Multifamily-housing 'glut' irks residents in Layton

LAYTON — Does Layton have too many multifamily housing units?

The unanimous approval recently by the City Council for the rezone of a parcel of land to multifamily housing raises the question.

Some 2.7 acres at 1400 N. Angel St. is now zoned multifamily residential. It is just west of Kohl's department store and next to the Mountain View Estates mobile home park. There was no public input on the rezone proposal that switched the zoning from a previous highway commercial zone.

"It wasn't without its discussion points," Layton planner Peter Matson said. In the end, the council thought it represented a good transition for the area.

As of Jan. 1, Layton had 21,747 total dwelling units. Of those, 16,969 are single-family homes, 3,928 are multifamily units and 1,612 are mobile homes. That means 75.4 percent of Layton's total housing is single family, 17.4 percent is multifamily housing and 7.2 percent is mobile homes.

Matson doesn't believe there is too much multifamily housing in the city.

He said the city's general guideline from the early 1990s has been that 18 percent to 20 percent of the city's total housing stock is the preferred range for multifamily and the city still meets that guideline. However, he said in light of new housing trends, that guideline should be increased somewhat.

Matson said that's because the general demand for multifamily housing has increased in recent years.

"Town homes are the new single family home," he said. "They're gaining in popularity." They consist of two to six attached units, sharing common walls. They also tend to be very large these days, averaging 1,300 to 1,900-square-feet in size and two to three bedrooms.

"Within our borders one will find affordable housing for all economic classes and adequately meets what the state requires," said Layton Mayor Stephen Curtis said, who doesn't believe the city has too much multifamily housing.

Scott Carter, the city's community development director, also doesn't believe there's too much multifamily housing.

He agrees there's been a housing shift in the market toward townhouses and condos. This latest rezone will likely create another 36 multifamily residences in the same Main Street area of Layton that already has Falcon Park Apartments, Sterling Pointe and more than 300 duplexes. Some residents in this area, inundated by apartments, tend to feel there's too much multifamily housing concentrated there.