Adaptive Reuse Model Legislation

What is Adaptive Reuse Model legislation?

Across the country, communities are grappling with empty offices, underused retail space, and a worsening housing crisis. Yet in many cities, converting those vacant buildings into housing is expensive or even illegal – bogged down by outdated zoning rules, discretionary review, and rigid parking mandates.

The Adaptive Reuse Model Legislation would fix that. It gives developers a clear, ministerial path to turn eligible nonresidential buildings into homes, while giving local governments the tools to waive obsolete zoning barriers. The bill allows cities to adopt streamlined approval frameworks, limit fees to marginal impacts, remove new parking minimums, and offer incentives like tax abatements or expedited review. 

Since 2024, Arizona, Hawaii, Maryland, and Texas passed versions of adaptive reuse legislation.

Executive Summary

The following model legislation is designed to facilitate the adaptive reuse of underutilized nonresidential buildings (such as office, commercial, or industrial structures) into residential housing. As urban cores across the country face a surplus of vacant buildings and a persistent housing shortage, adaptive reuse offers a cost-effective, sustainable solution that leverages existing infrastructure and reduces barriers to infill housing production.

Why is adaptive reuse important now?

With rising office vacancies, underused retail corridors, and outdated commercial zoning, many communities are sitting on a vast supply of buildable square footage that cannot be used for housing under current law. In parallel, the housing crisis continues to push cities toward denser, more walkable forms of development. Adaptive reuse bridges these trends by converting structurally sound, nonresidential buildings into homes. 

Why is state legislation needed?

In many jurisdictions, local zoning, discretionary permitting, and building code constraints prevent or delay adaptive reuse projects. Developers may face prohibitive parking minimums, historic but outdated zoning envelopes, or a mismatch between local codes and modern safety standards. This legislation empowers local jurisdictions to streamline approvals for qualifying projects without requiring rezoning and encourages them to waive or modify nonessential barriers, such as discretionary review or conflicting design standards.

What does the legislation do?

Section 3 defines adaptive reuse and makes clear that eligibility is broad, including commercial, retail, office, and industrial structures.

Section 4 authorizes local governments to waive or modify zoning and building code requirements to enable reuse.

Section 5 mandates a ministerial (non-discretionary) review process for eligible projects and prohibits denial based on local design or use standards alone.

Section 6 allows local jurisdictions to impose inclusionary requirements on adaptive reuse projects but caps them at 20 percent of total units.

Section 7 prohibits new parking minimums, allowing projects to proceed with existing on-site parking only.

Section 8 allows local governments to offer incentives like property tax abatements, permit fee waivers, and expedited approvals.

Section 9 requires historic projects to meet applicable preservation standards but allows jurisdictions flexibility where compatible.

Section 10 encourages local implementation and charges the state housing agency with providing technical assistance.

This framework aims to unlock a significant source of housing production potential in cities that already have the bones of walkable urbanism, and now need the policies to make those buildings livable.

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Adaptive Reuse Model Legislation

Section 1. Title.

This Act shall be known and may be cited as the “_____________Act.”

Section 2. Purpose and Intent.

The purpose of this Act is to enable the conversion of underutilized nonresidential buildings into residential housing through adaptive reuse. This Act’s goal is for local governments to adopt flexible permitting frameworks, reduce regulatory barriers, and allow conversions without requiring rezoning. It affirms the role of adaptive reuse in promoting infill housing development while maintaining health and safety standards.

Section 3. Definitions.

1.  “Adaptive Reuse” means the conversion of an existing structure to a new use or uses, while retaining some or all elements of the original building envelope.
   
2. “Eligible Building” means any nonresidential structure, including but not limited to commercial, retail, office, institutional, or industrial buildings, regardless of its previous use or condition. Eligible Buildings shall not be disqualified based on age, construction type, prior use, or status as a nonconforming use, provided that after renovation they meet health and safety requirements for residential occupancy as set forth in the formally adopted building code. (Texas)
   
3. “Environmentally exempt project” means a project that qualifies for streamlined review and is not subject to additional NEPA, or state environmental reviews solely due to a change in use to residential occupancy.

Section 4. Local Authority and Jurisdictional Flexibility.

1. Local governments are authorized and encouraged to adopt adaptive reuse ordinances to permit and streamline the conversion of Eligible Buildings into residential units. (Texas)
   
2. Local governments may:
   1. Waive or modify zoning regulations, including density, setbacks, height, and floor area ratio, as necessary to facilitate adaptive reuse;
   2. Waive or revise local building standards, provided such modifications do not conflict with IBC requirements; (Texas)
   3. Establish administrative approval procedures or ministerial processes for qualifying reuse projects. (Texas)

Section 5. Approval Process.

1. Projects that meet eligibility under this Act shall be reviewed through a ministerial process.
   
2. Projects that comply with IBC standards and applicable fire and safety requirements shall not be denied solely due to noncompliance with local design or use codes. Local governments may apply objective design standards, provided they do not impose discretionary review, reduce unit count, or materially impair project feasibility. (Texas)

Section 6. Affordability.

1. Local jurisdictions may impose inclusionary housing requirements on adaptive reuse projects.
   
2. Any such requirement shall not exceed twenty percent (20%) of total units. (Texas)
   
3. Units designated as affordable shall comply with locally defined Area Median Income thresholds.

Section 7. Parking.

1.  No local government may impose parking minimums on adaptive reuse projects approved under this Act beyond the parking spaces that are already on site from the building’s prior use.
2. Projects may provide additional parking voluntarily.

Section 8. Incentives.

1.  Administrative and review fees shall be limited to the actual cost of processing the application, supported by documentation, and shall not exceed comparable fees for similarly sized residential projects.
   
2. Impact fees or infrastructure assessments imposed on adaptive reuse projects shall be proportionate to the actual marginal impact generated by the project beyond the building’s previous use and shall not exceed those assessed for equivalent new residential development.
   
3. Local governments may offer incentives to support adaptive reuse projects, including but not limited to:
   1. Property tax abatements;
   2. Permit fee waivers;
   3. Expedited permitting; (Texas, Maryland)
   4. Infrastructure cost sharing.

Section 9. Historic Preservation.

1. Adaptive reuse projects located in historically designated structures shall comply with applicable federal, state, or local historic preservation standards.
   
2. Jurisdictions may grant exceptions or flexible standards where compatible with historic resource integrity. (Hawaii)

Section 10. Implementation.

1. Each local government is encouraged to adopt or amend its municipal code to facilitate adaptive reuse consistent with the provisions of this Act.
   
2. The state housing agency shall provide technical assistance and model ordinances to assist with local implementation.

Section 11. Severability.

If any provision of this Act is found to be invalid or unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, such provision shall be severable and the remaining provisions shall remain in full force and effect.

Section 12. Effective Date.

This Act shall take effect [____ months] following enactment.