ADU rules in Elk Ridge

An accessory dwelling unit may be built in a permanent accessory building on the same lot as an owner-occupied single-family home (§10-12-29(A)(2), (B)(1)), and §10-12-6 allows living quarters in an accessory building only as such a unit. Every residential zone (R-1-15,000, R-1-20,000, R-1-12,000, RR-1, R&L-1-20,000, HR-1, CE-2, CE-3) lists accessory units only as a conditional use, and they are expressly not permitted in the Senior Housing Overlay Zone. Code Amendment 26-4, adopted April 28, 2026, renamed accessory apartments "accessory dwelling units" and requires a unit in an accessory building to have at least one bathroom, a kitchen area, and a separate sleeping area. The state detached-ADU mandate in Utah Code 10-21-304 (in force since October 1, 2026) does not reach Elk Ridge. It binds only a fifth-class city with "a population of 5,000 or more" (10-21-101(25)(b)), and the Utah Population Committee estimated Elk Ridge at 4,848 residents on July 1, 2025.

An accessory dwelling unit inside a single-family home (a portion of the dwelling with its own cooking, sleeping and sanitary facilities, per the §10-2-2 definition) must meet the §10-12-29 standards. The city lists it only as a conditional use in every residential zone (for example §10-7A-3). State law overrides that listing for an internal unit, meaning one created within the footprint of the house: Utah Code 10-21-303(1)(a) provides that "the use of an internal accessory dwelling unit is a permitted use" in any area zoned primarily for residential use, and subsection (3) is a closed list of the conditions a city may still impose. An addition that enlarges the house's footprint is not an internal unit and stays under the local conditional-use rule. A home may have only one accessory unit, either inside the house or in an accessory building, never both (§10-12-29(C)(3)).

The local code sets no ceiling on unit size. Code Amendment 26-4 (adopted April 28, 2026) struck the old floor, "An accessory apartment shall contain not less than three hundred (300) square feet", and Code Amendment 26-5 the same night struck the accessory-building coverage cap (15% of combined rear and side yards or 8% of the lot, whichever is less). The house itself must still meet its zone's building area requirement, not counting the space devoted to the unit. A unit in an accessory building is limited by the accessory building rules: 30 feet of height, and under 26-5 "The height of the accessory building may not exceed the height of the main structure," with 8 foot side and rear setbacks. For internal units, Utah Code 10-21-303(1)(b)(i) bars any size limit relative to the main house.

Code Amendment 26-4 (April 28, 2026) loosened the rule so that the owner may live in either unit: "Accessory dwelling units shall be permitted only in the instance where the primary dwelling or accessory dwelling unit is owner occupied." Before the amendment the owner had to live in the main house. Each annual permit renewal still requires "evidence that the primary dwelling or accessory dwelling unit is occupied by the owner" (§10-12-29(D)(2)). For internal units, Utah Code 10-21-303(3)(j) lets a city prohibit rental where the dwelling is not the owner's primary residence.

The April 2026 draft of Code Amendment 26-4 would have cut the requirement to one space. The council instead approved the amendment on April 28, 2026 "WITH THE SPELLING OF SEMI-PERMANENT AND 2 PARKING SPACES", keeping two off-street spaces for an accessory unit, whether inside the house or in an accessory building, on top of the main home's spaces. The amendment also adds that "the quantity of off street parking spaces must be sufficient to prevent on street parking for all residents." Spaces lost to the unit must be replaced, ADU parking may not sit in the clear view area of an intersection, and parking must be paved (concrete, asphalt, masonry or concrete pavers); the old ban on ADU parking in the front setback was struck. For an internal unit, Utah Code 10-21-303(3)(c)(i) allows a city to require only one additional on-site space, and none where its ordinance already requires four. The detached-unit parking caps in 10-21-304 do not apply to Elk Ridge.

Under the local code, every residential zone lists accessory units as a conditional use (for example §10-7A-3), handled under §10-12-33. Under §10-12-29(B)(1) city administration may approve them after an application and a finding of conformance. The city's Conditional Use Application form states "Conditional Use Permits are approved/denied by city administration" and requires notice to owners within 300 feet (§10-12-37). In the CE-3 zone, conditional uses need Planning Commission and City Council approval (§10-9C-6-2). The October 13, 2026 fee schedule lists an accessory apartment permit at a $400 fixed fee plus a $30 annual renewal. An internal unit (within the house's footprint) is different: Utah Code 10-21-303(1)(a) makes it a permitted use in primarily residential areas, so the city's conditional-use listing cannot lawfully apply to it. The 10-21-304 bar on conditional use permits for detached units does not reach Elk Ridge, which is below the 5,000-resident threshold.

The accessory unit permit runs until July 1 of the following year and renews automatically only on payment of the annual fee ($30 in the October 2026 fee schedule), evidence that the owner lives in the house or the unit, and a city finding that the approval conditions still hold (§10-12-29(D)). Code Amendment 26-5 (April 28, 2026) struck the accessory-building ban on "Sleeping quarters or housing used for short term rentals" (§10-12-5(B)(3)). At the April 14 hearing the council noted that "short term rentals if not mentioned in code, then it is allowed" and assigned two council members to draft short-term rental rules, but no such ordinance appears on agendas through October 13, 2026. State law would let the city bar rentals of an internal unit under 30 consecutive days (Utah Code 10-21-303(3)(i)), but no Elk Ridge text found does so.