ADU rules in Prairie Village

Prairie Village's only accessory-unit use, the Accessory Living Quarter (ALQ), must be "attached to or included within the single-family dwelling so that there is no impression of two distinct dwelling units" (Sec. 19.34.045(c)), so a backyard cottage or garage apartment has no pathway. Detached accessory buildings on residential lots are limited to one minor storage building (120 sq ft on lots under 10,000 sq ft, 200 sq ft above, 10 ft tall) and one major accessory building of up to 576 sq ft and 20 ft (Secs. 19.06.020 and 19.08.020), neither usable as a dwelling. Extra homes on a lot otherwise come only as principal dwellings in the R-2, R-3 and R-4 districts, which hold about 11 percent of the city's residential land. On August 4, 2026, planning staff listed allowing ALQs in detached buildings, and detached buildings over 576 sq ft, among possible responses to Kansas SB 418; nothing has been drafted or adopted.

One ALQ, defined as "a subordinate dwelling unit within a single-family dwelling that provides basic requirements for cooking, living, sleeping, eating and sanitation" (Sec. 19.02.013), may be added to any single-family house through staff review (Sec. 19.34.045), so basement apartments, additions and internal conversions with their own kitchen are possible citywide. The conditions are what make it conditional: the owner must live on site, every occupant of both units must be related by blood, marriage or adoption (plus domestic help and caregivers), the owner must record a deed document barring rental, the two units share one address, mailbox and utility meter, and the ALQ needs a city occupancy permit every three years. Private exterior entrances to the ALQ must be on the side or rear, with only common entrances on the front. The ALQ attaches only to a single-family dwelling, so a duplex, townhouse or apartment cannot add one.

Sec. 19.34.045(f) caps an ALQ at 30 percent of the area of the principal dwelling and never more than 800 sq ft, so a 2,000 sq ft house can carry an ALQ of up to 600 sq ft and the 800 sq ft cap binds for houses over about 2,667 sq ft. The code does not say whether "area of the principal dwelling" counts a finished basement. An addition must also fit the district envelope: 30 percent maximum building coverage in R-1a and R-1b, with heights of 35 ft and 2.5 stories in R-1a (Sec. 19.06.015) or 29 ft and 2 stories in R-1b (Sec. 19.08.015), and remodels adding more than 200 sq ft of footprint trigger the 40 percent impervious-surface limit.

Sec. 19.34.045(a) requires that "The homeowner must occupy either the principle dwelling unit or the accessory living quarters." The requirement is ongoing rather than a one-time test at application: the homeowner must obtain a new ALQ occupancy permit every three years so the city can review compliance (Sec. 19.34.045(i)), and the recorded deed document limits the ALQ to family members (Sec. 19.34.045(h)). Kansas has no statute preempting local owner-occupancy rules, and SB 418 leaves local zoning criteria in place. Planning staff listed removing the owner occupancy requirement as an option on August 4, 2026, with no action taken.

Sec. 19.34.045 sets no parking standard for an ALQ, and the city's ALQ page lists none. The R-1a and R-1b rules require "Not less than two off street parking spaces" for each dwelling unit, at least one in a garage or carport (Secs. 19.06.045, 19.08.040; Sec. 19.46.030(a)(5) repeats the ratio), and Sec. 19.46.005 requires parking for any expansion that adds dwelling units. Because the code calls an ALQ a "subordinate dwelling unit" yet requires it to share one address and meter so that there is no impression of two units, the text does not settle whether staff counts it as a second dwelling unit for parking; confirm with city codes staff before designing.

An ALQ "may be permitted in a residence subject to staff review" (Sec. 19.34.045), and Sec. 19.34.005(b) makes the uses in Secs. 19.34.020 to 19.34.060 permitted accessory uses; there is no Planning Commission hearing, and the commission's application fee schedule lists no ALQ item. Applications are filed through the city's OpenGov portal under the shared "Planning Commission and BZA Application" record type, which names accessory living quarters among its request types, alongside the ordinary residential building permit for the construction. Approval is not one-time: the ALQ occupancy permit must be renewed every three years. Kansas SB 418 (effective 7-1-2026) requires ADUs meeting the zoning code's criteria to be approved by right and deems a complete application approved unless denied within 30 days; Prairie Village's staff-review process already fits that model.

Sec. 19.34.045(b) and (h) restrict both units to family members and require a recorded statement that the ALQ "shall not be used as a rental unit", and Sec. 19.02.013 provides that ALQs "may not be subdivided or otherwise segregated in ownership from the primary dwelling unit." Separately, Ord. 2499 (passed 10-21-2024, effective 11-1-2025) rewrote Sec. 5-706(b) so that no one may rent a lot, any structure on it, or any room "for a period of less than 30 days," with fines of up to $500 and each day a separate offense. Any home rented long term needs a rental (occupational) license renewed annually under Secs. 5-702 and 5-703; the city's licensing page puts the fee for houses and duplexes at $87 a year, with an annual exterior inspection.