VISTA — Developers of certain single-family homes in Vista will no longer need to provide an enclosed garage to meet city parking requirements as rising costs continue to make construction more difficult.
City code previously required all new single-home developments to include a garage with two covered, enclosed parking spaces and two guest spaces that could be open-air or covered.
However, some developers seeking to cut costs by developing modular and manufactured homes noted that the enclosed garage requirement poses financial barriers. According to city staff, adding a garage can account for 25% of total construction costs for a single-family home.
The City Council agreed on Tuesday to remove the garage requirements for homes with a total area of 1,600 square feet or less and instead permit developers to choose between two enclosed garage spaces, covered spaces or open spaces. Two separate guest spaces will still be required.
Bill Cavanaugh, who is currently building a home for his family in Vista, thanked the council for making this change.
“As a real estate developer and contractor and soon-to-be resident in Vista … I think this is a great thing. This really shows Vista’s leading the way at helping build affordable housing for people that want to get into single-family residences, and not have the added burden of the additional cost of a garage, which ends up being a storage facility anyways,” Cavanaugh said.
Construction material costs have skyrocketed in recent years, with the price for some materials growing by more than 70% between 2020 and 2024, according to the National Association of Home Builders. Higher construction costs have also been shown to correlate directly with higher housing costs for buyers and renters.
Councilmember Corinna Contreras said the amendment would promote the development of more affordable housing opportunities and wondered whether the city could revisit the requirement for two guest spots.
“I think this is a step in the right direction, and I’m wondering if there’s more to be done to make housing more affordable,” Contreras said.
Community Development Director Joe Vacca said parking is not required for certain kinds of housing, such as accessory dwelling units if they are within a certain distance of public transit. However, for larger homes, it becomes important to provide more off-street parking.
“We want to make sure we have parking so that streets don’t become cluttered,” Vacca said.
The Vista Planning Commission also approved the code amendment before it went to the council, with residents speaking in favor of the change at both meetings.
Most other cities require a garage for single-family home construction, making Vista an innovator in this area, city staff said. Improving housing construction affordability is also consistent with city Housing Element policies.
