At the April 6 city council meeting, the Driving a Strong Economy Committee recommended that the council direct the city attorney to draft parameters for a secondary-unit ordinance. This measure would reverse San Jose's existing zoning code that for years has only allowed one dwelling on lots zoned for single-family residences.

The committee—District 2 Councilman Forrest Williams, District 7 Councilman Terry Gregory, District 9 Councilwoman Judy Chirco and District 4 Councilman Chuck Reed—met on March 22 to review the proposed second-unit permit requirements. They requested the housing and planning, building and code enforcement departments begin drafting the guidelines at the last meeting in October 2003.

"It's being driven by the state requirement," Reed said. "The reason to do more than the absolute minimum is to get affordable housing."

But whether the ordinance would actually result in a significant increase in secondary units is unclear, Reed said.

"If we can generate 1,000 secondary units in 10 years, that would be good," he said. Reed added that cities like San Diego that have a secondary-unit ordinance are not yielding more than 10 new units a year.

Although the state's housing element requirement is driving this ordinance, Reed said he thinks the council will be split on the issue.

This down-the-middle response is affected by the individuality of the various districts, he said. Some neighborhoods are concerned that large numbers of secondary units will have negative impacts in their communities. And some neighborhoods like Willow Glen and Rose Garden already have a large number of "granny units."

In the proposed requirements, the minimum lot size allowed for a secondary unit is 6,000 square feet, which allows the majority of single-family lots in San Jose to qualify under the ordinance.

The unit's maximum size would be limited to 650 square feet, the same size currently allowed for accessory structures without a development permit. But the secondary-unit ordinance would permit one-bedroom units to have more than two plumbing fixtures, which are currently illegal under the zoning code.

Secondary units would also be required to match the exterior materials and roof pitch of the existing house and have a door that is not visible from the street.

Parking requirements will also be spelled out. Individuals living in the units must be allocated a parking space in the driveway.

"One of the concerns I have is how [the city] deals with the parking issue and how well it's going to be enforced," said Willow Glen Neighborhood Association board member Hugh Graham. "With potentially two more cars, it'll impact the neighborhood if not done right."

North Willow Glen Neighborhood Association co-secretary/treasurer Ken Eklund wrote a letter to the San Jose Planning Department outlining his concerns about how the ordinance could impact parking in the North Willow Glen area.

"Granny units work for some neighborhoods, but they shouldn't impose it on everyone," Eklund said. He added that building secondary units in the backyards of the narrow lots in North Willow Glen would also invade people's privacy.

The ordinance would also require people with existing, illegal or nonconforming granny units to meet the ordinance's standards in order to legalize their secondary unit.

It is these additional requirements and their costs that Reed said may affect how many units are actually built.

District 9 Councilwoman Judy Chirco, who represents south Willow Glen and Cambrian Park, said that existing secondary units can only be legalized if they meet the requirements.

"We hope it would be an incentive," she said, acknowledging that there are a number of illegal units that could not be converted under the new ordinance. She cites garage conversions as an example. San Jose senior planner John Davidson said if the city council adopts the secondary-unit ordinance, applying for a permit would be an administrative process and not require a public hearing.

He added that application fees would cover code enforcement expenses to inspect the units

The ordinance is also designed to ensure that the main residence does not also become a rental property. The property owner must record the agreement to keep the house owner-occupied at the county recorder's office, Davidson said.

"If they sell the house, it becomes part of the title report," he said.

Davidson added that enforcing whether the owner is living on the premises would be a process driven by neighbors' complaints.