Join us in taking action to support the development of more affordable housing in Illinois communities. The Senate Executive Committee will hear testimony on numerous bills that support housing access and affordability at 1:30 pm TOMORROW (Thursday, April 23).
This includes SB 4060, which will establish statewide zoning standards to allow for smaller, more affordable single family homes and other “Missing Middle Housing,” e.g., 2-4 flats, townhouses, and ADUs (accessory dwelling units).
Speak up for affordable housing by stating your support of SB 4060 today.
How to File a Witness Slip:
If you are filing as an individual, write “Self” for “Firm/Business or Agency” and “Representation.”
Under the Position section, use the drop down menu for “Add Subject Matter” and select “SB 4060” and then use the “Add Position” drop down menu to select “Proponent.” Double check to make sure you selected the correct options!
Click the “Add Position” button, so that it shows “SB 4060 – Proponent” in the box to the right. If you made a mistake, click on the red “x” and start over.
For Testimony, choose “Record of Appearance Only.”
Agree to the “Terms of Agreement” and click on the “Create (Slip)” button.
More starter homes, townhomes, and three-flats—not McMansions.
Today, many municipalities ban smaller and even mid-sized homes, whether as detached single-family houses, townhomes, or two and three-flats. The result: fewer new homes overall, and the only new housing that’s allowed is the most expensive.
SB 4060, which is part of the BUILD legislative package, ensures that more reasonably priced kinds of homes aren’t banned entirely, while ensuring local control over design standards and health and safety reviews. Minimum standards adapt based on the size of a community’s lots, with single family homes allowed on smaller lots (under 2,500 square feet), four homes allowed on lots up to 5,000 square feet, six up to 7,500 square feet, and eight homes on the largest lots.
These rules encourage small-scale development that provides moderate-cost housing choices for young people, families, and seniors.
The BUILD plan offers common-sense reforms and investments to create more homes and bring down housing costs.
Housing Action Illinois and several of our partners are dedicated to having this legislation move forward; it represents a serious and necessary effort to create statewide alignment on our housing crisis, increase the supply of housing in our communities, and promote affordability. Collectively, the six bills that make up BUILD:
- Create statewide zoning standards to allow for smaller, more affordable single family homes and other “missing middle housing,” e.g., ADUs, 2-4 flats, townhouses, etc.
- Streamline local permitting and approval processes, so that homes can be built faster and at a lower cost.
- Modernize statewide rules on other issues, such as parking and building codes, to make it easier to create new homes.
If you have time, in addition to filing a witness slip in support of SB 4060, we encourage you to also submit a witness slip in support of the other bills in the BUILD package:
- SB 4061: Allow Single Stairway Buildings with Requirements to Ensure Safety
- SB 4062: Standardize Impact Fees Charged by Local Governments
- SB 4063: Allow Third-Party Review and Inspection to Reduce the Amount of Time it Takes to Evaluate Projects
- SB 4064: Reduce Minimum Parking Space Requirements
- SB 4071: Allow Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) in Single Family Zones