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Calimesa · Building on your lot

Building on a hillside in Calimesa

Calimesa's own rules on building on a hillside, with the code text for every value.

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Each rule below links to the section of the Calimesa Municipal Code it was read from, with the code text one click away (checked October 2026). General information, not legal advice.

What Calimesa's code says

Calimesa code What Calimesa's code adds
Grading and retaining walls
  • Cut and fill slopes may be no steeper than 2:1.
    Applies: Hillside areas with slopes of 16% and above; 3:1 is preferred for fill slopes.
    § 18.55.090 · code text
    The maximum grade of cut-and-fill slopes shall not exceed 2:1, and preferably 3:1 for fill slopes.
  • Cut and fill slopes may be as steep as 1.5:1.
    Applies: Only with soils engineer approval and approval by the city engineer and the planning director.
    § 18.55.090 · code text
    The cut-and-fill slope may be as steep as 1.5:1 with a soils engineer approval, and review and approval by the city engineer and the planning director.
  • Slopes may be at most 30 feet high.
    Applies: Hillside areas: between pads, between roads and pads, between 2 roads, or cut and fill tying into natural ground.
    § 18.55.090 · code text
    A maximum of 30 feet between pads or between roads and pads or between two roads, or a maximum of 30 feet of cut and fill area which ties into natural grade for a road or a pad.
When hillside rules apply
  • Hillside rules apply on slopes of 16% and above.
    Applies: Development there needs a hillside development review and contour grading.
    § 18.55.040 · code text
    B. Slopes of 16 Percent and Above. Slopes of 16 percent and above consist of hillside and moun-tainside areas where developments in these areas are subject to the requirements of this chapter.

Who this affects

HomeownersContractorsDesigners

Frequently asked questions

What extra rules apply to a hillside lot in Calimesa?

Calimesa's code: Hillside rules apply on slopes of 16% and above. (Development there needs a hillside development review and contour grading.) (§ 18.55.040); Cut and fill slopes may be no steeper than 2:1. (Hillside areas with slopes of 16% and above; 3:1 is preferred for fill slopes.) (§ 18.55.090).

General information, not legal advice.

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