NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas — From hotel rooms to apartments—it’s one solution for the need of single-family housing.
The city of New Braunfels has at least one hotel in the process of making the switch.
Planners with the city say they’ll propose a new rule to have enough parking spaces for efficiency housing.
The VIVO Apartments off of the I-35 Frontage Road, formerly a Ramada Inn, is currently being renovated into efficiency housing, essentially a studio apartment complex.
“In reading, it has come to light nationally that has become of some interest to property owners,” Christopher Looney—Director of Planning and Development for the City of New Braunfels said.
Looney says the city wants to put into code its parking requirements for efficiency housing.
1.1 parking space per unit is the proposed rule—but parking spaces like the ones outside the hotel won’t look any different to residents or visitors.
“We want to provide that space per so many units in the event there’s guest, visitors…but at the same time being conservative and be sure we’re not over-parking resulting in too much asphalt in the community,” Looney said.
Places to live for a low cost are at a premium in Texas.
According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, only 30 units are available per 100 extremely low income households in the San Antonio and New Braunfels region.
Looney says they want to make consistent rules for anyone converting hotels into homes
“We want to make sure we’re consistent with business owners, property owners and consistent with residential owners,” Looney adds.
The New Braunfels City Council will have its first reading of this proposed ordinance Monday night.
A maintenance supervisor tells KENS 5 it may be a couple of months before the apartments open.