Statewide ADU Implementation

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Statewide ADU Implementation

Abundant Housing has been proud to champion accessory dwelling units (ADUs) for years because they are smart way for communities to add much needed new affordable homes.

Thanks to the Affordable Homes Act, beginning on February 2, 2025, they will be legal statewide!

Read below for the latest updates.

Statewide ADU Update

On December 6th, The Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) issued draft regulations to assist municipalities implement the statewide legalization of Accessory Dwelling Units.

Click here to read the draft regulations.

There will be a public comment period from December 20th to January 10th, during which anyone may submit comments on the draft regulations. On the final day of the public comment period, there will also be a hybrid remote and in-person public hearing for those who want to submit their testimony live. While a date has not been set, EOHLC plans to release final regulations before the effective date of the ADU law, February 2nd, 2025.

Click here to access the public comment form

Abundant Housing Massachusetts will be submitting public comments and encourages our members to do the same. See below for our public comment examples.

Individual Public Comment Example

Affiliate Group Public Comment Example

On January 3rd, we hosted an online webinar to review the regulations, answer questions, and provide resources to our members who wish to submit public comments. Please find the recording along with the presentation slide below.

Presentation Slides

Please see below for our comments on key areas of the regulations.

Bus Station

Draft Text: A location serving as a point of embarkation for any bus operated by a Transit Authority. For routes that allow flag stop locations where passengers may signal for a bus to stop at any point along its designated route, the entire route shall be considered a Bus Station
AHMA Comment: We strongly support this definition because it maximizes the number of lots within ½ mile of transit, thereby maximizing the number of ADUs that do not need parking

Principal Dwelling

Draft Text: A structure, regardless of whether it conforms to Zoning, including use requirements and dimensional requirements, such as setbacks, bulk, and height, that contains at least one Dwelling Unit and is located on the same Lot as a Protected Use ADU.
AHMA Comment: This is a strong definition because it allows for ADUs to be built on the same lot as any type of residential dwelling unit, including those that do not conform with the current zoning code.

Protected Use ADU

Draft Text: An attached or detached Accessory Dwelling Unit that is located, or is proposed to be located, on a Lot in a Single-Family Residential Zoning District and no other Accessory Dwelling Unit is located on said Lot and which is protected from Prohibited Regulations and Unreasonable Regulations pursuant to M.G.L. c. 40A, s. 3, para. 11 and 760 CMR 71.00.
AHMA Comment: Importantly includes attached and detached ADUs. Preemptively allowing for all types of ADUs give property owners maximum flexibility to design an ADU that matches their budget and needs.

Single-Family Residential Zoning District

Draft Text: Any Zoning District where Single-Family Residential Dwellings are a permitted or an allowable use, including any Zoning District where Single-Family Residential Dwellings are allowed as of right, by special permit, variance, waiver, or other zoning relief or discretionary zoning approval.
AHMA Comment: It is essential that this definition is maintained. ADUs are just smaller homes so it stands to reason – and the overall goal of the law to increase ADU production – that they be allowed anywhere a single-family home could be allowed.

Prohibited Regulation

Minimum Parking Requirements

Draft Text: More than one additional on-street or off-street parking space for each Protected Use ADU on a Lot if all portions of such Lot are located outside a 0.5-mile radius of a Transit Station
AHMA Comment: Off-street parking should remain open as a way of satisfying the requirement, but requiring the spot to be off-street has the potential to unreasonably constrain ADU production, especially on smaller lots

Unit Caps and Density

Draft Text: Any limit, quota or other restriction on the number of Protected Use ADUs that may be permitted, constructed, or leased within a Municipality or Zoning District. Protected Use ADUs shall not be counted in any density calculations.
AHMA Comment: It is important that ADUs be excluded from any sort of density calculations because density is already regulated by the dimensional standards laid out in the zoning code.

Unreasonable Regulation

Dimensional Standards

Draft Text: Any requirement concerning dimensional setbacks, lot size, lot coverage, open space, and the bulk and height of structures that are more restrictive than what is required for a Single-Family Residential Dwelling in the Single-Family Residential Zoning District in which the Protected Use ADU is located.
AHMA Comment: There is need for significant improvement to the dimensional standards allowed for in the regulations. As written, the draft regulations will allow restrictive local zoning laws to severely limit ADU development, particularly on smaller lots.