ADU rules in Murray

Murray's Zoning Code defines an accessory dwelling unit as an accessory structure (a guest house, pool house, mother-in-law suite or carriage house), so the use is a detached building by definition. In the R-1 and R-2 single-family districts it is a conditional use that needs a Board of Zoning Adjustments conditional use permit; in the Agricultural (AG) district it is permitted by right. No other district lists it. Accessory buildings must sit in the rear yard at least 5 feet from all lot lines.

There is no attached or internal ADU use: the accessory dwelling unit is defined as an accessory structure, and accessory structures are by definition detached from the principal building. A second unit inside or attached to a house is therefore a two-unit (multi-family) dwelling, which is permitted by right in R-3, R-4 and R-5 and, per the use table, conditional in R-1 and R-2, although the R-1/R-2 district text itself lists no multi-family conditional use. A conversion must also meet the district's lot size, yard and parking rules for new construction.

The ADU definition caps the unit at 600 square feet or 25 percent of the principal structure's area, whichever is larger. Accessory buildings in residential zones also may not exceed the total square footage of the building they serve or push the lot past its coverage limit (35 percent in R-1 and R-2). The code sets no separate accessory height limit; the R-1/R-2 district maximum is 35 feet. The Board of Zoning Adjustments may attach further conditions to the permit.

The code does not require the owner to live on the property. Instead it restricts who may use the unit: renting or leasing the ADU is prohibited, and so is using it as a permanent residence for a secondary family on the premises, which in practice limits it to the household's own guests and relatives. The Board of Zoning Adjustments can add continuing conditions to a conditional use permit, so an owner-occupancy condition could still appear on an individual permit.

The parking table requires 2 off-street spaces for each single-family dwelling unit and has no line for accessory dwelling units. Whether an ADU counts as a second dwelling unit is not settled in the text (a dwelling unit is defined by having a kitchen, while residential accessory structures may not contain kitchen facilities). The Board of Zoning Adjustments interprets parking requirements for uses the table does not literally cover and may set parking as a permit condition.

In R-1 and R-2, where most single-family homes sit, an ADU requires a conditional use permit from the Board of Zoning Adjustments after a public hearing, with mailed notice to all adjoining owners at least 14 days ahead and a newspaper notice. The Board may approve, modify or deny the request and attach time limits or continuing conditions; the Zoning Official reviews open conditional use permits annually. The fee schedule lists $100 for a conditional use permit plus $5 recording. In the Agricultural district an accessory dwelling is permitted by right with a building permit.

The ADU definition prohibits the rental or lease of an accessory dwelling unit outright, which rules out both long-term tenants and nightly rentals. Short-term rentals (under 30 consecutive days) of a principal dwelling are otherwise a permitted accessory use in R-1 through R-5 and a conditional use in B-3, and the city has no separate short-term rental license chapter, but those rules do not override the ADU rental ban.