(1/29) Commissioner Marty Burns told the Board of Commissioners, at their January 28 meeting, that the Planning & Zoning Commission may soon be considering "cottage-style homes" being permitted in the town.
Commissioner Burns stated, "They're (Planning & Zoning Commission) considering looking at cottage-style homes, or cottage-sized homes... It's not the DIY network (do-it-yourself construction), or the mini-homes on a trailer. but they are considerably smaller homes in size, which makes them more affordable."
He said, "I at least want to give you an awareness because I'd hate to see them go through a lot of work on something just to find out that you wouldn't even consider it."
"You can condense the amount of (these types of) homes you can get on an acre," he said, noting that a developer could potentially get as many as 16 of these types of homes on a single acre of land. "Sometimes they're facing each other and maximize the open space areas."
Burns said some cities on the West Coast (for example, San Francisco) have looked into this "because they need some more affordable housing... It's a heck of an idea."
However, the commissioner stated, "It's not just (about) affordable housing." Parents, whose children have moved out, he said, may seek a smaller home in order to remain in their community without having to maintain a larger home to do so.
He also noted allowing "cottage-style homes" could allow property owners, who have land that would barely allow one or two homes, to construct several of the smaller ones.
Commissioner Wilbur (Bill) Buehrer was the only member of the board to speak out for or against such a proposal, stating, "You don't have to go to the West Coast (to find this type of concept being implemented). There are tons of them right now in South and North Carolinas. Very, very successful. It meets the needs of society today."
Burns concluded, "I had a lot of concerns myself... But I do want to let you know what that (cottage concept) is so that if you have any major heartburns or concerns, like I raised some concerns about that, I'll get you any data you ask of through the Planning & Zoning Commission."
