Chapter 18.30 — SITE PLANNING AND GENERAL DEVELOPMENT

§ 18.30.010. Purpose and Applicability. ¶

A. Purpose. The purpose of this chapter is to ensure that development is consistent with the General Plan, complies with the standards of this chapter, produces an environment that is harmonious with existing and future development, and protects the use and enjoyment of neighboring properties.
B. Applicability.
1. The standards in this chapter apply to all zones.
2. These standards shall be considered in combination with the standards for each zone in Article 2 (Zones, Allowable Uses, and Development Standards), and Article 4 (Standards for Specific Land Uses). Where there may be a conflict, the standards specific to the zone or specific land use shall override the general standards in this chapter.
3. All structures, additions to structures, and uses shall conform to the standards of this chapter as determined applicable by the Director.
(Ord. 1976 § 2, 2019)

§ 18.30.020. Permitted Projections into Required Setback Areas. ¶

In applying the regulations of this section, the following features of a structure shall not be included in the lot coverage and may project into a required setback to the extent specified. None of the identified exceptions shall be permitted if they encroach into an adopted parcel line, right-of-way, or public use easement.

A. Cornices, canopies, eaves, or other projections that do not increase the volume of space enclosed by the structure may project up to three feet into a required setback.
B. Fire escapes may project into a required setback up to four feet, six inches.
C. An uncovered stair, ramp (ADA), and landing that does not extend above a ground floor entrance, except for the railing, may project up to three feet into a required setback.
D. Bay windows and chimneys may project up to three feet into a required setback provided that they do not occupy, in the aggregate, more than 1/3 the length of the structure wall on which they are located.
E. Equipment and/or structures enclosing equipment that is attached to the main structure or an accessory structure (e.g., solar panels, water storage tanks, heating and air conditioning equipment, or similar mechanical equipment) shall be permitted to encroach into a required rear or side setback area, provided they do not encroach more than 50 percent into the required rear or side setback area.

(Ord. 1976 § 2, 2019)

§ 18.30.030. Height Measurement and Exceptions. ¶

A. Maximum Height Allowed. The height of structures shall not exceed the standards established by the applicable zone in Article 2 (Zones, Allowable Uses, and Development Standards), except as otherwise provided in this section.
B. Height Measurement. Height shall be measured as the vertical distance from the average finished grade nearest the structure to the highest point of the structure. See Figure 3-1 below (Measurement of Height).

Figure 3-1 Measurement of Height

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C. Allowed Structure Height Increases. The maximum structure height in the development standards established by Article 2 (Zones, Allowable Uses, and Development Standards) may be increased as specified by this section, provided the increase shall not conflict with the conditions of an approved discretionary permit.
1. Places of Assembly and Meeting Facilities. Places of assembly and meeting facilities in zones that impose a height limitation of 35 feet or less may exceed the 35-foot height limit by up to 25 feet when the required front, side, and rear setbacks are increased an additional one foot in excess of minimum requirements for each four feet in height above 35 feet.
2. Miscellaneous Structures. The maximum structure height specified in this Zoning Code shall not apply to the following miscellaneous structures and may be exceeded by no more than 25 percent, except that a lower maximum height may be required by the Review Authority through the conditions of an approved land use permit:
  - a. Cooling towers, smokestacks, or other structures that are required by allowed industrial processes in industrial zones.
  - b. Cupolas and domes.
  - c. Distribution and transmission cables and towers.
  - d. Elevator housings.
  - e. Fire and hose towers.
- f. Fire walls.
- g. Flag poles.
- h. Mechanical equipment and its screening to include roof-mounted wireless telecommunications support facilities.
- i. Monuments.
- j. Observation towers.
- k. Radio and television station towers.
- l. Residential chimneys, flues, smokestacks, and enclosures.
- m. Ground mounted solar energy collectors. These structures shall be set back from all property lines and habitable structures at least 100 percent of the height of the structure.
- n. Stairway housing.
- o. Water tanks and water towers.
p. Other roof mounted structures and mechanical equipment similar to those listed above.
(Ord. 1976 § 2, 2019)

§ 18.30.040. Setbacks—Measurement and Requirements. ¶

A. Applicability. This section establishes standards to ensure the provision of open areas around structures for visibility and traffic safety; access to and around structures; access to natural light and ventilation; separation of incompatible land uses; and space for privacy, landscaping, and recreation.
B. Setback Regulations. Except as provided by subsection E , no required setback or required open space for one structure shall be considered as providing a required setback or open space for another structure.
C. Exemptions from Setback Requirements.
1. The minimum setback requirements of this Zoning Code shall apply to all uses except for the following:
  - a. Fences or walls constructed within the height limitation of Chapter 18.34 (Fences, Walls, and Hedges).
  - b. Retaining walls less than three feet in height above finished grade.
2. Street setback lines, as delineated on all recorded final maps, parcel maps, and record of survey maps shall be the street and yard setback distances required on the property within the final maps, parcel maps, records of survey maps, unless additional road dedication is required as a condition of development. When additional road dedication is required, or in the case of recorded final maps, parcel maps, and records of survey maps, the greater setback distance of either the property development standards in the applicable zone based on the ultimate right-of-way width or the setback distance as shown on the approved map shall prevail.
D. Measurement of Setbacks. Setbacks shall be measured and applied as follows, except that the Review Authority may require different setback measurement methods where the Review Authority determines that unusual parcel configuration makes the following infeasible or ineffective. See Figure 3-2.

Figure 3-2 Location and Measurement of Setbacks

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Front Setbacks. The front setback shall be measured at right angles from the nearest point of the front property line of the parcel to the nearest point of the structure envelope, except for corner parcels.
Side Setback. The side setback shall be measured at right angles from the nearest point on the side property line of the parcel to the nearest line of the structure envelope, establishing a setback line parallel with the side property line that extends between the front and rear yards.
Street Side Setbacks. The side setbacks on the street side of a corner parcel shall be measured from the nearest point of the side property line adjoining the street.
Rear Setbacks. The rear setback shall be measured from right angles from the nearest point on the rear property line of the parcel to the nearest line of the structure envelope, establishing a setback line parallel with the rear property line that extends between the side yards, except:

a. In the case of an irregularly shaped lot, where the rear property line is narrower than the front, a 10-foot line drawn within the lot, parallel to, and most distant from the front lot line shall be considered the rear lot line for the purpose of measuring the required rear setback. Rear setbacks shall be measured from this line to the nearest line of the structure envelope.
E. Exceptions. The setback requirements as specified shall apply with the addition of the following:
1. No structure shall be erected, structurally altered, or used for a school, place of assembly, hospital, public structure, or other similar use, allowed either as a matter of right under the Director's review and approval of a Conditional Use Permit regulations of this Zoning Code, unless the structure(s), when fronting on a street, have a front setback not less than prescribed by the zone in which the structure is located.
2. Side and rear setbacks may be used for required uncovered off-street parking, as determined by the Director. If a canopy or similar structure is used to cover the off-street parking spaces, then the structure may be considered an accessory structure. If the parking area abuts property classified as a residential zone, then a solid masonry wall six feet in height shall be erected on the property line abutting the area used for off-street parking.
(Ord. 1976 § 2, 2019)