Woodside Municipal Code § 151.23 Review criteria

The purpose of the site development permit is to promote the public safety and general public welfare, to implement the General Plan and zoning ordinance, subdivision provisions, and specifically to protect public and private lands from erosion, earth movement, flooding, and degradation of water quality and ensure the maximum preservation of the natural and scenic character of the Town. This protection is ensured by establishing minimum standards and requirements related to the natural and scenic character of the Town by establishing minimum standards and requirements related to land grading, excavations and fills, erosion control and sedimentation control, quality of materials, and installations of basements, driveways, swimming pools, tennis courts and creek crossings, and by establishing procedures by which such standards and requirements may be enforced.

(Ord. 2016-575, effective 6-9-16)

No person shall commence or perform any grading or site development work in excess of the limits set forth in division (A) of this section without first obtaining a site development permit. A separate site development permit shall be required for each site on which site development work is proposed.

(A) A site development permit shall be required in all cases where development comes under any one or more of the following provisions, unless such work is exempted therefrom by division (B) of this section:

(1) Excavations, Fills, and Stockpiling. Excavations, fills, stockpiling, or any combination thereof exceeding 100 cubic yards (includes both cut and fill quantities);

(2) Fills. fills exceeding three feet in vertical depth at their deepest point, measured from the natural ground surface;

(3) Excavations. Excavations exceeding four feet in vertical depth at their deepest point;

(4) Area of work. Excavations, fills, stockpiling, vegetation removal, or any combination thereof exceeding an area of 10,000 square feet or 25 percent of the area of the site, whichever is less;

(5) Driveway construction. New driveway construction, not including driveway repair/resurfacing or maintenance;

(6) Swimming pool construction. New swimming pool or pools construction which cumulatively exceeds 1,500 cubic yards;

(7) Septic tanks, septic leachfields, and underground tanks. New septic tanks, septic leachfields, and/or underground tank installations which cumulatively exceed 1,500 cubic yards;

(8) Water quality impacts. Where erosion, sedimentation, or surface runoff will affect water quality as determined by the Town or the Regional Water Quality Control Board;

(9) Drainage impacts. Where, as determined by the Town Engineer, existing drainage patterns will be altered;

(10) Geologic studies and percolation testing. Trenching or test pit excavations for geologic studies or percolation testing; and

(11) Basements. Excavations for basements exceeding 25 percent of the maximum allowable basement grading pursuant to Section 151.22(C).

(B) A site development permit shall not be required in the following cases (the exceptions set forth in this section shall not apply in areas of soil instability, flooding, stream corridors, or earthquake fault zones as determined by the Town Engineer):

(1) For excavations below the finished grade for building foundations and footings, foundation piers, or utility trenches and vaults;

(2) For backfill of natural on-site material;

(3) For trenching in recorded public utility easements and public rights-of-way performed by public utility companies for the purpose of installing or maintaining underground utilities;

(4) For tilling of soil for agricultural or fire protection purposes;

(5) For the repair or resurfacing of a driveway where the gradient or drainage is not materially changed;

(6) For municipal corporations performing a governmental function;

(7) For emergency work as authorized by the Town;

(8) For swimming pool or pools which cumulatively total up to 1,500 cubic yards;

(9) For septic tanks, septic leach fields and underground tanks which cumulatively total up to 1,500 cubic yards; or

(10) For basement grading below an above grade structure and up to 25 percent of the maximum allowable basement grading pursuant to Section 151.22(C).

(1975 Code, § 7-4.07) (Ord. 1984-317, effective 4-12-84; Am. Ord. 2016-575, effective 6-9-16; Am. Ord. 2017-584, effective 4-13-17)

Cross reference— Penalty, see § 10.99.

Each application for a site development permit shall be made by the property owner or an authorized agent to the Town on forms furnished for such purpose. When work covered by this chapter is proposed as part of a project which requires a building permit, the site development permit and the building permit applications may be combined, and one site plan, may be submitted. All applications shall be accompanied by the required fees and deposits and shall contain the submittal requirements on file with the Town and online, and such further applicable information as the Town Engineer or Planning Director may require in order to carry out the purposes of this chapter.

(1975 Code, § 7-4.09) (Ord. 1984-317, effective 4-12-84; Am. Ord. 2016-575, effective 6-9-16)

A site development permit shall be issued only if such permit is accompanied by or combined with a valid building permit application or use Permit for the site issued by the Town; or the proposed grading is coordinated with any overall development plan which has been previously approved by the Town for the area in which the site is situated; or a principal use exists on the site; or for necessary geotechnical, percolation, or hydrological testing. Grading described in divisions (A), (B) and (C) below requires a site development permit. For such grading, the Town Engineer and Planning Director shall review the application for the proposed site development permit. If, after receiving recommendations from the Planning Director, the Town Engineer finds the application for the proposed grading plan is in conformance with the provisions of this chapter, he/she may issue a permit with such reasonable conditions as he/she may deem necessary to meet the objectives of this chapter.

