Nevada County Municipal Code Ch. 4 Comprehensive Site Development Standards

The purpose of this Section is to provide regulations to guide the design, location, and development of new land uses and the alteration of existing uses. The standards of this Section are consistent with and supplement those standards found in governing each zone district and specific land uses. They assist in furthering numerous County of Nevada General Plan goals, objectives, and policies that provide for the preservation and enhancement of the County of Nevada's rural quality and small-town character. They also assist in furthering General Plan provisions for maintaining the county's high-quality natural landscape and scenic resources, as well as protecting existing historic resources.

(Ord. 2533. (12/05/2023))

Site development standards shall apply to all projects, including Development Permits, Use Permits, subdivisions, and allowable uses subject to zoning compliance and building permit issuance, if required, unless otherwise stated in the subsection.

A. Purpose. The purpose of this Section is to establish an administrative procedure and standards for reviewing boundary line adjustments, consistent with the State Government Code and County of Nevada ordinances.

B. Definitions.

1. Boundary Line Adjustment means the adjustment of property lines between four (4) or fewer adjoining parcels where land taken from one (1) parcel is added to an adjoining parcel, and where a greater number of parcels than originally existed is not thereby created. A boundary line adjustment may also combine two (2) or more adjacent parcels.

C. Application Requirements. Applications for boundary line adjustment review shall be submitted to the Planning Department on forms provided by the Department. The application shall be accompanied by a filing fee as established by the most current resolution adopted by the Board of Supervisors and shall include the following information:

1. An exhibit map prepared and stamped by a licensed land surveyor or civil engineer licensed to practice land surveying. The exhibit shall be drawn to scale showing all boundaries of affected properties.

2. Current deeds describing all parcels.

3. For parcels not created by subdivision or parcel map, a copy of a deed recorded prior to March 4, 1972 that describes and conveys the parcels. If the parcels are presumed to be legally created, submit a Chain of Title issued by a title company and all other supporting documentation. If the County surveyor determines that insufficient evidence has been provided to document legally existing parcels, a Certificate of Compliance may be required.

4. A document prepared by a title company showing existing encumbrances, if any.

Upon receipt of a complete application, the Planning Director will distribute application documents to interested agencies for review and comment. Within thirty (30) days of accepting a complete application, the Planning Director shall determine if the proposed boundary line adjustment complies with all applicable State laws and County ordinances. The Director may refer review of a proposed Boundary Line Adjustment to the Zoning Administrator pursuant to Section 12.05.050.E.4 of this Chapter or shall approve, conditionally approve or deny the application.

D. Procedure. Upon receipt of a complete application, the Planning Director will distribute application documents to interested agencies for review and comment.

1. Within thirty (30) days of accepting a complete application, the Planning Director shall determine if the proposed boundary line adjustment complies with all applicable State laws and County ordinances. The Director may refer review of a proposed boundary line adjustment to the Zoning Administrator pursuant to Section 12.05.050.E.4 of this Chapter or shall approve, conditionally approve, or deny the application.

E. Standards for Approval. In approving a boundary line adjustment, the Director shall determine that all of the following standards have been met:

1. Boundary line adjustments shall not result in conflicts with site development standards nor with any previous land division or land use approvals that require a minimum parcel size or density, including parcels that are smaller than the minimum parcels size but were created as a result of density averaging or clustering unless excepted herein.

a. Legally created parcels that do not meet minimum road frontage requirements required by the zone district may be eligible for a boundary adjustment where legal access is provided such that the minimum standards set forth in Fire Safety Regulations and Road Standards of this Code can be achieved. No parcel may be adjusted if the boundary line adjustment reduces existing road frontage beyond minimum road frontage requirements identified by the zone district.

2. A boundary line adjustment cannot result in additional parcels or additional density nor can it result in the potential for further division of parcels.

3. No parcel may be adjusted if the resulting parcel will be reduced in size and will not meet the minimum Environmental Health standards contained in Sewage Disposal or Water Supply and Resources Chapters of this Code.

