VENTURA : Council Weighs Ban on Sleeping Rooms
Ventura city officials are formulating an ordinance that would prohibit the rental of detached sleeping rooms--small apartments fashioned out of a garage or shed in the back yard of some houses.
The controversy surrounding the sleeping rooms started several months ago when residents of the Simpson Tract in western Ventura, one of the city’s oldest neighborhoods, complained that a cottage behind one house violated the area’s architectural guidelines.
The controversy brought the issue to the attention of City Council members, who were unaware of the loophole in the law that bans the rental of guest cottages in the back yards of Ventura houses.
The prohibition is limited to cottages that include bathrooms or kitchens. The sleeping rooms have neither.
Council members voted recently to draft an ordinance that specifically outlaws sleeping rooms.
“Some of those places are horrible to live in,” Councilwoman Cathy Bean said.
The proposal is expected to go before the council in four to six months.
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