Shared Housing

The definition of shared housing in Article 11 of the Unified Development Ordinance is as follows:

Shared housing is a use type, not a zoning district. Shared housing uses are allowed in the MH Middle Housing, MF Multi-Family, NG-1 Core Northgate, NG-2 Transitional Northgate, and NG-3 Residential Northgate zoning districts.

Shared Housing: A residential dwelling unit providing complete, independent living facilities designed to exceed occupancy levels of more than one (1) family, including permanent provisions for living, sleeping, cooking, eating, and sanitation. Such use may be identified and differentiated from other residential uses by considering a combination of structure or property characteristics that may be used to increase occupancy to more than one (1) family, such as:

(1) A residential dwelling unit containing more than four bedrooms or able to house more than four people using other rooms such as dens, offices, game rooms, or similar spaces that have the potential to be used for sleeping purposes in accordance with the International Residential Code (IRC) definition of habitable space; 

(2)  A residential dwelling unit containing a similar bedroom to bathroom parity in excess of four;

(3) A residential dwelling unit containing a high quantity of bathrooms, usually in excess of four, of which most can only be accessed through a bedroom or other room such as a den, office, game room, or similar space;

(4) A residential dwelling unit that is in excess of one story for the purpose of limiting the building footprint on the lot to meet impervious cover requirements;

(5) The property where the residential dwelling unit is located does not contain a garage, or if it contains a garage, has the ability to support additional living space; and/or

(6) The property where the residential dwelling unit is located contains a parking area that will allow parking in excess of four vehicles. 

Each dwelling unit will be considered individually for the shared housing use; one dwelling unit within a structure can be a shared housing use and another may not be, in the case of a duplex, multiplex, or multi-family structure.
 

Process 

New construction of a shared housing use will require compliance with all standards within the applicable zoning district and shared housing use. To establish a shared housing use in an existing structure, please refer to the process below:

1) Future Land Use Designation - Determine whether the property has a future land use designation and associated zoning that will allow shared housing uses. The Comprehensive Plan Future Land Use & Character Map designates the anticipated future development patterns throughout the city. Appropriate future land use designations supporting zoning districts that allow shared housing uses include Mixed Residential, Urban Residential, Neighborhood Center, and Urban Center. You must have the proper future land use designation before rezoning a property; otherwise, you will need to submit a Comprehensive Plan amendment application. Requests for a Comprehensive Plan amendment require public hearings before the Planning & Zoning Commission and City Council, with City Council having the final approval.

2) Zoning - A property that has an appropriate future land use designation may submit a rezoning application to the most appropriate zoning district that allows shared housing: MH Middle Housing, MF Multi-Family, NG-1 Core Northgate, NG-2 Transitional Northgate, or NG-3 Residential Northgate zoning districts. Rezoning requests also require public hearings before the Planning & Zoning Commission and City Council, with City Council having the final approval. If your property requires both a Comprehensive Plan amendment and a rezoning, these applications can be applied for concurrently. If a property is successfully rezoned, the legally established residential use of the property or unit, as applicable, must continue until a new minor site plan application is submitted to verify and permit the shared housing use.

3) Minor Site Plan - With the correct zoning in place, applicants will need to submit a minor site plan application to change the use of their property. Fees for this application will be waived for shared housing uses coming into compliance until June 1, 2024. The application requires a site plan and an approved internal building layout or as-built drawings that show that enough off-street parking spaces are provided for the level of occupancy. Minor site plans are approved by staff and do not require additional public hearings.


If you have any questions, please contact the Planner on Call at 979-764-3858 or [email protected].