4. All adjusted parcels shall conform to the minimum parcel sizes required by the zone district, except that:

a. Adjustments to parcels that conform to minimum parcel sizes, that are proposed in order to re-align a property line with a well-defined physical feature, such as a water course or recorded roadway, may be approved if the resulting nonconforming size parcel complies with all other size development standards, including the minimum parcel sizes established by Policy 3.19 of the Nevada County General Plan.

b. Adjustments to parcels that are nonconforming in size, and which do not meet the minimum parcel size established by Policy 3.19 of the General Plan, may be further reduced if the purpose of the adjustment is to re-align a property line with a well-defined physical feature, such as a water course or recorded roadway, or with a zoning district boundary, and if the parcel being reduced in size is developed with an allowable use and satisfies all applicable Environmental Health Standards for sewage disposal and water supply.

c. Parcels that are nonconforming in size may be further reduced in size if the resulting parcels conform with all required site development standards, including the following minimum parcel sizes established by Policy 3.19 of the Nevada County General Plan:

1. Parcels served by public domestic water and a public sewage system shall maintain a minimum ten thousand (10,000) square feet except for low/moderate income housing where the parcel size may be reduced;

2. Parcels served by public domestic treated water and an individual sewage disposal system shall maintain one and one-half (1.5) acres;

3. Parcels served by a groundwater well and public sewerage system shall maintain one and one-half (1.5) acres; and

4. Parcels served by a groundwater well and an individual sewage disposal system shall maintain three (3) acres.

The minimum parcel sizes established by Policy 3.19 may be increased where other considerations, including adverse soil, geologic or topographic conditions may warrant larger parcel sizes.

F. Conditions of Approval. Approval of a boundary line adjustment shall be conditioned as necessary to ensure compliance with the Nevada County General Plan, and all zoning and building regulations, to require prepayment of property taxes, and to facilitate the relocation of existing utilities, infrastructure or easements.

G. Expiration. An approved or conditionally approved boundary line adjustment shall be subject to the same time limits and extension provisions as provided for in Cal. Gov't Code § 66452.6 of the Subdivision Map Act.

H. Recording Boundary Line Adjustments. Boundary line adjustment approvals are not effective until recorded in the Office of the County Recorder. Upon recordation of a boundary line adjustment all pre-existing lot lines are deemed erased by the newly recorded adjustment. Documents used to record boundary line adjustments shall be submitted to the County Surveyor for review and recordation and shall include the transfer deeds that reflect the new property descriptions, executed by all affected owners of record. Any existing deeds of trust shall be revised to reflect the new property descriptions and shall be approved by the beneficiaries of said deeds of trust. Boundary line adjustments shall be reflected in recorded documents in one (1) of the following ways:

1. Where required by Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 8762, a record of survey shall be submitted to the Department of Planning for recordation.

2. If a record of survey is not prepared for the boundary line adjustment, the document used to convey the property shall be submitted to the County Surveyor and shall be accompanied by a sketch map depicting the adjusted boundaries. The sketch map shall be signed and sealed by a licensed land surveyor or civil engineer, shall include the County file number approving the adjustment and shall include a statement that a record of survey is not required in conformance with Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 8762.

(Ord. 2090. (07/09/2002); Ord. 2239. (05/29/2007); Ord. 2529. (09/12/2023); Ord. 2533. (12/05/2023))

A. Purpose. The purpose of this Section is to provide standards by which parcels may be subdivided and developed.

B. Definitions.

Building Site means an area within a parcel where structures may be constructed consistent with the standards of this Code.

C. Substandard Parcels. A parcel that has been legally created but contains less area than is required by the applicable district, shall be considered to include a building site provided all other current site development standards are met.

D. Divisions to Separate Pre-Existing Residences. Parcels containing more than one (1) legally constructed residence may be divided into substandard parcels, provided that no new building sites are created and that:

1. The residences were not established as guest quarters, senior citizen residences, employee housing or other secondary accessory residences or structures.

2. Each newly created parcel contains at least one (1) of the lawfully established residences.

3. Each new parcel shall have a minimum frontage and lot width of fifty (50') feet and shall comply with all side yard setback and impervious surface standards; provided however that if the separation between residences and accessory structures is such that the side yard setbacks required in the zoning district cannot be met, then the common parcel line shall be located an equal distance from the primary structures.

4. Each new parcel shall meet the current requirements for sewage disposal and water supply as established in this Code; provided however, that if sewage disposal is provided by a private sewage disposal system, then the total area required for the disposal system and repair area shall be calculated based upon the size of the residential structures as they exist.

