The popularity of tiny homes as auxiliary units on parcels with standard homes continues to grow, prompting local officials to plan zoning changes in the unincorporated area to make them legal.
The Colusa County Board of Supervisors will hold a public hearing in the near future to consider an ordinance that would allow property owners to install the little “park trailers” on property, as long as they follow normal development standards, said Community Development Director Greg Plucker.
“Over the last year or so, we have received a lot of inquiries about the use of tiny homes to be used as an accessory dwelling unit – or a second unit,” Plucker said. “Tiny homes are defined by the state as really “park trailers.”
The Colusa County Planning Commission recommended a zoning amendment to allow tiny homes as permanent structures on May 5.
The little houses, less that 400 square feet, are actually mobile vehicles built on a single chassis, and registered by the Department of Motor Vehicles.
“It’s a small mobile home,” Plucker said. “It can look fairly traditional; they could be much for rural, or foresti, if you will, or they can be really more modern.”
California amended its residential code standards in 2019 to allow the homes as secondary dwellings as a way to combat a housing crisis and to maximize land use.
Plucker said the state established standards, such as height and width limits – and safety requirements.
The county’s zoning text amendment, as drafted, would include certain requirements. The utilities would have to be permitted by the county. The wheels and tongue would have to be removed, and the home supported by a foundation.
“Skirting would be required to screen it to make it look like a residential structure,” Plucker said.
Plucker said a camper, placed upon stilts, or on the back of a pickup, would not qualify as a legal secondary dwelling for someone to live in.
“That is not the intent whatsoever, and we feel that some folks might take advantage of that,” he said.
County officials said they would only allow a tiny home to be placed on property that has an owner-occupied primary residence, but that they anticipate “tiny home mobile parks” becoming a demand in the future.
“If we go down this route, whether in a week or 10 years in the future, people will inquire about tiny home villages,” said Supervisor Kent Boes.
Plucker agreed, but said such a mobile home park would be subject to the same conditional use permitting process as a traditional mobile home park.
“That would be a different use in its entirety,” Plucker said. “This (amendment) is just allowing use as a secondary unit.”
The board directed Plucker to finalize the zoning amendment to bring back for consideration and possible adoption. ■