Can I legally have a 2 flat "by right" in RS-3 Chicago?

[Biib Salmaas]

First of all, this is my first post, long time lurker.  I hope this is the right subforum.  

I am under contract for a property that is a 2 flat, converted to SFH. I would like to be an owner occupant of this property. There are 2 levels to the house and would require minimal work to separate the upper floor from the first floor.

In RS-3, am I allowed, "by right" to have this be a 2 unit property? The home started as a 3 unit, at some point was deconverted to a SFH (whether this is the actual zoning I do not know, there are no records for this property because its been tax exempt for 30 years). The seller has yet to provide a zoning certificate. I have tried to read as much as I can about this, but havent come up with a concrete answer. The block in question also has 60% + Multi unit density. I have an appointment with the Alderman but its not for a week. If this is going to be a legal nightmare for me to have this be a legal 2 flat, I do not want to proceed. Any help would be appreciated! Thank you!

[Samuel Pavlovcik]

@Biib Salmaas Based on the info you provided I'd say you have a good chance for converting back to a 2-Unit.

1st and foremost you can try using the following link to check the Chicago Building Department Records and see if you can find any record of the property "Legally" being converted from a 2-unit to a single-family (via a building permit) or if any permit records indicate the number of units on them.

As you had previously mentioned, the Certificate of Zoning Compliance Is definitely the best way to truly confirm how many legally existing units the building has, as recognized by the City. Even if it is currently built out as a single-family, if the Zoning Cert. comes back showing multiple units, then you would have an even easier time obtaining the building permit to show the remodeling for the 2 units.

As far as the RS-3 Zone is concerned, you are "by right" permitted to have 1 residential unit for every 2,500 sq.ft. of Lot Area. this means on a standard 25' x 125' lot (3,125 sq.ft.) you are only alotted 1 residential unit, and you would need an oversized lot at a minimum of 5,000 sq.ft. in order to have 2-Units.

That being said, the RS-3 District Does allow for some exceptions!

You had mentioned that 60% + of the neighboting lots are currently multi-unit buildings, which is very helpful information.

In accordance with the Chicago Zoning Ordinance 17-2-0303-B: "In the RS3 district the minimum lot area per dwelling unit may be reduced to 1,500 square feet when 60% or more of the zoning lots fronting on the same side of the street between the two nearest intersecting streets have been lawfully improved with buildings containing more than one dwelling unit. This exemption will only allow for the establishment of a two unit building."

There's obviously a lot at play here, and this is something that could typically be difficult to achieve; however, based on the information provided to this point, it sounds like you have a few good opportunitites.

My advise:

- Definitely get that Certificate of Zoning Compliance (your Attorney may be able to handle it for you instead of waiting on the seller).

- If it comes back as a Legally existing single-family residence, obtain a Zoning Opinion Letter in order to fully verify if you could change it back to a 2-unit residence based on the 17-2-0303-B Exemption.

Hope this helps! Feel free to reach out if you have any other questions. We can do more research with the actual property address...