Latest on the ADU Ordinance

Planning Department filed a Zoning Amendment to create an ADU Ordinance and other modifications in June 2023 with City Council. 

Joint Public Hearing with the City Council and Planning Board was held on September 5, 2023 at 8:00pm. City Council continued and closed the public hearing (the first one) on September 18, 2023. The Planning Board continued and closed their public hearing on October 3, 2023, making a recommendation to City Council.  [Click on the dates to view BevCam recordings of these meetings.]

City Council set a 2nd public hearing, to review amendments recommended by City staff and the Planning Board, for the November 20, 2023 regular meeting at 7:30pm. 

Relevant Documents: 

• ADU Ordinance (June 21, 2023)
• Package submitted to City Council (June 21, 2023)
• Public Hearing Presentation (Sept. 5, 2023) 
• Recommendation from Planning Board (Oct 5, 2023)
• Revised ADU Ordinance Amendment (final mark up, Oct 12, 2023)

Major components of the proposed new ADU Ordinance include: 

• Allowing ADUs by-right in most single-family residential districts.
• Allowing both attached dwelling units and detached dwelling units. 
• Removing the restrictions on who can live in an ADU to allow non-family members.
• Requiring owner-occupancy of one of the two dwelling units and one off-site parking space per ADU. 
• No affordability requirement.
• Thoughtful unit dimensional requirements, including unit size, setback, and height. Zoning variances and expansion of non-conforming structures are not permitted in order to create an ADU.

About the Project

The City of Beverly is working to encourage a greater diversity of housing options, goals committed to in the Beverly Community Housing Plan (2016) and the Beverly Master Plan (2020). As part of this larger effort, the City created a public process to update its zoning ordinance (development regulations) for Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs), also known as accessory apartments, in-law units, or granny flats.  

Currently, Beverly’s zoning ordinance allows certain kinds of ADUs for family members or caretakers of residents in the primary home. The one-year project (2021-22) to update the ADU Ordinance was supported by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) - Beverly's regional planning agency. Together with the steering committee at right, we examined and then recommended updates to the ADU zoning to better serve the community’s housing needs. Potential updates include removing the restrictions on who can live in an ADU to allow non-family members. 

The process included robust community engagement, including public forums and focus groups, as well as research on best practices for ADUs and careful consideration of the local context in Beverly. In addition, the project included the development of a data tool to help the understand the potential impacts of different approaches to regulating ADUs. The tool will help ensure a data-driven approach to the zoning update. 

Based on the community engagement, research, and findings from the on-line tool, the City drafted amendments to the existing ADU zoning ordinance and will present the draft amendments for the City Council’s review and approval.