A Journey For Full Time Legal Living!
Moscow, Idaho is becoming a welcoming city for tiny houses with innovative creative solutions that can serve as a model in other jurisdictions. I just ran across the most exciting article written by Macy Miller, the founder of MiniMotives and the Idaho proponent for Appendix Q Tiny Houses, the first state that adopted Appendix Q Tiny Houses.
Macy Miller is a mother, teacher, and architectural designer. She designed and built her family’s tiny house in 2011 which has been featured in TIME and Dwell magazines. After living tiny for four years and having two kids, her family downsized from their tiny house to a rebuilt vintage travel trailer to explore the U.S. National Parks. She remains a strong advocate of alternative living and small space dwelling.
She is now living legally, full time without looking over her shoulder, and now able to put roots down with her family. What a sigh of relief! Sharing her entire story below.
Moscow, Idaho Removed The 6 Month Restriction For RVs On 1/21/2020
RVs, Park Models, And Tiny Homes Allowed In Mobile Home Parks
The Moscow City Council removed the 6-month restriction of RVs in mobile home parks last night, through a unanimous vote. Park Models and tiny homes on wheels will also be allowed in mobile home parks in Moscow as well for full-time hookups year around. It was heartwarming to see supportive comments from each city council member.
Led by Mayor Bill Lambert, the city council also suspended the rules requiring three, complete separate readings, to be read by title, and published by summary. Mayor Bill Lambert” Ordinance number 2020 Days O1 an ordinance with the city of Moscow, Idaho a MunicipalCorporation of the state of Idaho, providing for the amendment at Moscow city code title 6, chapters, 2, 3 and 4 regarding amendments to the mobile homes parks and recreational vehicle parks chapters providing that the provisions of this ordinance are deemed severable and providing for this ordinance to be in full force and effect from the day of its passage approve and publication according to law. ”
Moscow, Idaho Abiel Mobile Home Community Allows Tiny Homes
Owned By Gary Lester, The Proponent Of The Ordinance That Removed The 6-Month Restriction
Did I Mention, We Legally Live Full Time In Our Tiny House Now?
In Macy’s Own Words:
Yep! That’s right! No staying up at night wondering if we’ll get the boot in the coming weeks and it feels so good. It feels like I can finally put down some roots and invest some time and labor into making my house more beautiful. I think I will finally plant that modified green roof I designed over 8 years ago!
Even when we moved up to Moscow it was with the expectation that we would only be here for a max of half the year. That is what the zoning on the property allowed and we could work with that. When Covid hit we decided to shift around plans and head up to do some work on the property. While up we received a notice that reinforced the time limit. I took this notice as an opportunity to work out a more permanent plan since the county reached out to me to open the discussion.
Frankly, I was not thinking anything would happen but figured it was worth the try. As it turns out, we were able to work out a solution that allowed full-time tiny living! I am going to include the text from my communication with the county after receiving the notice in an effort to help those struggling with any of this. If this isn’t important to you, skip down a little to see what we’ve been working on since gaining legal status!
Our communication
Good morning Michelle!
I got your message. I hope this is the right email. We figured out the phone service I switched to is very spotty in Boise so my apologies for not being able to answer when you called. We are heading back up to Moscow and I would love to set up an appointment to talk through some questions/ideas I have re our parcel. We take every precaution but we’d like to have 7 days to quarantine just to make sure no Covid symptoms show up before meeting. Do you have time late next week or so that we can set up an appointment to chat?
In the meantime, I have forwarded along all of the communication I have had between various folks in your department over the years (below). Just to summarize though:
We are completely aware that we are not to be living in the tiny house for more than 6 months in any 12 month period, that is completely workable for us, (we travel and have a house in Boise where we stay when not here). We are marking our days in a calendar to assure we stay within that bound while also trying to get some groundwork done up here for our future plans, roads, and such… We actually didn’t plan on being up here just yet this summer but Covid made us put a stop to the plans we did have so we came up here to work instead. As the second wave approaches we’re taking the notice from Eric as a potential door to open and see if there is a way we can find to be permitted to live in the tiny house year-round, or at least through this winter because of the pandemic? We see it as a much better option than going back and forth with a virus raging on, particularly after seeing how Boise is (not) addressing spreading concerns.
So, we have a tiny house that we moved up late last fall. I’ll note that the tiny house will not be our forever home on this property, eventually (3-4 years) we plan to build a mid-sized ground bound house. It is legally classified as an RV but it is built to IRC standards (my partner is a licensed architect, I have a master’s degree and a lot of experience working in the field). We’re not asking for any exceptions, but maybe there is a path forward that can work for the county? We know tiny houses are an odd topic. We’ve lived tiny in some form or fashion for the last 8 years and literally helped write and pass the IRC code appendix through the International Code Council as well as pushing it through for early adoption at the state level in Idaho. I would personally love to retain the ‘tiny house’ status instead of converting it to a ground bound structure but I am open to whatever makes most sense (assuming anything does). We were wondering if a Conditional Use Permit for the winter is an option?