(A) Site grading work less than 1,500 cubic yards. Where the aggregate volume of grading on any site is between 100 and 1,500 cubic yards pursuant to §§ 151.20(A)(1) through 151.20(A)(10), such grading is not considered substantial in terms of the policies contained in the general plan. For such quantity of grading, the Town Engineer and Planning Director shall review the application for the proposed site development permit. If, after receiving recommendations from the Planning Director, the Town Engineer finds the application for the proposed grading plan is in conformance with the provisions of this chapter, he/she may issue a permit with such reasonable conditions as he/she may deem necessary to secure substantially the objectives of this chapter, or alternatively, he/she may refer the application to the Planning Commission in the manner provided for in division (B) of this section.

(B) Grading work in excess of 1,500 cubic yards, and cuts and fills exceeding eight feet, require a grading exception. Grading in excess of Section 151.22(A)(1), site grading, is considered substantial in terms of policies contained in the General Plan, and shall require a grading exception. Where the aggregate volume of grading on any site pursuant to §§ 151.20(A)(1) through 151.20(A)(10) is in excess of 1,500 cubic yards, or the proposed cuts and fills exceed eight feet in height at any point, the following procedure shall be followed:

(1) Referral to Town staff. The application shall be referred for review to the Town Engineer and the Planning Director and the Town Geologist if deemed necessary by the Town Engineer or Planning Director.

(2) Review by Planning Commission. Following such review, the Town Engineer and Planning Director shall prepare and forward reports with recommendations to the Planning Commission and make the exception findings in Section 151.22(B)(6).

(3) Planning Commission hearing. The Planning Commission shall hold a hearing on the application for the proposed site development permit and, before holding such hearing, shall send notices to all property owners within 300 feet of the subject site. The Planning Commission shall make all of the findings listed in Section 151.22(B)(6).

(4) Project conditions. Upon the completion of the prescribed hearing and after the consideration of the recommendations of the Town Engineer and Planning Director, the Planning Commission shall approve, approve with such conditions as it may deem necessary to substantially secure the objectives of this chapter, if found to be consistent with the General Plan, or disapprove the application for the site development.

(5) Timeliness. Failure of the Planning Commission to make a determination on the application for a site development permit within 60 days after the receipt of all necessary information for such action will constitute an approval of the application, unless such time is extended with the consent of the applicant.

(6) Findings. A grading exception may be granted by the Planning Commission. In order for the Planning Commission to grant a grading exception, all of the following findings are required to be made:

(a) Constraints. There are no significant physical constraints relating to grading, including lot configuration, topography, geology, sewage disposal, ground water, Scenic road impact, storm drainage, vehicular access, vegetation removal, significant trees, creek impacts, and cultural resource impacts;

(b) Design. All site grading shall be properly contoured, result in natural appearing land forms specific to the site, and minimize abrupt grade changes; and

(c) Natural state restoration. Natural state restoration shall be accomplished to the maximum extent practicable.

(7) Entitlement expiration. Any approval by the Town Engineer, Planning Director or Planning Commission, given pursuant to the provisions of this Chapter 151 shall lapse and shall become null and void two years following the date on which the approval became effective, unless, prior to the expiration of two years, a site development permit has been issued. Approvals may be extended for an additional period of one year provided that, prior to the expiration of the initial two year approval period, an application for the renewal of the approval is filed with the Planning Director. The Planning Director may grant an extension for a period not exceeding one year where no change in conditions or requirements has occurred, but an application involving a change deemed to be significant by the Planning Director shall be treated as a new application, subject to all the provisions of this chapter.

(8) Application inactivity. Any Planning application which has been incomplete for six or more months shall be considered inactive. The Planning Director shall notify applicants of such status by letter and provide 60 days to bring the application to complete status. If the application has not achieved complete status to the satisfaction of the Planning Director within this 60 day period, the applicant shall be refunded fees as specified by the Town's fee schedule and the application shall be closed.

(C) Basement and daylighted basement grading. Grading quantities for basements and daylighted basements shall be calculated as the exterior of the basement structural walls. The maximum permitted grading for a basement shall be as follows in Table 1 below (no grading exceptions are permitted to Table 1).

