In an effort to grow Keene’s housing supply amid a statewide shortage, city councilors Thursday voted unanimously to allow cottage courts in certain zones of the city.
City officials hope the change will diversify the kinds of units developers can build, thereby offering more places to live.
Cottage courts are groups of small houses around a shared green space, according to the city’s website. These homes, typically about 1,200 square feet or less, can be sold or rented.
With the newly adopted ordinance, cottage courts will be allowed in all of Keene’s residential zoning districts where a connection to the public water and sewer system is possible. Applicants will first need a conditional use permit from the planning board.
After making a motion for the council to adopt the ordinance, Councilor Kate Bosley said cottage courts can serve as starter homes or as residences for others looking to downsize.
“It adds another tool in our toolbox to work on the housing crisis,” Bosley said. Councilor Bobby Williams added his excitement to the council’s discussion.
“It’s an opportunity for infill in our community, and it can create some houses that regular people can afford to live in.”
Senior Planner Mari Brunner said the city’s exploration of this kind of small-format housing spun out of data yielded in a housing study that Camoin Associates presented to Keene city councilors last April. The report found that, while Keene’s population declined by 2%, the number of households increased by 3% over a decade. This trend appears to be driven by a shift toward fewer people living in households, which in turn keeps a tight hold on housing availability.
The average household size in Keene in 2021 was about two people. The report also notes that 40% of Keene’s population (22,953 per the U.S. Census Bureau) lives alone.
So the ordinance provides an opportunity for more residential construction and more units that align with the wants of Keene’s citizens, Brunner said.
“We have a lot of households where a person is living by themselves — young professionals and older adults,” she told a reporter Thursday. “This ordinance aims to help fill that need by encouraging the development for smaller-format housing.”
Brunner also highlighted that the policy aims to promote infill development, by encouraging residential building in areas where infrastructure and utilities already exist.
“This ordinance is very intentionally meant to be ‘anti-sprawl,’” she said. While the city’s goal is to create more permanent housing for its residents, a concern that’s come out of the discussions on cottage courts is that they might lead to property owners converting their land into “mini-resorts” or short-term rentals.
Councilor Andrew Madison, who, like his peers, supported the ordinance, raised this concern in the past and told The Keene Sentinel it’s one he still holds.
“I think it’s a good ordinance. I think it’s going to help us with our housing crisis,” he said. “But yeah, I am concerned that we are going to see a lot of short-term rentals and Airbnbs popping up in residential neighborhoods.”
Brunner said that Keene doesn’t have any regulations around short-term rentals, but it’s something city staff are looking into.
“If we do regulate them, we want to regulate them city-wide and not through just one type of development (like the cottage courts),” she said. “It’s a good conversation to have.”
J.B. Mack, assistant director of the Southwest Region Planning Commission, commended the ordinance while speaking with a reporter. He said that permitting housing with a smaller footprint such as cottages opens doors for more affordable housing to be built.
“I think it’s a positive development,” he said. “It’s creating flexibility, more opportunities and conditions for developers to get creative.”
— HUNTER OBERST/KEENE SENTINEL
