Jumpstart ADU / El Dorado County
Nestled between Sacramento and Lake Tahoe, El Dorado County is home to a diversity of communities including the suburban fringes of Folsom, historically significant gold rush towns including Placerville, and rural settings like Pleasant Valley. The region is facing similar housing shortages to other Sierra Nevada Foothill communities due to the rising cost of living, the changing dynamics of the workplace, and growing interest from retirees and vacationers. Local workers who support the vibrant year-round agricultural and service-oriented tourism economy are finding it increasingly difficult to secure affordable housing. With their small footprints, relatively low cost, and many different forms, ADUs are an important piece in addressing the county’s greater housing issues.
In partnership with Housing El Dorado, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to create and promote affordable housing solutions in the county’s Western Slope, we developed new tools for homeowners and developers designed to make the ADU process more accessible and transparent. The centerpiece of the project is a robust website for their Jumpstart ADU program. This homeowner-orientated website guides users through an ADU project from start to finish and features resources to support the process, including fillable worksheets, the “Can I Build Tool” which shows users what kind of ADU development is possible on their parcels by applying local land use controls, a gallery of real-world ADU layouts for inspiration, and a “Frequently Asked Questions” page with answers to common ADU questions.
We also developed an industry-focused outreach campaign, including a survey and focus group for realtors, developers, architects, policymakers, and others working on ADU development in El Dorado County. The goal of these activities was to hear specifically about potential issues, roadblocks, and solutions for accelerated ADU development. Significant interest in the event caused a last-minute change to the format and planned activities, and our team showed flexibility and quick thinking to transform the planned online discussion into an interactive session that could gather feedback from dozens of participants and help them feel heard, supported, and part of the discussion.
Our work on Jumpstart ADU generates community interest and knowledge of ADUs as a viable solution to the county’s housing needs and assists city and county staff by reducing roadblocks to ADU development.
