Three Gahanna homeowners won permission to expand their properties at the Planning Commission's July 8 meeting, including the city's first conditional use permit for an accessory dwelling unit this year, according to city planning records.

Andrew Northern received both a conditional use permit and a variance for an accessory dwelling unit at 337 Imperial Drive. The property sits in an R-3 Small Lot Residential zone, where ADUs require a conditional use permit. Northern also needed a variance from the zone's dimensional standards, filing two separate applications for the same project.

It's a first for 2026. The conditional use file number, CU-0001-2026, marks it as the first such application filed with the commission this year.

The approval comes as central Ohio communities weigh housing flexibility. Columbus City Council voted 9-0 on Nov. 24, 2025, to make ADUs a by-right use in residential districts citywide, eliminating the variance process entirely. Columbus Councilmember Otto Beatty III, who sponsored that legislation, has said his family converted a garage at his sister's Gahanna home into an apartment for their 88-year-old mother, according to the Columbus Dispatch.

In Gahanna, the process remains more involved. A variance allows a property owner to deviate from a specific zoning standard, such as a setback or lot coverage limit, when strict enforcement would create an unreasonable hardship given the property's conditions, according to the city's Zoning Division.

The commission also approved two home-improvement variances at the same meeting:

• Jon Handler (V-0011-2026): Variance from section 1103.07 (Large Lot Residential) for an all-seasons room addition at 1105 Arcaro Drive, zoned R-1.
• Eddie Jewell (V-0012-2026): Variance from section 1103.09 (Small Lot Residential) for a garage addition at 718 Mistletoe Street, zoned R-3.

Gahanna City Council adopted a broader zoning code update (ORD-0018-2026) in May 2026 to clarify provisions and implement recommendations from adopted plans. The ADU and variance approvals are among the first planning decisions under the updated code.

Official minutes from the July 8 meeting have not yet been posted to the city's website.