ADU rules in Wahpeton

Wahpeton's zoning chapter (Code Ch. 46) has no accessory dwelling unit use: a quoted search of the whole code for 'accessory dwelling' returns zero hits, as do 'guest house', 'accessory apartment', 'second dwelling', 'granny' and 'carriage house'. Sec. 46-238(a), which governs accessory buildings in the single-family and two-family districts (R-1a, R-1b, R-1c and R-2), says such a building 'shall not include dwelling units or living quarters', so a backyard cottage, garage apartment or converted outbuilding with a kitchen is barred. The definitions point the same way: a single-family dwelling is 'a detached building containing only one dwelling unit', and in any residence district 'the main dwelling shall be deemed to be the principal building on the lot' (Sec. 46-1). The R-3 townhouse provisions likewise allow 'One detached single-family dwelling unit per lot' (Sec. 46-146(g)(1)a), and no district provides for two detached houses on one residential lot.

There is no attached or internal ADU either, but a second unit inside or added onto a house is possible where a two-family dwelling ('a building designed or used exclusively for occupancy by two families', Sec. 46-1) is allowed. Two-family dwellings are permitted by right in R-2 (Sec. 46-145(b)(2)), R-3 (which takes every R-2 use, Sec. 46-146(b)(1)) and RB-4 (any R-3 use, Sec. 46-166(b)(1)); they are special exceptions decided by the board of adjustment in R-1b and R-1c (Secs. 46-143(c)(4), 46-144(c)(3)) and by the planning commission in the ETZ-1 extraterritorial district (Sec. 46-213(c)(6)), while R-1a and the agricultural district allow no second unit at all. Lot area is the usual gate: 10,000 sq ft for a duplex in R-2 (down to 6,000 sq ft by special exception on plats approved before May 15, 1947), 8,400 sq ft in R-3 (6,000 sq ft plus 2,400 sq ft and 20 ft of frontage for the added unit), and the per-family minimums of 12,000 sq ft in R-1b and 5,000 sq ft in R-1c counted for each family. Even where allowed, the result is a duplex of two co-equal units, not a subordinate accessory unit.

Chapter 46 sets no size for an accessory dwelling because none exists. The nearest numbers govern accessory buildings in the single-family and two-family districts, none of which may contain a dwelling: Sec. 46-236(a) (as amended by Ord. No. 1007, 8-5-2019) caps accessory structures at 1,200 sq ft on lots under one acre and 2,500 sq ft on lots of an acre or more, never larger than the first-floor square footage of the main building, within 40 percent of the rear yard, at most two per lot, with detached garages no taller than 15 ft at the roof midpoint; the board of adjustment may allow 20 ft garages and 4,000 sq ft on lots of two acres or more (Sec. 46-236(b)). The older Sec. 46-238(d) repeats a flat 1,200 sq ft cap without the acreage tiers. For the duplex route there is no unit-size cap; residence-district buildings are limited to 35 ft (Sec. 46-235(a)) plus the district lot-area and yard rules. A separate single-family house must have at least 900 sq ft of living space, a 24 ft minimum width and space for an attached single-stall garage (Sec. 46-1), so a small cottage cannot qualify as a principal dwelling either.

No ADU exists for an owner-occupancy rule to attach to, and the one lawful way to add a unit, a two-family dwelling, is listed with no residency condition in R-2, R-3 and RB-4 (Secs. 46-145(b)(2), 46-146(b)(1), 46-166(b)(1)). Quoted code-wide searches for 'owner-occupied' and 'owner occupied' return zero hits. The board of adjustment may attach 'any conditions, restrictions and safeguards it deems necessary or desirable' to a special exception in R-1b or R-1c (Sec. 46-73(3)b), but the code itself imposes none tied to ownership. North Dakota has no statute imposing or preempting ADU owner occupancy.

Sec. 46-263(7)a requires 'one space for each dwelling unit' for one- and two-family dwellings, so turning a house into a duplex raises the requirement from 1 to 2 spaces, which must sit on the same lot as the building (Sec. 46-264(d)); Sec. 46-264(b) applies the schedule whenever a building is enlarged in its number of dwelling units enough to raise the need by ten percent or more. A parking space is at least 200 sq ft with a driveway connecting it to a street, road or alley (Sec. 46-1). Uses in the B-1 central business district are exempt (Sec. 46-263). North Dakota has no statewide parking preemption.

It depends on the district. In R-2, R-3 and RB-4 a two-family dwelling is a permitted use, so the zoning officer issues a zoning and use registration permit (Secs. 46-50, 46-51) alongside the building permit, with no hearing. In R-1b and R-1c (and in B-2) it is a special exception: such permits 'shall be issued only upon order by the board of adjustment' (Sec. 46-27(a)), which weighs neighboring property values, traffic, sewer and water capacity and community need and may attach conditions (Sec. 46-73(3)); the planning commission sits as the board in the extraterritorial zone (Secs. 46-75, 46-213(c)). In R-1a and the agricultural district there is no route short of a rezoning, because the board 'does not possess the power to permit a use not generally or by special exception permitted in the district involved' (Sec. 46-73(6)). Converting an existing building is less clear: Sec. 46-308 says the board 'may recommend a variance to permit the conversion of any building into a two-family or multiple-family dwelling in any permissible residential district', and R-3 lists such conversions as a special exception (Sec. 46-146(c)(2)), so a house conversion even in R-2 or R-3 may be sent to the board.

Wahpeton has no rental licensing or registration program: quoted searches for 'rental registration', 'rental unit' and 'owner-occupied' return nothing, and the only landlord duty found is smoke detection in 'All residential rental property' (Sec. 14-7(a)(1)). A 'Rental Housing Inspection Program' sits on the public works committee's consider-as-time-allows list (9-28-2026 agenda) and the 2021 Housing Study recommended considering a 'Landlord/Quality of Life Ordinance', but neither has been drafted. There is no short-term rental ordinance ('short-term', 'short term', 'vacation rental', 'airbnb' and 'bed and breakfast' all return zero hits); the city's 3 percent lodging tax reaches 'hotel, motel, or tourist court accommodations' rented for less than 30 days (Secs. 40-137, 40-138). Each dwelling unit may house one family, meaning related persons, one family plus two unrelated persons, or no more than four unrelated persons (Sec. 46-1). A duplex unit cannot be sold separately without subdividing the lot.