ADU rules in Salinas

Yes. From 10-1-2026, Sec. 37-50.250 (added by Ord. 2699) permits ADUs on every lot zoned for single-family or multifamily use that has an existing or proposed home, with a building permit only: on a single-family lot, one detached new-construction unit of up to 800 sq ft on the state-exempt track (Gov. Code 66323), plus one local-track ADU of up to 1,200 sq ft that 37-50.250(c)(1)(C) says may be combined with the exempt units; on multifamily lots, up to two detached units beside a proposed building, or up to eight (never more than the existing unit count) beside an existing one. Through 9-30-2026 the same units were allowed directly under state law, because Ord. 2693 (adopted 2-24-2026, effective 3-26-2026) repealed the old local section and the use tables say ADUs 'shall be permitted pursuant to State ADU law'. ADUs are a permitted (P) use in the A, R-L, R-M, R-H, PS and New Urbanism NE, NG-1 and NG-2 districts, and Ord. 2699 adds them to all four commercial and both mixed-use districts; the NU Village Center (VC) still lists them as not permitted (see caveats).

Yes. Attached additions, conversions of existing space (garages, basements, accessory structures) and junior ADUs are all allowed with a building permit. The state-exempt track (37-50.250(b), Gov. Code 66323(a)(1)) allows one ADU within the existing or proposed space of a single-family home or accessory structure, with up to 150 sq ft of expansion for ingress and egress, plus one JADU of up to 500 sq ft inside the walls of the home, attached garage included; the local track allows an attached addition subject to the 50 percent size rule. On multifamily lots, non-livable space such as storage rooms, attics, basements or garages can become at least one ADU and up to 25 percent of the existing unit count. JADUs are not permitted in the Mixed Use districts or the NU Village Center and need a conditional use permit in the CO and CR commercial districts under the Ord. 2699 use tables.

Sec. 37-50.250(c)(3) caps a local-track detached ADU at 1,200 sq ft of gross floor area (the Gov. Code 66314(d)(5) figure) and an attached ADU that expands the existing home at 50 percent of its living area, while guaranteeing at least 850 sq ft for a studio or one-bedroom unit and 1,000 sq ft for more than one bedroom; conversions of existing space on the state-exempt track carry no size cap beyond a 150 sq ft expansion for ingress and egress, and every unit must be at least 150 sq ft. The state-exempt detached unit is limited to 800 sq ft of livable space with 4-foot side and rear setbacks and no front setback minimum, and a JADU to 500 sq ft of interior livable space. Detached units may be 16 feet tall, or 18 feet within half a mile walking distance of a major transit stop or high-quality transit corridor or beside a multistory multifamily building, plus 2 feet to match the main roof pitch, and may have two stories within those limits; attached units may reach two stories and 25 feet or the zone's height limit, whichever is lower. Through 9-30-2026 the state standards (66314(d)(4)-(5), 66321(b)) applied directly with the same headline figures.

No. Sec. 37-50.250(c)(4)(A) states that owner occupancy is not required on a property with an ADU, matching Gov. Code 66315, which bars owner-occupancy conditions on ADUs; the repealed pre-2026 local section carried no such requirement either. For a junior ADU the owner must live in the house (in the main home or the JADU) only when the JADU shares sanitation facilities with it, a condition written into the recorded JADU deed restriction (37-50.250(d)(8)-(9), Gov. Code 66333(b) as amended by AB 1154); no owner occupancy applies when the JADU has its own bathroom or the owner is a public agency, land trust or housing organization. The city's ADU flyer still says the owner must reside on site for every JADU, which is out of date.

Sec. 37-50.250(c)(3)(G) requires no more than one off-street space per local-track ADU or per bedroom, whichever is less, which may be tandem on a driveway or in setback areas, and waives it entirely within one-half mile walking distance of public transit (any fixed-route bus stop counts under the Ord. 2699 definition in 37-10.400), in an architecturally and historically significant historic district, for a unit within the home or an accessory structure, where on-street permits are required but not offered, within one block of a car-share vehicle, or when the ADU is permitted together with a new home on the lot. Units on the state-exempt track (the 800 sq ft detached unit and conversions) need no parking (37-50.250(b)(3)(D)), JADUs need none (37-50.250(d)(4)), and a garage, carport or parking space demolished or converted for an ADU never has to be replaced. Through 9-30-2026 no local ADU parking figure existed (Table 37-50.100 still points ADUs to the repealed 37-50.250), so only the Gov. Code 66314(d)(10) cap and the 66322 exemptions applied.

Permitted (ministerial). Both tracks need only a building permit, reviewed through the building permit process with ministerial planning review and approved without discretionary review or a public hearing (37-50.250(b)(1)(A), (c)(1)(A), (c)(2)(A)); the city must say whether an application is complete within 15 business days and act within 60 days of a complete application or the permit is deemed approved, with a written appeal decided within 60 business days (37-50.250(c)(2), Gov. Code 66317). Before 10-1-2026 the city processed ADUs the same way under state law, which staff reported it had done since 2020. Exceptions to watch: JADUs need a conditional use permit in the CO and CR commercial districts, and new homes within the Salinas Municipal Airport area of influence trigger airport-compatibility review and an avigation easement (see caveats).

From 10-1-2026, Sec. 37-50.250(f)(1) requires every ADU and JADU rental to run longer than 30 days, which is exactly what state law demands for state-exempt units (Gov. Code 66323(e)) and JADUs (66333(g)); for local-track ADUs, Gov. Code 66315 lets a city require only terms of 30 days or longer, so the local wording reaches one day past the state authorization and the section's state-law-prevails clause (37-50.250(a)) would protect a flat 30-day lease. Salinas has no short-term rental permit program: stays of less than 28 days are transient occupancy, a hotel-type commercial use (37-10.440) subject to transient occupancy tax (Chapter 32, Article IV). Landlords must register every residential rental unit, ADUs included, each year (17-01.02(j), 17-01.03), but ADUs and JADUs are exempt from the registry fee when the primary home is owner-occupied (17-01.04(d)(2)), and an owner-occupied single-family home renting out up to two units such as an ADU or JADU is exempt from the just-cause eviction article (17-02.52(b)(5)); a measure to repeal all four rental ordinances is on the 11-3-2026 ballot. An ADU can be sold separately only through the qualified-nonprofit route (66341) or, under 37-50.250(f)(3), as a condominium meeting every Gov. Code 66342 requirement, and an ADU may not be occupied until the city approves occupancy of the main home (37-50.250(f)(1)).