Cottage Housing
Contents
Introduction
Cottage Housing is generally defined as a grouping of small, single family dwelling units clustered around a common area and developed with a coherent plan for the entire site. They have gained popularity in recent years as a type of infill development on small sites, within existing developed areas. The cottage units may have other shared amenities. The shared common area and coordinated design may allow densities that are somewhat higher than typical in single family neighborhoods possible while minimizing impacts on adjacent residential areas. As a result, cottage housing can offer its owners a quality living experience that is less expensive than traditional single family housing. It also offers a degree of privacy and some of the benefits of single family housing combined with the lower cost and maintenance of attached housing. The clustered arrangement can contribute to a sense of community. Even so, its departure from existing patterns and its higher density have encountered resistance in some communities.
Cottage Housing Articles
- Cottage Housing in Plain English - MRSC's one page explanation of the concept.
- Cottage Housing Development (
167 KB), The Housing Partnership, Seattle, 05/00
- Cottage Housing in Your Community: A guide to drafting a cottage housing ordinance, ( 450 KB) The Housing Partnership, Seattle, 06/01
- Evaluation of the 1998-2001 Demonstration Program for Innovative Housing Design - Detached ADUs and Cottages ( 450 KB), City of Seattle, 06/20/03
- Living large in tight quarters, Christian Science Monitor, 10/17/01
- Alternative Housing Choices, Seattle Department of Planning and Development - See Cottage Housing
Cottage Housing Codes
- Kirkland Ordinance No. 4120 (
173 KB) - Adds Ch. 113, Cottage, Carriage, and Two/Three Unit Homes to zoning code
- Langley Municipal Code Ch. 18.22.180 - Cottage Housing
- Marysville Municipal Code Sec. 19.14.040, cottage housing developments
- Olympia Unified Development Code Ch. 18.04.060(H) - Cottage Housing
- Port Townsend Municipal Code Ch. 17.34 - Cottage Housing Development Design Standards
- Redmond Community Development Guide Ch. 20C.30.52 - Cottage Housing Developments
- Seattle Municipal Code Ch. 23.43.012 - Cottage Housing Developments (CHDs) and 23.45.005 - Development standards for single - family structures
- Shoreline Ordinance Nos. 321, 362, 371, 408, and 362 ( 1.31.MB) - Provides for (then repeals) amendments to the development code related to cottage housing bonus densities between March 2003 and February 2006. It was decided that the standards intended to require integration of new cottage housing in residential development would not create a high quality development necessary to compliment Shoreline's lowest density residential neighborhoods. Retained as an example of cottage housing provisions
- Moxee Municipal Code Sec. 16.35.080 - Cluster development standards
- Federal Way cottage housing
- Mukilteo Municipal Code Sec. 17.51.056
Related Resources
MRSC Index – Cottage Housing