"An approved special use permit from the Board of Adjustment." That is the twelfth and last condition Greenville's Unified Development Ordinance places on an accessory dwelling unit. Without it, an ADU can't be built, even if it meets the other eleven.
The city adopted its first UDO on November 13, 2025, and it took effect March 1, 2026. It combined the old zoning and subdivision chapters into one code and created standards for ADUs for the first time. Brookgreen sits in one of the districts where the new path exists. Eight months later, no ADU request has appeared on the board's agenda. If you are pricing a Brookgreen house with a guest cottage in mind, that gap matters more than the rule.
Brookgreen Landed on the Eligible Side of the Map
Brookgreen is a mapped single-family subdivision built around Brookgreen Avenue, Kingsbrook Road, Rutledge Road and the Longmeadow Road loop. It sits near South Elm Street and East 14th Street, just north of Greenville Boulevard. Points sampled inside the subdivision on the city's zoning layer return R15S, the UDO's lower-density single-family district.
That label puts Brookgreen on the list. The council materials that went with the UDO say ADU standards apply in RA20, R15S, R9S, R9 and MRS, on conforming single-family lots. R6S, the medium-density single-family district, is not on it. The blocks around Brookgreen also include R9S, R9, R6, OR and CDF zoning, so eligibility can change within a short walk. Two houses that look alike a few streets apart can have different options on paper. Check the parcel's district on the city's zoning layer. The neighborhood name won't tell you.
Eleven Conditions Shape the Unit, the Twelfth Decides Whether It Exists
Section 9-4-405(A) of the adopted UDO sets the conditions. They fall into three groups, and each one limits what an ADU can add to a property's value.
What limits the size
- The ADU's gross floor area cannot exceed 35% of the main house's conditioned floor area.
- One ADU per lot.
- It has to meet the principal setbacks of the zoning district.
- It cannot push the lot past its maximum lot coverage.
What limits the value
- The ADU cannot be sold separately from the main house.
- Both the lot and the house have to conform to the district's dimensional standards.
- It can only go on a lot that already has a single-family house, or one being built at the same time.
What it costs to build
- It must sit on a permanent foundation, and a manufactured home does not qualify.
- It needs a lockable exterior entrance.
- It needs one off-street parking space.
- It must meet all federal, state and local building codes, plus North Carolina Building Code separation rules if it is detached.
- It needs a special use permit from the Board of Adjustment.
The 35% cap ties the cottage to the size of the house in front of it. As an example, a house with 1,800 square feet of conditioned space could carry an ADU of up to 630 square feet. That cap shrinks or grows with each house.
Condition 6 deserves attention in an older subdivision. The ordinance requires the lot and the house to conform to R15S dimensions. A house built before the current standards may or may not meet them, and the city's planning staff are the ones who can confirm a specific parcel.
Condition 12 is where the process changes. In the use table, the city marks ADUs with an "S" in the eligible districts, meaning a special use, rather than "P" for permitted by right. Single-family houses and duplexes get a "P" in the districts where they are allowed. The UDO's legend says an "S" use requires a special use permit issued by the Board of Adjustment, so an ADU goes in front of that board. The city's posted Planning fee schedule lists $500 for a Board of Adjustment special use permit in "All Other Cases." The city's August 11, 2025 Manual of Fees listed $385 for certain residential special use permits. Either way, there is a fee to pay just to get on the board's agenda.
Eight Months of the Board's Calendar
The board's own meeting archive shows how the special use process has been used since the UDO took effect. Five meetings were held. These were the cases on their agendas.
| Meeting | Request | Location |
|---|---|---|
| March 26, 2026 | Child day-care special use permit, Building Hope Community Life Center | 215 W. 9th Street |
| March 26, 2026 | Change to an existing hookah café special use permit | 3016 S. Memorial Drive |
| April 23, 2026 | Major repair facility special use permit, approved with conditions | 3830 S. Memorial Drive |
| April 23, 2026 | Microbrewery mixed-beverage special use permit, Uptown Brewing Company, approved with conditions | 418 Evans Street |
| May 28, 2026 | Child day-care special use permit, Oakmont Baptist Church, approved with conditions | 1100 Red Banks Road |
| June 25, 2026 | City sidewalk variance | Old Pactolus Road |
| September 24, 2026 | Child day-care special use permit | 3004 S. Memorial Drive |
None of these was an accessory dwelling unit. The meetings set for July 23, August 27, September 28 and October 22 were all canceled for lack of agenda items. So the board had room for more cases, and no ADU requests came in to fill it. That holds across every eligible district in the city. Brookgreen is just one part of that picture.
The conditions above help explain it. The owner needs the board's permit before an ADU can be built, the request carries a fee, and the board might not approve it. The finished unit can be no bigger than about a third of the house. It cannot be sold off later to get the money back. And it uses up part of the lot's coverage allowance and a parking space. Each of those costs is modest. Together they come before any payoff, and the payoff stays tied to the main house.
What That Means for a Brookgreen Price
Since the ADU can never be sold on its own, whatever value it has shows up only in the price of the house. Some buyers might pay for that. Brookgreen is close to ECU's main campus, so a buyer may picture rental income or room for a family member. The UDO's household rule hasn't moved for this part of town, though. Section 9-4-113 of the UDO still defines a family to include a group of no more than three unrelated people living as a single housekeeping unit. That is the same limit used in the former zoning chapter.
Put plainly, what an ADU adds to a Brookgreen lot today is an option, and that option costs at least a fee and a board decision before it is worth anything. A seller has a fair point that the lot sits in an eligible district. On the other side of the table, no ADU request has come before the board yet, so there is no local record of how it handles one. You can see both of those points on public pages, and that makes them useful in a negotiation.
The rule may also change. The consolidated UDO on the city's site is labeled as current through May 14, 2026. If you are counting on an ADU, confirm the current text and your parcel's status with the city's planning staff before you put a number on it. This post is general information and not legal or financial advice. A land-use attorney, lender or tax professional should look at your specific plans.
FAQ
Does every house in Brookgreen sit in R15S? Points sampled inside the subdivision returned R15S. The surrounding blocks include other districts, including R6, where the ADU standards do not apply. Check the specific parcel on the city's zoning map.
Can an ADU be built before the main house? The UDO allows an ADU only on a lot with an existing single-family house, or one under construction at the same time.
Could a Brookgreen owner later sell the cottage as its own property? No. Section 9-4-405(A) says ownership of an ADU cannot be transferred apart from the main house.
If you're weighing a Brookgreen house and want to understand what the lot allows before you make an offer, Kunny Brothers can pull the parcel's zoning, walk through the ADU conditions with you, and connect you with local surveyors, builders and land-use professionals who can test the idea on that specific lot. Let's Connect.