E. Compliance with Notes on Recorded Maps. No use of property shall be allowed, nor shall any subdivisions to property be allowed, which would conflict with any note attached to any map or record of survey which was recorded in the official records in order to create a division of real property into two (2) or more parcels, except that notes on recorded maps which require water storage for fire protection purposes prior to residential construction, may be modified by the fire agency that established the condition of approval if the agency verifies in writing that the original condition is no longer applicable because substitute measures of fire protection are in place.

F. Utilization of Easements. It shall be unlawful to place any structure, as herein defined, on or over any easement unless specifically allowed by the terms of such easement.

G. Sewage Disposal Adjustment. Upon recommendation of the county Environmental Health Department, the Planning Agency may require a greater building site area where necessary for sewage disposal by septic tanks and leach lines.

(Ord. 2533. (12/05/2023))

Parcels smaller than the minimum allowed by zoning may be created by subdivision by averaging the density allowed for the entire subdivision, provided that:

1. The overall density of the parcels being created, and contributing to the density, does not exceed that density which would otherwise be allowed by the zoning district.

2. All parcels contributing to the density shall be precluded from exceeding the density allowed by the zoning district through a restrictive covenant, easement, dedication, irrevocable trust, use of the X or SP combining districts, or other similar mechanism.

3. All standards, including water supply, wastewater disposal and access, are met.

A. The minimum parcel size required by any zoning district shall not apply to parcels created for the following purposes:

1. For a governmental entity or public or private owned utility who occupies the newly created parcel.

2. For environmental protection purposes, provided that one (1) of the following is applicable:

a. The parcel being created is restricted by a grant of conservation easement containing a covenant with the County of Nevada, a city or a nonprofit organization, running with the land in perpetuity, that ensures the preservation of permanent open space by restricting construction of improvements, or, the parcel being created is only conveyed in fee to a governmental or non-profit organization for open space or conservation purposes;

b. That the parcel being created satisfies the requirements for an environmental subdivision, consistent with the provisions of Cal. Gov't Code § 66418.2.

The remainder parcels from which such public use or environmental protection purpose parcels are created pursuant to this Subsection, shall comply with the minimum parcel sizes.

Any parcel created pursuant to this Subsection may not be used for any purpose other than that for which it was created; provided, however, that if any such parcel is legally merged with any contiguous parcel, such parcel/property may thereafter be used for any lawful purpose allowed under the zoning then in effect for the property to which it was merged. The document used to record the division shall contain a note advising that the use is so restricted.

A. Purpose. The purpose of these regulations is to ensure that future development minimizes unnecessary and annoying noise, by establishing maximum noise levels and standards for evaluating potential noise impacts.

B. Applicability. Noise standards shall apply to all discretionary projects, including Development Permits and Use Permits, unless otherwise excepted in this Section.

C. Definitions.

1. dBA means the "A-weighted" scale for measuring sound in decibels (a unit used to express the relative intensity of a sound as it is heard by the human ear). This logarithmic scale reduces the effects of low and high frequencies in order to simulate human hearing.

2. Leq means the energy equivalent level, defined as the average sound level on the basis of sound energy (or sound pressure squared). It is the level of constant sound which, in a given situation and time period, has the same sound energy as does a time varying sound.

3. Lmax means the maximum sound pressure level for a given period of time.

D. Noise Standards. All land use projects requiring a Development Permit, or a Use Permit shall comply with the noise standards provided herein. Permitted residential land uses, including parcel and tentative maps, are not subject to these standards.

Table Section 12.04.070 Exterior Noise Limits

1. A comprehensive noise study shall be prepared for all projects requiring a Development Permit or a Use Permit and which have a potential to create noise levels inconsistent with the standards contained herein. The study shall be prepared in accordance with the methodology identified in the Noise Element Manual contained in General Plan.

2. Projects with the potential for generating noise impacts shall incorporate design controls that assist in minimizing the impacts through the use of increased setbacks, landscaped earthen berms, solid fencing, placement of structures or other effective means.

3. Compliance with the above standards shall be determined by measuring the noise level based on the mean average of not less than three (3) 20-minute measurements for any given time period. Additional noise measurements may be necessary to ensure that the ambient noise level is adequately determined. All measurements shall be conducted by a qualified person experienced in the field of environmental noise assessment and architectural acoustics.

