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The Chaffee Park ADU Rezoning has been added to the Denver Planning Board's agenda for the September 16th meeting at 3pm.  Sign up for public comment here:
Planning Board Public Comment Signup

What is an ADU?

A “mother-in-law suit”; “granny flat”; “casita”; “backyard cottage”; a “carriage house”. 

An accessory dwelling unit, or ADU, is a second, usually smaller house on a homeowner’s residential lot. In Denver, an ADU and its primary house must be owned by the same owner and the owner must live in one of the units. 

Why do we want ADUs in Chaffee Park?

ADUs offer homeowners many benefits that can maintain and increase quality of life. Homeowners can either use a second unit themselves, rent it, or move into it to free up their primary house for others to use as a rental. Benefits include:

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  • Neighborhood Character: ADUs allow for preservation of existing neighborhood character while allowing a growing city to accommodate increasing density

  • Family Strength: ADUs provide existing residents the ability to house additional family members, allows older generations to “age in place”, and keep families together which can also save on senior living and/or childcare costs. 

  • Neighborhood Stability: Extra income from ADUs can help people stay in their homes despite rising housing costs. This creates more affordable housing for generations to stay in the neighborhood. 

  • Reduced Crime: Backyard housing promote safety by bringing “eyes on the alleys.” 

  • Neighborhood Vitality: More people living in Chaffee Park makes it more likely that stores, restaurants and other things we want come to our existing commercial areas.

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The ADU Task Force:

The ADU Task Force is a group of Chaffee Park residents that are volunteering to perform necessary outreach before we can apply for the rezone. If you would like to get involved, please email board@chaffeepark.org and let us know! Our next meeting is Wednesday October 16th at Common Grounds Coffeehouse at 6:30pm.

Important ADU Facts:

  • The proposed rezoning would be sponsored by Councilwoman Amanda Sandoval, meaning there would be no cost to the neighborhood. (When individual owners want to rezone it costs $1000 each time.) 

  • An ADU and the main house must be owned by the same owner and the owner must live in one of the units (no absentee landlords)

  • The ADU can’t be sold separately and the property can’t be divided. 

  • Many rules restrict the size, height, and materials of an ADU. It must be smaller than the main house and fit in with the neighborhood.

  • This rezoning would not make any other rezoning change concerning what can be built in Chaffee Park. It would not upzone properties to allow apartment buildings, row homes or townhomes (“slot homes”), or allow commercial development in residential areas.

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