Phoenix City Council passed a new policy that legalizes backyard guesthouses for homeowners citywide Wednesday, a move that supporters say will increase affordable housing stock and provide flexibility for families with aging parents or adult children who struggle to afford to live elsewhere.Mayor Kate Gallego celebrated the policy, saying “We’re very excited … we believe everyone deserves a place to call home,” and noted how it’s one of many strategies the city is deploying to address the affordable housing crisis.Vice Mayor Yassamin Ansari called it “just a small piece of the puzzle but a very necessary one.” Councilwoman Betty Guardado, of District 5 in the Maryvale area, said the policy would particularly benefit her constituents who live in multi-generational households.The council voted 8-1 to approve the policy, with Councilmember Jim Waring of District 2 in northeast Phoenix voting no over concerns the city struggles to adequately enforce short-term rental regulations.Councilmembers Debra Stark and Laura Pastor emphasized that they worked on a new policy to address concerns about short-term rentals, which would come up for a vote later this month. Stark represents District 2 in the Moon Valley area and Pastor represents District 4 in the midtown and uptown areas.Previous city law allowed for backyard storage sheds, but full-fledged guesthouses with plumbing and electricity were only permitted in certain areas with large lots.The new policy creates a path for all homeowners to build backyard casitas but has certain restrictions pertaining to size and location within the backyard. It also bans the guesthouses from being used as short-term rentals. The law also adds definitions for duplexes and triplexes to distinguish them from casitas, otherwise known as accessory dwelling units or ADUs.Citywide casita legalization comes three years after the city passed an official Housing Phoenix Plan, with the goal of building or preserving 50,000 homes by 2030. The city is more than halfway to its goal with more than 31,000 units created or saved, according to its website. Nearly 40% of the units are considered affordable or workforce.Workforce housing typically refers to units where renters live within a certain percentage of the area median income. They’re often teachers, restaurant workers or blue-collar workers.Here’s what you need to know …
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