Santa Clara County Municipal Code Part 2 Review

Building site approval shall be required for new single-family or two-family dwellings (including any alteration project classified as rebuild, per Section C1-22), and certain additions and alterations to single-family or two-family dwellings, except where expressly exempt by any provisions of this chapter.

(Ord. No. NS-1203.35, § 5, 3-13-78; Ord. No. NS-1203.119, § 1, 8-24-10)

Editor's note— Sec. 3 of Ord. No. NS-1203.119 allows for an effective date of Oct. 1, 2010, and states: "This ordinance shall not apply to discretionary land-use applications that include house plans (floor plans and elevations) that have been deemed complete or approved prior to October 1, 2010 ("Grandfathered Projects"), or for which a building permit application has been accepted by the Building Inspection Officer prior to October 1, 2010 ("Grandfathered Projects"). For the purpose of rebuild/remodel determinations, a property owner may elect to have a Grandfathered Project be governed by the rebuild/remodel provisions that take effect on October 1, 2010 or the rebuild/remodel provisions that were in effect immediately prior thereto."

Prior to filing an application for single building site approval, an applicant may file an application for pre-application review, which shall be for the purpose of preliminarily determining the feasibility of the proposed project and identifying potential development constraints.

At the conclusion of staff review of a prescreening application, which may include field investigation, the Planning Office shall provide the applicant with a consolidated report identifying potential development constraints to the extent those constraints can be identified based on the information provided during the pre-application process and, for projects which appear feasible, outlining possible conditions of single building site approval.

Applications for pre-application review shall be filed with the Planning Office and shall be accompanied by a fee in an amount prescribed by the Board of Supervisors.

(Ord. No. NS-1203.59, § 1, 3-2-82; Ord. No. NS-1203.76, § 2, 9-10-85; Ord. No. NS-300.791, § 8, 4-22-08)

(a) Building site approval shall not be required for additions of 500 square feet or smaller, provided that any such addition that would cumulatively exceed 500 square feet when combined with the floor area (square feet) of all additions permitted after March 2, 1982, shall be subject to building site approval.

(b) Any addition done as part of an alteration project that is classified as rebuild, per Section C1-22, shall be subject to building site approval.

(c) Additions and alterations to existing dwellings on lots ten acres or larger located outside of a city's urban service area shall be exempt from building site approval, except that any alteration project that is classified as rebuild (per Section C1-22) shall be subject to building site approval.

(Ord. No. NS-1203.59, § 2, 3-2-82; Ord. No. NS-1200.301, § 6, 10-30-01; Ord. No. NS-1203.119, § 2, 8-24-10)

Editor's note— See editor's note following Section C12-307.

Dwellings located on the lands of Stanford University shall be exempt from the building site approval process, however certain types of residential development may be subject to other approval processes.

(Ord. No. NS-1200.301, § 8, 10-30-01)

Building site approval shall not be required for lands within any R1 or R2 zoning district, provided that:

(1) The land is not located in any R1 zoning district to which a -n 1 combining zoning district applies. Lands located in any R1 zoning district to which a -n 1 combining zoning district applies are not eligible for the exemption from building site approval pursuant to this section.

(2) Any required clearances and documentation from County departments and agencies are obtained prior to issuance of building permit for any new residence, any alteration project that is classified as "rebuild" pursuant to Section C1-22, or any addition that cumulatively exceeds 500 square feet when combined with the floor area of all additions permitted after March 2, 1982. The required clearances include, but are not limited, to the following:

a. Clearance and documentation from the Department of Roads and Airports demonstrating that any dedications, improvements or other requirements required by Section C12-317 have been satisfied.

b. Clearance and documentation from the Department of Planning and Development, Division of Land Development Engineering demonstrating that any dedications or improvements required by Sections C12-323 through C12-327 have been satisfied.

c. Clearance and documentation from any other department or agency demonstrating that any prerequisites required by Sections C12-315 and C12-316 have been satisfied.

(Ord. No. NS-1203.121, § 1, 8-5-14)

Editor's note— Secs. 4 and 5 of Ord. No. NS-1203.121 state: "This Ordinance shall take effect September 5, 2014. Any active or expired building site approval having an expiration date between September 5, 2012 and September 4, 2016, shall be automatically granted an additional two-year extension to the expiration date most recently in effect."

Single building site approval shall not be required for replacement of part or all of a single-family residence destroyed by casualty such as fire, flood, earthquake or other natural event or by demolition pursuant to a condemnation order issued by the Building Inspector under the following conditions:

(a) The original residential structure was lawfully constructed with appropriate building permits if required at the time it was built.

(b) An application for a building permit to construct the replacement residential structure is filed within two years of the date of the destruction of the original structure. The exemption provided by this section, however, shall not be applicable to any subsequent building permit application filed after the foregoing two-year period expires if the initial application referred to above is abandoned or if any building permit issued thereunder is revoked or lapses.

(c) The replacement residential structure will be sited on the lot in such a manner as best fulfills current County requirements.

(d) The area of the replacement residential structure is not more than 500 square feet greater than the area of the original structure.

(e) The replacement residential structure shall be constructed in accordance with current building code and health and safety requirements. Variances from these standards may be granted by the appropriate County authority when the site conditions make it infeasible to comply with such requirements. Under no circumstances shall a replacement residential structure be allowed where public health and safety would be endangered.

(Ord. No. NS-1203.80, § 1, 10-28-86; Ord. No. NS-1200.301, § 7, 10-30-01)

Cross reference— Health and welfare administration, Div. A18; buildings generally, Div. C3.

(a) This is a site which has either been previously approved by the County and which approval has not expired, or is a whole lot or parcel shown as an approved building site on a parcel map or numbered tract subdivision map filed in the office of the County Recorder. The Central Permit Counter will review the site development plan for zoning, building setbacks, on-site drainage, proposed sewage system, water supply, proposed grading, required street encroachment permits, and the location in relation to official geologic maps.

(b) If the site requires a separate grading permit or field investigation and review by other departments or agencies, a master file will be established and the application referred to affected departments and agencies.

(c) If no additional site review or field investigation is required, building plans will be accepted and transmitted to the Building Inspection Department for approval. After plans have been approved by the Building Inspector and all conditions met, the Central Permit Office shall issue the building permit.

(Ord. No. NS-1203.35, § 5, 3-13-78)

Editor's note— Section C12-311, relating to review of a site not previous reviewed, was repealed by § 3 of Ord. No. NS-1203.98, adopted July 11, 1989. The section had been derived from Ord. No. NS-1203.35, § 3, adopted Mar. 13, 1978, and Ord. No. NS-1203.81, § 2, adopted Dec. 16, 1986.

Editor's note— Section C12-311.1, regulating parcels divided after Feb. 3, 1986, by means other than by subdivision, derived from Ord. No. NS-1203.81, § 3, adopted Dec. 16, 1986, was repealed by § 2 of Ord. No. NS-1203.93, adopted Apr. 4, 1989. See § C12-242.