62 Distillation Guidebook Co-Lab • 9.18–9.19 2025 but evidence that it can be done! Janet wonders whether there are examples from smaller cities that she could draw upon. She makes a mental note to hire a summer intern! Another landowner in the single-family zone was almost as excited about the changes coming to single-family residential zoning as Janet was. The word to emphasize in that last sentence: “was.” When this resident considered building an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) on his property, he could not get over the costs associated with permitting and stormwater! Square footage and design elements, utilities, access for ingress/ egress, emergency vehicles, even getting the address seemed like a hassle – and he was quite sure he was forgetting something! If only all the information about developing an ADU was in one place…and standardized…with no surprises. While acknowledging that California is always way ahead on things like housing, he was happy to tell Janet all about the ADU Guide for the City of Santa Barbara adding, “you know, their population is not much larger than ours.” File that one away for the intern as well. Zoning and Subdivision and Land Development (SALDO) reform, potentially an entire rewrite of ordinances, was on the horizon. It was becoming increasingly clear that eliminating restrictions in single-family zoning districts was not going to be enough to move the housing needle. It would need to be combined with other changes – both in combination with eliminating single-family residential requirements and outside of those zones as well. The City would also need to revisit the Future Land Use map and prioritize projects, relative to infrastructure improvements, that would draw interest from developers, big and small. Improving housing prospects, not just in number, but also in diversity, requires a holistic approach from the City that demonstrates commitment and builds trust.
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