County Building Official Rene Beliveau reports there will be no need to hold an ADU permit lottery this year. With a total of nine permits for Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU) available in 2010 and only five qualifying applications submitted before the lottery deadline each applicant will have the opportunity to submit plans and go through the permitting process.

Three of this year’s entries want permits for new construction and two wish to convert existing buildings to ADUs.

The four remaining permits may be considered for new construction or conversions and are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

The number of ADU permits available each year is determined by a formula involving the number of building permits issued for the construction of new homes outside of activity centers and urban growth areas during the previous year. In past years, the demand exceeded the number of ADU permits available and the lottery was established as an unbiased means of distributing them.

In 2009, with falling construction activity, 15 qualifying applications were received for 14 available permits.