#AskJAXTDY | More details on ADUs, please

Q. After reading that the Jax City Council had extended the area where local homeowners can build and rent “accessory dwelling units,” which are basically small apartment-type casitas, Jacksonville Today newsletter readers Susan A. and Shanell D. had questions: Susan asks whether ADUs would have separate tax bills on top of the main home’s property tax bill and whether they’ll be permitted in any area zoned for single-family homes. Shanell wonders whether the structures have to be connected to the city sewer system.

A. ADUs will not have separate tax bills, says Duval County Property Appraiser Jerry Holland. Rather, they’ll be treated like any freestanding structure on the property, such as a detached garage, barn, etc. “It will be part of the parcel…therefore it will generate only one tax bill for the entire parcel,” he tells Jacksonville Today.

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As for where ADUs are allowed, they generally can be built on any single-family property countywide, but there are exceptions. They may not be allowed if you live in an HOA or an area with special zoning restrictions, such as in flood plains.

ADUs are not required to be connected to city sewers if there’s no sewer line to the property. Whether the dwellings can be connected to septic tanks is up to the Florida Department of Health in Duval County, which oversees permitting and inspections of septic systems.

Have a question you’d like the Jacksonville Today team to look into? Email news@jaxtoday.org with #AskJAXTDY in the subject line, and you might see your answer soon.