I was also made aware of the changes Gary Lester initiated early this year for tiny homes within city limits within mobile home parks. I have heard through the grapevine he is trying to approve a similar idea in the county. If this is true, I am wondering if there is any room for us to be able to advocate for that to be a viable solution on our parcel? I believe our parcel is zoned for mobile home use but not as a mobile home park. Without knowing the specific verbiage this seems like the best option from our side. With this, we assume we need to get a septic system in place and design some approved tie-downs (or borrow them from mobile home standards), etc. If this is an option we’d love to get the work done before the weather changes. Thus, we’re trying to get in with you now.
Another option we’ve discussed, that doesn’t make as much sense, might be a rezone to an RV park or something. We don’t have any plans to utilize the property in that way so it seems like a formality that sidesteps the intent of the code. I am not yet researched on the tax implications of that either. Really, we’re just trying to find a way to stay on the property this winter, if possible, to keep our family as safe as we can through this pandemic. Also, we love living in a tiny house, it’s ‘home’ for us. It feels like a cruddy vacation when we can’t live at home but we have also learned to roll with whatever. 
I appreciate your time, please let me know if you have a space for a meeting after the 8th! Thank you!
In a matter of minutes this is what I heard back:
Hi Macy,
Thanks for the email. Last week the Planner and I discussed your situation and think we have a solution for you. Coincidentally, it is one of the solutions that you offered.
We think the best way to address your situation is to have you apply for a conditional use permit for a one spot RV park.
While I understand your questioning the idea of an RV park, don’t let the name mislead you. There is no minimum to the number of RV spots in an RV park in the County and we are finding this is an effective way to allow longer-term use of one or more RVs on a property.
The issuance of a C.U.P. allows us to track and monitor RV sites, just like home sites, and helps us to immediately address any issues that we would typically address as part of the building permit or manufactured home placement process (C.U.P. process in lieu of a building permit). We also believe allowing as few as one in a “park” addresses some of the affordable and available housing concerns in our Comprehensive Plan. It actually is a simple way to allow the Zoning Commission and staff to address many of the issues that come along with people living in an RV longer term, such as septic, garbage disposal, access to the property, driveway standards, addressing, etc..
The application is relatively easy and if approved could allow you to continue living on the property whenever you want until you can do something more permanent.
Establishing a manufactured home park (which would require a rezone, a boundary survey, and a very long list of requirements) is far more arduous. We would not recommend going this route unless you wanted to place manufactured homes on your property and establish a multi-lot manufactured home park.
You will need to work with Mauri Knott to make application for the conditional use permit. I have copied her on this email. She will contact you to get you the links and/or documents that you will need to apply.
Also, we modified our ordinance over two years ago to allow spots in mobile home parks in the County to be converted to RV spots. We have only had one manufactured park owner take advantage of this. We are considering increasing the number of spots that can be converted for our next ordinance modifications.
If you still wish to meet, let me know. Our office is currently closed to the public, but I am happy to email, talk over the phone, meet via zoom or have properly socially distanced mask-wearing meeting with you either in the courthouse or outside the courthouse at the picnic table. I am available most days at varying times.
Michelle
That’s it
I filled out the C.U.P. application and submitted it with $300. They made mention of my having experience in architecture because I didn’t just submit napkin drawings, which they would have gladly accepted. I partook in a Zoom style Planning and Zoning meeting. One of the five participants was hesitant to allow us but the other four easily convinced him it wasn’t a big deal. I didn’t even have to say much but ‘hello’ and ‘thank you’.
As a part of the CUP, we are putting in a septic system. Unfortunately, it was so late in summer and we had so much to do to get ready for winter that we didn’t get a chance to put it in before the weather turned. We figured we can survive the winter without septic (we have a year to put it in), we can’t survive the winter without water! So we got to work building our winter shed to store 900 gallons of water. We will get to work on the septic as soon as the ground thaws out. We’ve already got the size and location approved with the health department. It will also be able to be used for our eventual ground-bound house up the hill.
Thank You Macy!
Sometimes all it takes is asking. Thank you, Macy, for forging a path!
Tiny House Alliance USA Editor
The Future Of Tiny Is Now!
Janet Thome Founder And President
janet@tinyhouseallianceusa.org
509 345 2013
Founder Of Tiny Portable Cedar Cabins