Building ADUs in Manchester: An open letter request to the city for a building code amendment

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O P I N I O N

THE SOAPBOX

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Stand up. Speak up. It’s your turn.


Aldermen:

I am reaching out to you today with a request for a change in how the City regulates Accessory Dwelling Units.

In recent years, Manchester and the broader region has experienced significant increases in the cost of housing, while the supply of available housing has dwindled. It is a personal mission of mine to be part of finding solutions to this ongoing housing issue.

In that regard, I went back to school to get my master’s degree in Community Development. While in school I conducted a capstone research project looking at the low rate of production of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) in Manchester. At the time of the research in 2019, there were only 138 accessory dwellings on the assessing records in the whole city. There are over 30,000 single-family housing units, so less than one-half of one percent of all single-family homes in the city have an ADU. The reasons for the low production of ADUs is numerous. Issues ranging from zoning, construction costs, lack of homeowner knowledge, and limited financing tools all play a role in limiting ADU construction.

I am excited to see that the city is in the process of revising its Zoning Regulations and that such changes will likely result in allowing more accessory dwelling units to be built. While zoning revisions will go a long way in reducing barriers to development of ADUs, there are also building code regulations which present a challenge. I would like to work with the alderman to create an amendment to the city’s building code ordinance in order to address additional barriers to ADU development.

While the state of New Hampshire uses one set of building codes in nearly all municipalities, the city of Manchester has a unique set of building codes for housing which are based on the state regulations but are more restrictive than the state standards. There are legitimate reasons why the city would want to implement additional building safety measures for rental housing. That said, because Manchester Housing Code is written to encompass ALL rental units, it also includes accessory dwelling units. I believe now is an ideal time to exempt ADUs from the scope of the Manchester Housing Code. Here are a few reasons why.

  • The requirements of the Manchester Housing code are not a good fit for ADUs as written. Currently, ADUs must meet the building code designed for application to larger residential buildings and the requirements of that building code can be quite costly to implement for an accessory dwelling.
  • In Manchester’s current building code language, single-family homes are regulated under the International Residential Code or IRC, The IRC is designed with ADUs in mind and is a much more appropriate way to regulate accessory dwellings.
  • In addition to costly differences in building code, Manchester’s (rental) Housing Code requires a Certificate of Compliance for ANY unit that is rented. The Certificate of Compliance requires a rental unit to be inspected every three years. The certificate of compliance requirement is appropriate for multi-family buildings, especially where landlords are absent and property can be neglected, it is not a good fit for ADUs, especially where a key requirement for ADUs is that the property be owner-occupied.

By exempting ADUs from the Manchester Housing Code, the city can play a more supportive role in helping homeowners seeking to build an ADU on their home. The urgency of today’s housing conditions require a strong response and ADUs have the potential to be a major component of how the city solves the housing problem. If just 10 percent of homeowners in the city built an ADU tomorrow, it would virtually eliminate the housing shortage in the city. Your action on this can make a dramatic impact in housing for years to come.

Feel free to reach out to me any time with your questions, comments, or concerns. I am eager to work with anyone who would consider supporting these changes!


About this Author

James Vayo

James Vayo is a resident of Manchester who is committed to fair housing in his city.