ADU rules in Victorville

Detached ADUs are a permitted ("P") use in every residential district on Table 7-1 (AE, SR, R1, R2, R3, R4, MDR and RMPD), and sec. 16-3.07.030(a)(4)(xii) lets an ADU be "either attached or detached from the primary dwelling or converted from existing space within the primary dwelling." Ordinance No. 2469 (adopted 9-1-2026, effective 10-1-2026) keeps the local count of one ADU plus one JADU per single-family lot but adds "unless otherwise allowed by State ADU Law," so the Gov. Code sec. 66323(a) combination of a conversion ADU, one detached new-construction ADU and a JADU still applies. On a lot with an existing multifamily building the same ordinance raised the detached count from two to eight, never more than the number of existing units. The land use table lists no ADUs in the commercial, industrial, public and civic, or Health and Wellness Overlay districts.

Attached ADUs, including additions and conversions of space inside the house or an attached garage, are permitted in the same residential districts under sec. 16-3.07.030(a)(4)(xii) and the attached-unit standards in (a)(5): 4 ft side and rear setbacks for new space, none for converted space, and a height of 25 ft or the zone height for the main house, whichever is lower. JADUs of up to 500 sq ft of interior livable space must sit within the walls of an existing or proposed single-family home and are limited to lots zoned for single-family use (Table 8-3 allows one in AE, S-R, R-1, R-MPD and single-family sites in MDR, and none in R-2, R-3 or R-4). In a mixed-use zone an ADU may occupy only the residential area, never converted commercial, parking or storage space.

Sec. 16-3.07.030(a)(5)(i) and (a)(6)(i) cap attached and detached ADUs at 850 sq ft with one bedroom or less and 1,000 sq ft with more than one bedroom, each now qualified by "unless otherwise permitted by State ADU Law"; there is no percent-of-house cap and Table 8-3 sets no lot coverage limit. Those figures equal the Gov. Code sec. 66321(b)(2) floor, which state law states in interior livable space, while Victorville's text (and Table 8-1's "850 sq. ft. maximum") names a measurement basis only for JADUs. Units built under Gov. Code sec. 66323 face only the limits that section allows: a conversion keeps to the existing space plus up to 150 sq ft for ingress and egress, the detached new-construction unit on a single-family lot may be held to 800 sq ft, and the up to eight detached units on a multifamily lot carry only height and setback limits. Detached height is 16 ft, or 18 ft when the roof pitch matches the main house (Table 8-3 note 6, added by Ord. No. 2469) or for multistory development in multifamily districts; attached ADUs may reach 25 ft or the zone height for the main house, whichever is lower.

No owner-occupancy rule applies to ADUs, consistent with Gov. Code sec. 66315. Ordinance No. 2469 narrowed the JADU clause, sec. 16-3.07.030(a)(4)(ix), to a JADU "that shares sanitation facilities with the primary dwelling" (the owner lives in either the house or the JADU), matching Gov. Code sec. 66333(b), and the recorded JADU covenant in (a)(4)(xv) now requires owner occupancy only "to the extent allowed by State ADU Law." Municode (Supp. 57) still prints the earlier universal JADU owner-occupancy clauses until the next supplement codifies the ordinance. The three-year owner-occupancy affidavit in sec. 16-3.08.050 applies to SB 9 urban lot splits, not to ADUs.

Table 21-1 in sec. 16-3.21.030 lists "Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU & JADU)" with a parking requirement of "None," a row added by Ordinance No. 2461 (adopted 11-18-2025, effective 12-18-2025), and the ADU standards table (Table 8-3) defers to that article. Ordinance No. 2469 deleted the last ADU-related parking rule, the duty to replace garage parking when a JADU converts an attached garage. The Planning Commission's 7-8-2026 late addition memorandum states that "parking is not required for ADUs and JADUs." No local rule requires replacing a garage, carport or space demolished or converted for an ADU, and Gov. Code sec. 66314(d)(11) forbids one.

Sec. 16-3.07.030(a)(3), added by Ordinance No. 2469, requires ADU and JADU applications to be "approved or denied ministerially" within 60 days of a complete application, with a completeness decision within 15 business days and written comments on any denial; Table 7-1 marks both uses "P" (permitted) in residential districts. Applications go through Building Division plan check, whose ADU and JADU submittal list asks for a Joshua Tree Inspection Report when square footage is added, grading plans for detached units, and a percolation report or septic tank size where sewer is unavailable. Staff and Building Official decisions can be appealed to the Planning Commission within ten days (sec. 16-2.02.010 to 16-2.02.030 and 16-2.02.050). The Planning Commission's 7-8-2026 memorandum confirms that "the City approval process remains non-discretionary."

Sec. 16-3.07.030(a)(4)(x) lets an ADU or JADU be rented separately but bars separate sale except for a qualified nonprofit sale under state law (Gov. Code sec. 66341); the city has not opted into Gov. Code sec. 66342 ADU condominiums. Sec. 16-3.07.030(a)(4)(xi) sets a rental term of "not less than thirty days" for ADUs and JADUs, which rules out short-term rentals and is lawful for local-track ADUs under Gov. Code sec. 66315, while Gov. Code sec. 66333(g) and 66323(e) require terms longer than 30 days for JADUs and state-exempt units. Victorville has no separate short-term rental ordinance; its business license classification for rental property (sec. 16-7.06.080) lists "short term rental" only as a kind of single-family rental property. Any parcel occupied for rent by someone other than the owner needs a Rental Business License, issued after an initial exterior inspection and renewed yearly after an annual inspection (sec. 16-6.05.030(g), 16-6.05.050 and 16-6.05.070, as amended by Ord. No. 2464 of 4-7-2026).