[Strawbale] SB second unit sq ft update

[Mark Frazier]

Just a quick update to let ya'll know how my "issue" was resolved.

If you remember back to the posting about it, the city we're in (just  
barely, the city line is the
street in front of the property) has an ordinance which limits  
"second units" to 1000 sq ft.

I had asked them several months ago if they would measure that as  
interior space, rather than
foundation edges. I got a resounding "Not only no but hell no" from  
the planning department.

The problem was those bale walls getting counted as sq footage but  
not usable. We did all we could
to squeeze it down, even making the east and west walls stick frame  
2x6, which I will insulate using
polyurethane foam for R-45 (they're both buffered from temp extremes  
by the garage and a breezeway).
But we were still having trouble fitting everyone that Mom wants in  
that space. 'Cause if Momma aint happy....

But our only main comment that came back after plan check was that  
the unit calc'd out at 1067 sq ft. and was
not in compliance with the ordinance.

So on the recomendation of our architect, I called to ask for a  
variance on how the unit was measured, and request
that it be interior plus 6 inches to put us on a level playing field  
with stick frame walls, and
they told me they would look into what the procedure was for that.

Today they called me back and said that they had "run it by a few  
building officials", and that since the wording
in the ordinance was something like "1000 sq ft of floor area", they  
had decided that meant that it could be measured
on the inside of the exterior walls. Which means, we're OK! Using  
that criteria, the second unit measures at 906 sq ft,
well under the limit. And no special variances needed.

Would have been nice if they'd done that 4 months ago and kept my  
blood pressure down.

And now if you'll all stand back, I'll start dancing to my version of  
"I fought the law"...