Santa Clara Zoning Code § 1.7 Deviation from Standards

In some instances, it may be practical to deviate slightly from the Standards of this Code while still meeting the vision of the Downtown Precise Plan In such a case, the Planning Commission shall have the authority to grant deviations from the development standards of this chapter in accordance with the provisions of SCCC § 18.108 and in accordance with the maximum deviations and associated required findings in Table 1-1 For any standards not listed in Table 1-1 , no deviation is permitted In all cases, no deviation shall be granted if it hinders a project's ability to contribute to the vision for Downtown Santa Clara as detailed in the Downtown Precise Plan and/or hinders its ability to achieve the intent of the standard in question

Special consideration for deviations shall be given to the cultural/civic anchors described in the Precise Plan, such as the Food Hall / Market Structure on Arts Commons New cultural/ civic structures play a pivotal role—as does the existing historic Post Office building—in establishing Downtown as a destination with unique physical markers Such buildings warrant special architectural gestures, executed to a high artistic standard

TABLE 1-1 | DEVIATIONS FROM STANDARDS

Text read from an image; its layout may differ:
Max. Deviation from
§ Standard Required Finding(s)
Numeric Standard
4 The Downtown Zone and Character Overlays
Dimensions in Figure 4-2 • Any dimensional deviation is warranted to accommodate a building's bay and
Massing Increment rhythm
10%
• Any dimensional deviation does not detract from a ground floor's ability to provide
a Shopfront where required
5 Building Placement
Standards in Table 5-1 • The building(s) help(s) define and provide appropriate enclosure to the public
0% realm
• The design is harmonious with the existing built context,
Standards in Table 5-2 • The portion of the Build-To Range which is not built out is a meaningfully-
10% designed, useful and beautiful space rather than unsightly leftover space
• Rear setbacks with alleys provide adequate space for any required trash, fire,
All other numeric standards in Section or utilities access
5 • Where fire access is required, separation meets fire code and the discretion of
local fire official
10% • Where exceptions to standards are necessary to enable the adaptive reuse
of existing buildings, provided that the ground floor frontage is calibrated, to
the extent practical, according to the standards and guidelines of Section 9
In exceptional adaptive reuse cases, the Planning Commission may allow a
deviation greater than those listed in this table
6 Building Height
All numeric standards in Table 6-1, • Not applicable: no deviation allowed
0%
Figure 6-1, and Figure 6-2
All numeric standards in Table 6-2 and • Any deviation in dimensions is mitigated through excellence in design which
Section 6.3.C through 6.3.J 20% clearly meets the intent for the Plan Area as described in the Precise Plan
• Floor-to-ceiling height is not less than 8 feet
7 Building Massing
All numeric standards in Section 7 • High quality architectural design and materials used create enough visual interest
20%
to compensate for any dimensional deviations
8 Facade Design
All numeric standards in Section 8 • Exceptional architectural style and quality of materials create visual interest
that compensates for a lower amount of windows, doors, or entrance frequency
20%
• The facade is organized into a coherent rhythm of bays and the intent of an
active & interesting ground floor environment is still met

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Publication, Apr 2026

SANTA CLARA CODE

7 | Chapter 1: General Provisions & Administration

Text read from an image; its layout may differ:
Max. Deviation from
§ Standard Required Finding(s)
Numeric Standard
9 Private Frontages
All numeric standards in Section 9 • Any deviation in dimensions is mitigated through excellence in design and enables
the frontage to accomplish the intent of private frontages
20%
• Any deviation doesn't hinder a frontage's ability to serve its role according to
its frontage type
10 Architectural Projections
All numeric standards in Section 10 • Any deviation in dimensions is mitigated through excellence in design
20% • Any deviation does not restrict the projection's ability to serve its purpose (i e
a balcony shall remain usable rather than simply decorative)
11 Signage Design
All numeric standards in Section 11 • The sign is not auto-oriented in nature
20% • The sign is appropriately scaled to the size of the building & business
• The sign enhances the aesthetic quality of the public realm
13 Site Standards & Guidelines
All numeric standards in Section 12 • The high quality of the architectural/landscape design and the materials used
create enough visual interest to compensate for any dimensional deviations
• Privacy requirements are adequately balanced with visual safety needs
• Any additional wall height is warranted to provide appropriate privacy to the
space it is enclosing, due to a unique site condition (i e space is highly exposed
or adjacent an undesirable site condition outside of developer's control)
20% • Decreased wall height is warranted if a landscaping feature provides the desired
privacy
• The enclosed space provides adequate visibility to the public realm ("eyes on
street")
• Architectural style is consistent with the design of the building and/or the public
space it is enclosing; strong landscaping is provided between wall and sidewalk

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Publication, Apr 2026

ZONING

8 | City of Santa Clara Downtown Form-Base Code

2 The Vision & Coding Approach