Jan 21, 2026 City of Cathedral City 68700 Avenida Lalo Guerrero Cathedral
City,
CA
92234
By email: [email protected] CC: [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected] Re: Proposed Amendments to the City’s ADU Regulations Dear Cathedral City Planning Commission, The California Housing Defense Fund (“CalHDF”) submits this letter as a public comment regarding
item
2A
for
the
Planning
Commission
meeting
of
January
21,
2026,
an
update
to
the
City’s
regulations
for
the
construction
of
accessory
dwelling
units
(“ADUs”)
and
junior
accessory
dwelling
units
(“JADUs”).
CalHDF supports the proposed amendments to the City’s ADU regulations. However, there is one
specific
portion
of
the
ADU
regulations
that
violates
state
law,
and
the
City
should
correct
this
issue
before
passing
the
ordinance.
Background The law gives local governments authority to enact zoning ordinances that implement a variety of development standards on ADUs. (Gov. Code, § 66314.) The standards in these local ordinances
are
limited
by
state
law
so
as
not
to
overly
restrict
ADU
development.
(See
id.)
Separately
from
local
ADU
ordinances,
Government
Code
section
66323
establishes
a
narrower
set
of
ADU
types
that
local
governments
have
a
ministerial
duty
to
approve.
“Notwithstanding
Sections
66314
to
66322
...
a
local
agency
shall
ministerially
approve”
these
types
of
ADUs.
(
Id
.
at
subd.
(a).)
This
means
that
ADUs
that
satisfy
the
minimal
requirements
of
section
66323
must
be
approved
regardless
of
any
contrary
provisions
of
the
local
ADU
ordinance.
(
Ibid
.)
Local
governments
may
not
impose
their
own
standards
on
such
ADUs.
(Gov.
Code,
§
66323,
subd.
(b)
[“A
local
agency
shall
not
impose
any
objective
development
or
design
standard
that
is
not
authorized
by
this
section
upon
any
accessory
dwelling
unit
that
meets
the
requirements
of
any
of
paragraphs
(1)
to
(4),
inclusive,
of
subdivision
(a).”].)
2201 Broadway, PH1, Oakland, CA 94612 www.calhdf.org
In addition, ADUs that qualify for the protections of Government Code section 66323, like other
ADUs,
must
be
processed
by
local
governments
within
60 days
of
a
complete
permit
application
submittal.
(Gov.
Code,
§
66317,
subd.
(a).)
State law also prohibits creating regulations on ADU development not explicitly allowed by state law. Government Code Section 66315 states, “No additional standards, other than those provided
in
Section
66314,
shall
be
used
or
imposed,
including
an
owner-occupant
requirement, except that a local agency may require that the property may be used for rentals of terms 30 days or longer.” Duty to Allow Two 66323 ADUs Per Parcel City Code section 9.114.050(8)(a) only allows one ADU per parcel. However, the City should be aware that SB 543 amended Government Code section 66323 and
is
effective
as
of
January
1,
2026.
Government
Code
section
66323,
subdivision
(a)
now
reads
as
follows
(emphasis
added):
Notwithstanding Sections 66314 to 66322, inclusive, a local agency shall ministerially approve
an
application
for
a
building
permit
within
a
residential
or
mixed-use
zone
to
create
any
of
the
following
units,
or
any
combination
of
the
following
units
:
In other words, the City must allow a single-family parcel to include both an internal conversion
ADU
and
a
detached
ADU.
The City must amend its code to allow two 66323 ADUs per parcel: one new construction, detached
ADU;
and
one
ADU
converted
from
existing
space.
⧫
⧫
⧫ It is laudable that the City is updating its ADU regulations as state law changes. CalHDF supports
the
proposed
changes.
However,
the
City
should
make
sure
that
its
ADU
regulations
comply
with
state
law
by
addressing
the
issues
highlighted
above.
CalHDF is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation whose mission includes advocating for increased
access
to
housing
for
Californians
at
all
income
levels,
including
low-income
households. You may learn more about CalHDF at www.calhdf.org. Sincerely, 2 of 3
Dylan Casey CalHDF Executive Director
James M. Lloyd CalHDF Director of Planning and Investigations 3 of 3