4. Where two (2) different zoning districts abut, the standard applicable to the lower, or more restrictive, district plus five (5) dBA shall apply.

5. The above standards shall be measured only on property containing a noise sensitive land use, including residences, schools, hospitals, nursing homes, churches, and libraries, and may be measured anywhere on the property containing said land use. However, this measurement standard may be amended to provide for measurement at the boundary of a recorded noise easement or as determined in a recorded letter of agreement between all affected property owners and approved by the county.

6. If the measured ambient level exceeds that permitted, then the allowable noise exposure standard shall be set at five (5) dBA above the ambient.

7. Because of the unique nature of sound, the county reserves the right to provide for a more restrictive standard than shown in the Exterior Noise Limits Table. The maximum adjustment shall be limited to be not less than the current ambient noise level and shall not exceed the standards of this Section. Imposition of a noise level adjustment shall only be considered if one (1) or more of the following conditions are found to exist:

a. Unique characteristics of the noise source:

1. The noise contains a very high or low frequency, is of a pure tone (a steady, audible tone such as a whine, screech, or hum), or contains a wide divergence in frequency spectra between the noise source and ambient level;

2. The noise is impulsive in nature (such as hammering, riveting, or explosions), or contains music or speech;

3. The noise source is of a long duration, defined as a cumulative period of more than thirty (30) minutes in any hour.

b. Unique characteristics of the noise receptor when the ambient noise level is determined to be five (5) dBA or more below the standard of the Exterior Noise Limits Table for those projects requiring a General Plan amendment, rezoning, and/or Use Permit. In such instances, the new standard shall not exceed ten (10) dBA above the ambient or the Exterior Noise Limits Table standard, whichever is more restrictive.

8. The above standards shall not apply to those activities associated with the actual construction of a project or to those projects associated with the provision of emergency services or functions.

9. The standards of this Section shall be enforced through compliance inspections and/or complaints.

10. A legal nonconforming use inconsistent with the noise standards of this Section shall be required to comply with said standards in the event it upgrades, enlarges, intensifies, extends, moves, or recommences after abandonment or discontinuance of a period of one hundred eighty (180) days or more. In the event such a use is changed or modified through the permit process, the noise standards in this Section shall be applied only to that portion of the land use requiring approval, provided, however, that in no event shall the noise cumulatively generated from the entire use on the site after the change or modification exceed the pre-permit ambient noise level. All such projects that have a potential to create noise levels inconsistent with the standards in this Section will require a noise study consistent with this Section.

A. Purpose. To encourage the development of pedestrian walkways to, between, and within developments.

B. Standards.

1. All projects in Community Regions shall be designed to provide pedestrian paths, trails, sidewalks or other hard-surfacing that links the proposed site with adjacent properties.

2. Discretionary projects in Rural Regions shall be evaluated, and where topography, sensitive resources or other site constraints do not preclude construction of pedestrian pathways, projects shall be designed to provide a link to adjacent properties.

3. All projects shall provide interior linkages between uses, including distinct pedestrian access from parking areas.

4. If a County-wide Pedestrian Master Plan has been adopted, the project shall be consistent with the goals and applicable policies of that Plan.

(Ord. 2533. (12/05/2023))

A. Purpose. To consider methods for reducing dependence on the automobile by exploring alternative modes of transportation in all projects.

B. Standards. All land use applications requiring a development permit, or a Use Permit shall address alternative transportation opportunities for employees, residents and/or customers served by the project, as follows:

1. Applications for non-residential Administrative Development Permits and all discretionary permits shall provide the following information:

a. An identification of the transportation needs generated by the proposed project, including the estimated number of employees or residents.

b. An identification of existing and potential alternatives to individual automobile use, including but not limited to, access to public transportation services, bicycle racks, or provisions for developer sponsored carpooling or bussing.

c. The developer's proposal to incorporate one (1) or more measures into the project to ensure use of viable alternatives.

2. Projects employing fifty (50) or more persons shall submit a detailed analysis of transportation alternatives, documenting feasible measures for reducing auto dependence.

(Ord. 2533. (12/05/2023))