House Bill (HB) 3921, which would strip a city of its ability to enforce existing regulations regarding lot sizes and setbacks on small lots in residential zoning districts, was voted out of the House Land and Resource Management Committee last week. If enacted, HB 3921 would allow more density – even in already zoned residential areas. The bill was amended to only affect cities of more than 80,000 in counties of more than 1 million people, but an updated version of the bill is not yet available from the committee staff. Irving city staff addressed a letter to the committee before the hearing earlier this month.
HB 2789 would allow accessory dwelling units on single-family or duplex residential lots, limited only by lot size. The bill would allow a unit of some size on any lot. The bill was substituted before being voted on in committee to allow some restrictions related to parking requirements and other zoning standards. The City of Irving addressed concerns about this bill prior to it being voted out of committee.
Neither of these bills have yet been set on the House Calendar. Thursday, May 11, is the last day for House bills to be approved on second reading in the House. The companion for HB 2789, Senate Bill 1412, has been approved in the Senate.
City staff will continue to work with members of the Irving legislative delegation to modify this legislation, if possible, to make it more workable for the city’s residential neighborhoods.
House members who represent Irving: