SECTION:
13.73.010: Purpose And Intent
13.73.020: Using This Chapter
13.73.030: Site Selection And Planning Standards
13.73.040: Building Scale And Design
13.73.050: Building Materials And Colors
13.73.060: Landscaping And Vegetation
13.73.070: Grading
13.73.080: Drainage
13.73.090: Access, Circulation And Off Street Parking
13.73.100: Fences
13.73.110: Night Lighting
13.73.120: Figures
A. The general purpose of these standards is to promote development that will balance the rights of the landowner with protection of the city's sensitive lands, especially its irreplaceable foothill and canyon environments. Many of these standards are broad in nature to allow flexibility in design so development can be evaluated on a site by site basis, while ensuring that development will be comparable with the natural landscape, and consistent with the public welfare.
B. The development standards contained herein are intended specifically to accomplish the following purposes:
1. Preserve and enhance the beauty of the landscape by encouraging the maximum retention of natural topographic features, such as drainage swales, streams, slopes, ridgelines, rock outcroppings, vistas, natural plant formations, trees, and similar features;
2. Encouraging planning, design, and development of building sites in a manner that provides the maximum in safety and enjoyment while adapting development to, and taking advantage of, the best use of natural terrain;
3. Establish a foundation for development in sensitive lands to ensure a more harmonious relationship between manmade structures and the natural setting;
4. Direct new development in the canyons and foothills toward areas meeting suitability criteria as outlined in the general plan, and other applicable general or community plans. (Ord. 2012-15, 9-20-2012)
The development and design standards set forth in this chapter fall into two (2) categories:
A. Mandatory standards, which are identified by a "+" notation in the left hand margin; and
B. Advisory standards that are strongly encouraged, but not mandatory, which are identified by a "o" in the left hand margin.
Subdivisions and development subject to this chapter shall comply with all of the "+" standards and shall attempt to incorporate, to the extent feasible or practical, all of the "o" standards. (Ord. 2012-15, 9-20-2012)
A. To the maximum extent feasible, match the development program to the available land on the site:
+ 1. A site shall be selected that is suitable for the type of building or use being planned without major alternations to the site.
o 2. The minimum and maximum slopes gradients that can work with each type of land use in the development program shall be considered. Compare the amount of land needed for the program with the amount of buildable land on the site. Select a site that best suits the type of building or use recognizing the particular opportunities and disadvantages of the site.
+ 3. Avoid sites that show evidence of slope instability, landslides, avalanche, flooding, or other natural or manmade hazards. (See chapters 13.75, "Natural Hazard Areas", and 13.74, "Flood Damage Prevention Regulations", of this title.)
B. Site buildings in a manner that preserves existing landforms. (See figure.)
o 1. Each building shall be located so that it does not dominate the site.
+ 2. To the maximum extent feasible, the most prominent areas of the site shall be left in their natural condition. Structures shall be screened using existing land forms and vegetation. (See subsection 13.72.030H, "Tree And Vegetation Protection", of this title.)
+ 3. To the maximum extent feasible, buildings should be placed in the following locations on a site:
a. Within tree masses to screen buildings;
b. At the edge of trees or land masses overlooking open space; or
c. In open areas where they are not visible from roads, trails, or other public lands.
C. Site buildings in a manner that preserves significant view. (See figure.)
o 1. Buildings should be designed to fit their sites and to leave natural massing and features of the landscape intact. Treat each building as an integral part of the site rather than an isolated object at odds with its surroundings.
+ 2. To the maximum extent feasible, views both to the site and to features beyond, as seen from public rights of way, trails, and other public lands, shall be maintained. To the maximum extent feasible, new construction shall not dominate views or obscure the views of others.
D. Site buildings so their form does not break prominent skylines. (See figure.)
+ 1. Buildings shall be sited off of highly visible places and designed so they are not obtrusive, do not loom out over the hillside, and do not break prominent skylines. Skylines are ridges or hilltops that do not have backdrops behind them. Heavily traveled roads or public areas are key vantage points.
E. Site buildings in a manner that preserves significant trees and vegetation. (See figure.)
+ 1. The building shall be sited in a place where a minimum amount of trees and vegetation will need to be removed. (See section 13.72.040, "Establishment Of Limits Of Disturbance", of this title.)
F. Cluster buildings and parking, and coordinate neighboring developments. (See figures.)
o 1. Clustering is encouraged to reduce the amount of land being disturbed and to share the cost of providing services, road and parking area maintenance, snow removal, etc. (See section 13.73.090, "Access, Circulation And Off Street Parking", of this chapter.)
o 2. Cooperation among adjoining landowners to achieve coordinated development is strongly encouraged. For example, clustering buildings and combining or sharing services into a central location reduces the number of access roads and parking areas within a site.
G. Locate parking facilities to minimize their visual impact. (See figure.)
+ 1. Parking facilities shall be located so that they can be screened to blend into the natural environment and will not require backing onto a public street. (See section 13.73.090, "Access, Circulation And Off Street Parking", of this chapter.)
+ 2. To the maximum extent feasible, parking facilities shall be located to the rear or side of main buildings facing away from a public street or where they can be screened so they do not dominate the streetscape. Parking facilities shall be designed to follow the existing topography and to provide adequate snow storage area.
H. Place utility lines underground.
+ 1. To the maximum extent feasible, utilities shall be placed underground and within existing roadways or in established shoulders in order to minimize the impact to existing natural features such as natural vegetative patterns and land forms. (See figure.)
