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ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Sixth Legislature, Second Regular Session
AMENDED
municipal zoning; middle housing
Purpose
Requires certain municipalities to allow, as a permitted use, the development of duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes and townhomes on all lots zoned for single-family residential use.
Background
Statute authorizes municipalities to adopt zoning ordinances and codes to
conserve and promote the public health, safety, convenience and general
welfare. A municipality may:
1) regulate the use of buildings, structures and land between agriculture
residence, industry and business; 2) regulate the location, height, bulk,
number of stories and size of buildings and structures, the size and use of
lots, yards, courts and other open spaces, the percentage of a lot that may be
occupied by a building or structure, access to incident solar energy and the
intensity of land use; 3) establish requirements for off-street parking and
loading; 4) establish and maintain building setback lines; and 5) establish
floodplain and age-specific community zoning districts and districts of
historical significance (A.R.S.
§ 9-462.01).
The governing body of a municipality must adopt by ordinance a citizen review process that applies to all rezoning and specific plan applications that require a public hearing. The citizen review process must include at least: 1) notifying adjacent landowners and other potentially affected citizens of the application; 2) informing adjacent landowners and other potentially affected citizens on the substance of the proposed rezoning; and 3) providing adjacent landowners and other potentially affected citizen an opportunity to express any issues or concerns regarding the rezoning. Any zoning ordinances that propose to change property from one zone to another, that imposes any regulation not previously imposed or that removes any such regulation previously imposed must be adopted following procedures in accordance with the citizen review process and in the manner set for public hearings (A.R.S. § 9-462.03).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1. Requires, by January 1, 2026, a municipality with a population of 75,000 persons or more to authorize by ordinance and incorporate into its development and zoning regulations and other official controls the development of duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes and townhomes as a permitted use on all lots zoned for single-family residential use.
2. Prohibits the municipality from:
a) discouraging the development of middle housing through unreasonable costs, fees, delays or other requirements or actions, which individually or cumulatively make impracticable the permitting, siting or construction of middle housing;
b) restricting middle housing types to less than two floors or a floor area ratio of less than one;
c) setting restrictions, permitting or review processes for middle housing that are more restrictive that those for single-family dwellings within the same zone;
d) requiring owner occupancy of any structures on the lot; or
e) requiring any structure to comply with a commercial building code or to contain a fire sprinkler.
3. Requires the municipality to allow the property owner to determine the location, number and form of off-street vehicle parking spaces.
4. Stipulates that the middle housing requirements do not prohibit the governing body of a municipality from allowing:
a) single-family dwellings in areas zoned for single-family dwellings; or
b) additional types of middle housing not required under the middle housing requirements.
5. Stipulates that the middle housing requirements do not apply to areas that:
a) are not incorporated;
b) lack sufficient urban services;
c) are not serviced by municipal water and sewer services;
d) are not zoned for residential use;
e) are not incorporated and are zoned under an interim zoning designation that maintains the area's potential for planned urban development.
6. Requires middle housing to be allowed on all lots in the municipality zoned for single-family residential use without any limitations if the municipality does not adopt the regulations required by the middle housing requirements.
7. Defines duplex as a parcel or lot with two dwelling units that are designed for residential occupancy by up to two households living independently from each other.
8. Defines triplex as a parcel or lot with three dwelling units that are designed for residential occupancy by up to three households living independently from each other.
9. Defines fourplex as a parcel or lot with four dwelling units that are designed for residential occupancy by up to four households living independently from each other.
10. Defines townhomes as dwelling units that are constructed in a row of two or more attached units in which each dwelling unit shares at least one common wall with an adjacent unit and that are accessed by separate outdoor entrances.
11. Defines middle housing as building that are compatible in scale, form and character with single-family houses and that contain two or more attached, detached, stacked or clustered homes, including duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes and townhomes.
12. Defines floor area ratio as the ratio of allowed square footage in a middle housing project to the square footage of the parcel on which it is built.
13. Defines household as either:
a) a single person living or residing in a dwelling or place of residence; or
b) two or more persons living together or residing in the same dwelling or place of residence.
14. Defines permitted use as the ability for a development to be approved without requiring a public hearing, variance, conditional use permit, special permit or special exception, other than a discretionary zoning action to determination that a site plan conforms with applicable zoning regulations.
15. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
Amendments Adopted by Committee
· Eliminates fiveplexes from the middle housing requirements.
House Action Senate Action
GOV 2/15/24 DP 5-4-0-0 FICO 3/18/24 DPA 6-1-0
3rd Read 3/12/24 36-18-6-0
Prepared by Senate Research
March 25, 2024
JT/cs