See why some at one Iowa County aren't convinced about legalizing tiny houses

Though they may not be popping up in the neighborhood just yet, a town in Iowa is considering the tiny life, but not everyone in the town is convinced it's the right move.
According to the Spencer Daily Reporter, tiny homes are allowed in mobile homes sites and campgrounds that have also already approved of tiny homes being there. However, tiny homes could not be allowed to be built on property outside of those two approved areas.
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The only way to possibly get a tiny home in other areas is to file a variance, which typically takes 30 days to process if it's granted to begin with.
Clay County Zoning Administrator Tammy McKeever noted in August that Clay County as a whole and Spencer both have very similar housing regulations, both requiring a minimum of 800 square feet with 20x40 dimensions for a home.
When asked about whether or not tiny homes could theoretically be placed on piers, Spencer Planning Director Kirby Schmidt said, "Right now, what our rule is, is that you can have one home per lot and we say a lot's at least 50 feet wide on the street."
As of September 14th, more talks about tiny homes in Spencer have been brought up. The Spencer Planning and Zoning Commission meeting was sparked by continued interest in expanding the presence of tiny homes beyond campgrounds and trailer parks.
One of the concerns about tiny homes being in the town is the presence of Airbnb renters coming to the area and using those tiny homes as "party houses."
It was noted that while renting out spaces is legal, anything longer than a weekend, such as if the situation has multiple renters or the same renter for longer than that period, it would be classified as a living space and would be illegal.
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More discussion is needed to sort out further details on what is and isn't allowed, and if the current zoning codes could be relaxed. More updates will come next month at the next meeting.