Zoning Proposed to Encourage Apartments
Concerned about a dearth of year-round, affordable housing, East Hampton Town officials are working on changes that encourage more legal apartments in existing buildings.
East Hampton Town already has provisions in place to allow one-bedroom rental apartments in single-family houses or above certain businesses, but, according to Tom Ruhle, the town’s director of housing, only 13 have been registered since the program’s inception. The principal change to the town zoning code would be to allow apartments above detached garages, pool houses, barns, or other stand-alone buildings. Additionally, the one-bedroom maximum could be raised to two bedrooms.
During an East Hampton Town Board work session on Tuesday, Mr. Ruhle and Job Potter, a member of the town planning board, described the changes that they hope would add to the number of apartments. A plan for a new affordable housing complex also was described at Tuesday’s work session. It is reported separately.
Mr. Potter chaired the town’s community housing opportunity fund committee, which presented the recommendations Tuesday, following a plan adopted by the town board earlier this year. Like the existing law, the rules would require that tenants be current East Hampton Town residents and that landlords live on the premises. Renters and landlords would have to provide affidavits and other documentation to the town, as well as allow inspections.
Under the proposal, a strict cap would be placed on rents. Mr. Ruhle said the town’s current figure, $1,534 a month, would be maintained. There would be no income requirements for tenants. Leases would be for one year at a minimum.
A possible change would be to allow an apartment to be lived in by the homeowner, with the balance of the building rented out. This is technically illegal in the current law.
“We’re gone out of our way to make this as simple as possible,” Mr. Ruhle said. “We are only looking for compliance. Unless we have some issue, we don’t inspect. We try not to be intrusive.”
Permits for apartments would only be available for structures meeting the setback and height limits for residences. That would mean, for example, that a garage near a property line is likely to be ineligible for the program.
Councilwoman Sylvia Overby said that the new provisions might appeal to older residents looking to downsize or provide a starter home for younger relatives. “I think this really helps families stay together,” she said.
Mr. Ruhle said that the town’s main concern was keeping the apartments affordable and not used for vacation rentals. “We do check Airbnb,” he said.
He suggested that the town board consider allowing for flexibility on size requirements for apartments. Right now, the maximum square footage is 600 feet, but some existing apartments, many believed to have been put in basements without town permission, could well total more than that.
“We know there are plenty of illegal apartments in this town. Many of them are not safe,” Mr. Potter told the board. “We would like people with illegal apartments to come forward and get legal.”
Supervisor Larry Cantwell agreed. “If they can conform, then we want them to go through the process without penalty,” he said. “We need to find a way to encourage more of these. What you are proposing gives us more flexibility.”
The committee did not suggest exceeding the town’s cap of 100 apartments, 20 per school district. “I don’t see that as a townwide growth issue,” Mr. Cantwell said.