Table 1 - Maximum Grading for Basements and Daylighted Basements*

* The maximum cubic yards of grading for basements is calculated as the square footage (the footprint) times 12 (a depth), divided by 27 (to convert cubic feet to cubic yards). This is a volume calculation, therefore basements with greater depths have smaller footprints.

(1) Calculation of basement and daylighted basement grading. Basement and daylighted basement grading shall be calculated to the exterior structural walls located below existing grade or finished grade, whichever is lower. When calculations of an existing basement(s) and daylighted basement(s) grading is needed to determine the remaining allowable basement(s) and daylighted basement(s), or when grading for a site and construction plans are not available, the existing basement and daylighted basement grading shall be calculated as the interior finished dimensions, plus an assumed factor of 12 inches for all structural walls.

(2) Means and methods for basement and daylighted basement grading. Over-excavation for basement and daylighted basement grading shall be minimized to the greatest extent practicable. The means and methods for over-excavation for basement and daylighted basement grading exceeding eight feet shall require the review and approval of the Town Engineer and Planning Director.

(1975 Code, § 7-4.10) (Ord. 1984-317, effective 4-12-84; Am. Ord. 2014-564, effective 12-1-14; Am. Ord. 2016-575, effective 6-9-16; Am. Ord. 2018-596, § 2(Exh. A, I), effective 10-26-18)

The following factors shall be considered by the Town in its review of any application for a site development permit, as indicated in Section 151.20:

(A) The degree of saturation of the fill and unsupported cuts by water, both natural and domestic;

(B) The runoff of surface waters which have a potential to produce erosion, siltation, and other adverse impacts on stream corridors or flood plains;

(C) The subsurface conditions, such as the rock strata and faults;

(D) The nature and type of the soil or rock;

(E) The effect upon the potential for future subdivision design;

(F) The visual relationships with other development in the vicinity of the site;

(G) The relationship of the proposed site development to the character of the surrounding community;

(H) The capability of proposed slopes to be landscaped;

(I) Unnecessary scarring of the natural landscape through the proposed grading or removal of vegetation;

(J) Proper contouring of grading to result in natural appearing land forms specific to the site and minimize abrupt grade changes;

(K) The impact of basement construction on groundwater and drainage patterns, significant trees, and geotechnical stability; and

(L) Any other measures contained within any environmental report which will eliminate or mitigate environmental damage.

(1975 Code, § 7-4.11) (Ord. 1984-317, effective 4-12-84; Am. Ord. 2016-575, effective 6-9-16)

(A) Permit fees and deposits. Before reviewing any site development permit, the Town shall collect a permit fee in the amount established by the Council. In addition to the collection of a site development permit fee, the Town shall collect a deposit for services in the amount established by the Council to cover the estimated costs of checking and inspections necessitated by the grading operation. Any unused portion of the deposit shall be returned when the work authorized by the permit has been completed. In the event the actual costs of checking and inspections exceeds the amount of the deposit, the permittee shall pay such excess prior to continuing with the unfinished work.

(1975 Code, § 7-4.12)

(B) Deposit refunds. Where no work has been done under a permit issued in accordance with the terms of this chapter, the Town Manager, upon a written request from the original permit holder filed with the Town Manager, shall refund the unused portion of the deposit for services. The application fee shall not be refundable, and the permit will be cancelled.

(1975 Code, § 7-4.14) (Ord. 1984-317, effective 4-12-84; Am. Ord. 2016-575, effective 6-9-16)

Timeliness, extensions and stop work orders. Work under a site development permit shall commence within 180 days after issuance, and all work shall be completed within one year after the start of the work. In the event of unusual difficulties, the Town Engineer may grant an extension of not more than 180 days, so long as the application for an extension is made prior to the expiration date of the permit. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, the Town Engineer shall have the power to stop or suspend any work if deemed necessary due to weather conditions or other conditions as provided for in this chapter.

(1975 Code, § 7-4.13) (Ord. 1984-317, effective 4-12-84; Am. Ord. 2016-575, effective 6-9-16)

Hazardous conditions. The Town Engineer shall deny a site development permit if, in his/her opinion, it will endanger any property or public way. Factors to be considered in determining the probability of hazardous conditions shall include, but not be limited to, possible saturation by water, land instability, runoff of surface waters, erosion, silting of drainage ways, and subsurface conditions, such as the lithology, structure, nature, and type of soil or rock. Failure of the Town Engineer to observe or recognize hazardous conditions or to deny the site development permit shall not relieve the permittee of responsibility for the condition or damages resulting therefrom and shall not result in the Town, or its officers or agents, being responsible for the conditions or damages resulting therefrom.

(1975 Code, § 7-4.15) (Ord. 1984-317, effective 4-12-84; Am. Ord. 2016-575, effective 6-9-16)