+ 2. Tree cutting for utility corridors shall be feathered to reduce visual impacts. All disturbed areas shall be revegetated. (See section 13.73.060, "Landscaping And Revegetation", of this chapter, and subsection 13.72.030H, "Tree And Vegetation Protection", of this title.) (Ord. 2012-15, 9-20-2012)
A. Design buildings so they solidly meet the ground plane. (See figures.)
+ 1. Building designs requiring a strong structural statement such as extensive cantilevers or cuts and fills on sensitive hillsides shall be prohibited.
+ 2. To the maximum extent feasible, placing buildings on piers such that exterior walls do not continue down to the ground shall be prohibited because of aesthetic and energy efficiency concerns.
o 3. Buildings that firmly meet the ground convey an appearance of greater permanence, and shall be strongly encouraged.
B. Design buildings on hillsides to follow the natural terrain. (See figure.)
+ 1. Buildings shall be located to minimize earthwork and land disturbance.
+ 2. To the maximum extent feasible, buildings shall be sited in locations that are sympathetic to existing contours rather than those that require a building solution that would dominate the site. Buildings shall be designed to follow natural contours rather than modifying the land to accept a building design not tailored to the site. (See section 13.73.070, "Grading", of this chapter and subsection 13.72.030C, "Grading Standards", of this title.)
C. Design buildings to minimize mass and scale. (See figures.)
+ 1. To the maximum extent feasible, building design shall incorporate changes in the planes of walls and changes in the slope and height of rooflines to add variety, create visual interest, and minimize scale.
o 2. Buildings can be made to seem larger or smaller depending on the proportional relationship of separate building elements. Human scale buildings create a comfortable and friendly atmosphere. Building scale should complement rather than dominate the landscape.
+ 3. To the maximum extent feasible, the massing of buildings shall be scaled to harmonize and balance with the specific site and its natural features, especially when buildings are located at tree or landmass edges or in the open, by incorporating the following design principles:
o a. Rooflines and building mass should echo the angles and shapes repeated in the natural landscape, and shift or bend to change directions; and
+ b. Building mass and wall lines shall be broken up to conform to existing slope and avoid unbroken expanses of building mass and walls that can intrude into the natural canyon setting and dominate a site. (Ord. 2012-15, 9-20-2012)
A. Use exterior wall colors that harmonize with the landscape and surrounding buildings;
+ 1. Indigenous materials and colors shall be used in order to mimic natural textures.
+ 2. To the maximum extent feasible, predominant tones on exterior walls shall tend toward neutral colors such as warm earthy hues, dark green of forests, whites, grays and gray brown of the mountains, the tan of grasses, and similar colors. Bright, harshly contrasting color combinations shall be avoided.
B. Use roof surfacing materials that blend with the colors of the adjacent landscape and that are composed of materials which reduce the risk of fire.
+ 1. The color of roof surfacing materials shall be either brown, dark green, gray, or other color that blends in with the surrounding landscape.
+ 2. Wood roofing shingles shall not be allowed in the canyons or foothills because of their potential to ignite during wildfires and increase structural damage. (Ord. 2012-15, 9-20-2012)
See also subsection 13.72.030H, "Tree And Vegetation Protection", of this title for those properties located in the Foothills and Canyons Overlay Zone.
A. Preserve existing trees and vegetation:
+ 1. To the maximum extent feasible, existing concentrations of protected trees and vegetation shall be preserved and remain undisturbed as an important site amenity. For the purposes of this chapter, "protected trees and vegetation" shall be defined as set forth in section 13.04.040 of this title. (See also subsection 13.73.030E of this chapter.)
+ a. Notwithstanding the provisions set forth in this section, existing vegetation located within thirty feet (30') of the primary structure on a site shall be thinned and regularly maintained to help minimize the risk of property damage from wildfire, and to provide space for firefighting equipment and personnel.
o b. When landscaping within this thirty foot (30') firebreak area, use of fire resistant plants is strongly encouraged. (For a list of fire resistant plants, contact the Wasatch-Cache National Forest, Salt Lake Ranger District, or the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands.) See also subsection 13.72.030H3c, "Wildfire Hazards And Tree/Vegetation Removal", of this title.
+ 2. To the maximum extent feasible, dryland species shall be selected for slope revegetation, and irrigation will be minimized to reduce potential problems. (Ord. 2019-04, 2-28-2019)
B. Landscape to retain harmony between the various elements of a landscape and to preserve its original character:
+ 1. Landscaping for new development shall incorporate natural features in the landscape such as trees, significant vegetative patterns, interesting landforms, rocks, water, views and orientation.
+ 2. Landscaped areas shall be an integral part of the development project, and not simply located in leftover space on the site. New planting shall blend in with the existing landscape.
+ 3. All disturbed areas shall be revegetated using native or adapted plant species and materials characteristic of the area.
o 4. Use of fire resistant plants is also strongly encouraged. (For a list of fire resistant plants, contact the Wasatch-Cache National Forest, Salt Lake Ranger District, or the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands.) (Ord. 2012-15, 9-20-2012)
+ 1. To the maximum extent feasible, building designs that require extensive cut and fills shall not be allowed.
+ 2. To the maximum extent feasible, modification of the natural terrain shall be minimized by retaining the natural landscape, including existing trees and vegetation.
+ 3. To the maximum extent feasible, slopes steeper than thirty percent (30%) shall not be disturbed.
+ 4. To the maximum extent feasible, buildings, driveways, and roads shall follow the natural contours of the site. Site grading shall follow appendix chapter 33, excavation and grading, of the Uniform Building Code (1997 edition, as amended from time to time) and Best Management Practices (1977) as set forth in the Salt Lake County Erosion-Sediment Control Handbook (1981 edition and as amended from time to time). (Ord. 2012-15, 9-20-2012)
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