Calabasas ADU Ordinance

California has millions of garages. Most single family areas have zoning rules requiring one or two parking covered parking spaces per single-family home. This vast underutilized space has the potential to provide housing for millions of renters in some of the most exclusive areas of California. Recognizing this potential, the California legislature has passed a statewide Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) law that ensures garage conversions are possible on the vast majority of single family lots.

Calabasas is ignoring this mandate in an effort to preserve it’s covered parking and prevent new housing from taking its place. The local Calabasas zoning rules require that when a garage is converted to an ADU, the property owner must build a new garage to replace the old one. This requirement would make ADU development impossible or infeasible on many lots. Fortunately, state law deals with this exact problem by forbidding local governments from requiring replacement garages.

CaRLA filed a lawsuit to hold Calabasas accountable to the requirements of state law. We hope this case will set an example for other cities across California that prioritize roofs for cars ahead of roofs for people.

How It Ended

A fundamental element of zoning in California is prioritizing space for cars over homes for people. Across the state, covered parking requirements drive up the cost of housing, and encourage developments that mandate an auto-reliant lifestyle. Fortunately, statewide ADU standards were amended to universally allow for conversion of garages into accessory dwelling units, bringing the priority back to homes for people. Calabasas ignored this mandate and continued to prevent conversions throughout the exclusive, expensive Hollywood suburb. 

CaRLA filed a lawsuit to force the city to comply with state law and allow for conversions of parking to more homes. After we filed the lawsuit, the city enacted an ordinance that allowed for conversion of garages, and made a number of other changes in response to the new state laws. CaRLA dismissed our lawsuit once the city changed their rules to comply.