Council Will Reconsider Granny Flats State May Withhold Planning Money If City Refuses To Adopt Ordinance

The city of Spokane wouldn’t make room for granny on its own, so the state stepped in and laid down the law - twice.

Council members today will reconsider a state mandate to allow accessory apartments - commonly known as granny flats - in single-family neighborhoods.

An advocacy group for the disabled challenged the council’s decision last year to defy the state law ordering Washington cities to pass an “accessory dwelling unit” ordinance by Dec. 31, 1994.

The Coalition of Responsible Disabled took the council’s decision to a state appeals board, which ruled in June the city must allow the apartments.

If the council again refuses to adopt a granny flat ordinance, the state could withhold money for growth management planning to the tune of $230,000 a year.

Critics of granny flats say allowing the small apartments opens residential neighborhoods to the onslaught of multi-family housing.

Proponents say the flats offer low-cost housing to the elderly and disabled.

The planning department’s proposed ordinance requires that apartments can’t be smaller than 220 square feet or larger than half the size of the main house.

Apartments must have their own kitchen and bathroom, and attached apartments must blend with the design of the main house. Either the accessory unit of the main house must be owner-occupied.

Also today, the council will consider:

Setting a hearing Sept. 11 for the Indian Trail Specific Plan, a detailed planning proposal for the northwest neighborhood.

Hiring two police officers to help reduce truancy problems in cooperation with Spokane School District 81. The $21,075 cost of hiring and training the officers in 1995 will come from federal taxpayer money awarded the department in 1994 to increase the police force.

, DataTimes