that the new policy also sends a message that Falls Church is “a welcoming city, and we are serious about that.”

She hailed the “well-rounded discussions about the good we can bring” to the city, and against “the bad stuff that keeps good stuff from happening.”

Vice Mayor Deborah Shantz-Hiscott said she was “proud of the collaborative approach” exhibited by the Council since the matter was first introduced last May.

Councilmember Marybeth Connelly applauded the “heavy lift” that the matter represented for the City Hall staff, especially the key role played by the Planning Department’s Jack Trainor, who has been in charge of it since Planning Director Paul Stoddard left earlier this year.

She said, “This has been such a thorough process. There has been a lot of talking and listening and so many changes along the way.”

Councilmember Erin Flynn said, “I echo Marybeth’s remarks, we are all doing our best.”

Councilmember Laura Downs hailed the fact that the Council was able to work together to make concessions. “I am proud of us,” she said. “We’ve been reading all the emails, assessing survey results, having a lot of 1-on-1 conversations. My mind changed several times.”

Councilmember Dave Snyder said, “This should show that compromise is not a four-letter word.”

Perhaps the most contentious issue related to setbacks, that is, how far from a property line must an accessory unit be placed. A proposal for five feet was counted by one for 10, and the compromise was eight feet (and 10 for more than a single level). It was pointed out that Alexandria has only a single foot setback requirement.

The Council decided that a property owner has to be living on site only up to the time the construction of an accessory dwelling begins. 

It was stipulated that there be annual assessments on how the policy is working out for the next three years. 

In public petitioning, citizens spoke on both sides of the issue, including Village Preservation and Improvement Society president Mark Gross who urged a 10 foot setback and an owner-occupancy requirement.

Others noted the investment opportunities that the units could provide, expressed worry about the impact on neighbors or denounced a collusion of “activists and builders.”

The language of the ordinance states that it is “to amend City Code chapter 48 ‘Zoning’ to allow accessory dwelling as permitted accessory use in the R-1a, R-1b and R-m districted and to allow detached accessory dwellings and to amend City Code chapter 42 (Utilities) to regulate the water and sewer connections of accessory dwellings.”

The amendments included the following:

“Detached accessory dwellings up to 15 feet or 1 story in height must be set back 8 feet from rear and side lot lines unless the Board of Zoning Appeals grants a Special Use Permit.” All other accessory dwellings must be set back at least 10 feet from rear and side lot lines.”

“The owner of the property shall maintain the property as their primary residence at the time the permit and certificate required are issued except for new construction where the principal dwelling and accessory dwelling are built together at that time.”

“Any permitted use or accessory structure not over 1 ½ story or 12 feet in height and accessory dwellings, such buildings occupying in the aggregate not more than 30 percent of the minimum rear yard area or up to 50 percent where such buildings include an accessory dwelling, shall be located not less than five feet from the principal building, not less than ten feet from all street and alley lines and not less than three feet from all other lot lines.”

“The city manager will bring to the City Council an analysis of applications, approvals and projects every 12 months for the first 36 months following enactment.”

 A motion that no detached unit shall have a basement was defeated, 2-5.