City officials, not sure they want a town full of starter homes, are considering an ordinance increasing the minimum house-size requirement.
City Manager Dennis Cluff said the current minimum house size is 850 square feet. Cluff said the city might have the county's largest number of small homes."You can always build larger," Cluff said, referring to a minimum-size standard under consideration by city officials.
The City Council has a variety of concerns, mostly involving the city's future makeup. The main debate is how much to increase the minimum size.
While starter homes are great for young couples, when families outgrow them, it can lead to vacancies and slum areas, Cluff said. The neighboring city of West Point has also struggled with the same issues and recently increased its minimum house size to 1,050 square feet.
Cluff said there's also confusion and inconsistency in how Clinton's minimum-size formula is interpreted. The city's ordinance currently uses main-floor space, but some are calculating the size by using total livable space.
The minimum-size issue has gone from the City Council to the Planning Commission and back again. The Planning Commission felt it was a quality-of-life issue and referred it back to the City Council, asking for more direction.
However, the issue likely won't be discussed again until council members meet on Nov. 25.