Chapter 16.16
DESIGN STANDARDS
Sections:
16.16.010 Conformance to plans.
16.16.020 Street and highway design.
16.16.030 Expense – Grades – Undergrounding – Street trees – Hydrology.
16.16.120 Curves and tangents.
16.16.010 Conformance to plans.
A subdivision plan shall conform to the official plan of streets. In the absence of an official plan there shall be substantial conformance to the master plan. In the absence of a master plan, the street system in a proposed subdivision shall relate to the existing street system in the area adjoining the subdivision. All existing streets adjacent to a subdivision need not necessarily be carried into the new subdivision. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012; Ord. 156 § 1, 1956)
16.16.020 Street and highway design.
A. Freeways and limited-access highways shall conform to the standards of the Division of Highways, Department of Public Works, state of California. The standards of the Division of Highways shall be deemed to be the minimum standards that will be acceptable.
B. Major thoroughfares shall be not less than one hundred ten feet wide.
C. Secondary thoroughfares shall be not less than eighty feet wide.
D. Local streets shall be not less than sixty feet wide.
E. Minor and cul-de-sac streets shall be not less than fifty feet wide, except where special conditions might justify a lesser width. Cul-de-sac streets shall be terminated by a turnaround of not less than a fifty-foot radius.
F. Special local streets where parkways, grade separations, freeways and hills, or other dominant factors, are involved shall be subject to individual determination by the city.
G. Along major highways, limited-access highways or freeways, a service roadway separated from the traffic roadway by an acceptable separation strip, when indicated by the master or official plan of the city or the state, will be required for access to abutting private property and local streets. All dimensions on such multiple-roadway thoroughfares shall be as defined in the city official plan or State Division of Highways plan.
H. Curved major highways shall have a centerline radius of not less than one thousand feet.
I. Curved secondary thoroughfares shall have a centerline radius of not less than five hundred feet.
J. Curves on other streets shall have a centerline radius of not less than two hundred feet. Lesser radii may be used if evidence indicates the requirements of this subsection are not practicable.
K. Street corners shall have a radius of not less than twenty feet or an equivalent angle, measured from the property line.
L. Street intersections shall be as near right angles as practicable. In no case should the angle be less than forty-five degrees.
M. Streets which are a continuation of streets in contiguous territory shall be so aligned as to assure that their centerlines shall coincide. In cases where straight continuations are not physically possible, such centerline shall be continued by curves.
N. In areas where no official plans exist, the layout of all improvements including roadways, curbs, parkways, dividing strips, sewer lines and water mains within the rights-of-way of all highways, streets, alleys and utility easements shall be in accordance with standards established by the city council and where no such standards have been adopted the arrangement shall be subject to approval by the city engineer, planning and parks commission and city council.
O. Street layout shall conform when feasible to existing topography to minimize cut and fill activity.
P. All circulation routes shall provide for adequate access to emergency vehicles, as well as to local residents during emergency situations. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012; Ord. 156 § 2, 1956)
16.16.030 Expense – Grades – Undergrounding – Street trees – Hydrology.
A. All pavement, including curbs, gutters, sanitary sewers if available; water mains; gas; electricity; telephone and culverts, if required by the city engineer; fire hydrants; street trees; street lights and street signs shall be installed at the cost of the subdivider.
B. Water and sewer lines shall conform to grades approved by the city engineer.
C. All utilities shall be underground.
D. All park strips within rights-of-way shall be planted with trees, staked in accordance with city specifications provided in this code.
E. A hydrology report shall be submitted as part of the subdivision application, demonstrating compliance with the city’s stormwater maintenance standards and analyzing wastewater capabilities on the site to determine the suitability for future development. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012; Ord. 156 § 3, 1956)
16.16.040 Sanitary sewers.
All sanitary sewer lines, appurtenances and service connections shall be constructed or laid to the grade established by the city engineer, and shall be of such size and design as designated by the city engineer. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012; Ord. 156 § 4, 1956)
16.16.050 Water supply.
Water shall be provided from a common source or sources, and water mains shall be constructed to serve each lot within the subdivided area and shall be of such size and design as designated by the superintendent or engineer of the agency furnishing water service. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012; Ord. 156 § 5, 1956)
16.16.060 Alleys.
A. Alleys twenty feet wide shall be provided at the rear of all lots classified for and to be used for commercial purposes unless adequate off-street parking areas to serve such property are securely reserved for such purpose and are shown upon the map and approved by the city in the manner provided in this title. Alleys elsewhere shall be optional, but if offered shall be approved by the city.
B. Alleys at the rear of business or multiple-dwelling residential properties shall be subject to determination by the city as to design, location and possible increased width.
C. Alleys shall be required at the rear of all property fronting directly upon any major highway.
D. Where two alleys intercept or intersect, the corners shall be cut either on a twenty-foot radius to which the lot boundaries are a tangent, or on a straight line connecting points on both lot lines, fifteen feet distant from the corner of the lot at the intersection of the alleys. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012; Ord. 156 § 6, 1956)
16.16.070 Utility easements.
A. Where alleys are not required and utility easements are not otherwise provided to the satisfaction of the city engineer, utility easements twelve feet in width shall be provided, generally through the interior of the block and in approximately the location that would be occupied by an alley. If such easement parallels the boundary of a subdivision along which no contiguous easement exists, the utility easement shall be ten feet in width.
B. All utilities should be located, where possible, through the interior of the block along either alleys or easements, as the case may be.
C. Sideline easements may be required at the discretion of the city engineer. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012; Ord. 156 § 7, 1956)
16.16.080 Parking areas.
Special areas for off-street parking of motor vehicles, offered for dedication or to be otherwise reserved for public use in connection with proposed business, multiple-dwelling residential, or institutional property, shall be subject to determination by the city as to size, location, shape and adequacy, and shall generally conform to the city zoning ordinance. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012; Ord. 156 § 8, 1956)
16.16.090 Lots.
A. Lot areas shall conform to the standards of development as defined by the zoning ordinance or other official plans adopted pursuant to law.
B. Lots having no frontage on a public street shall be cause for disapproval of subdivisions.
C. The width of lots shall conform to standards of development as defined by the zoning ordinance or other official plans adopted pursuant to law; provided, that the minimum width of lots shall be one hundred feet and that odd-shaped lots shall be subject to individual determination by the city. No lot shall be less than fifteen thousand square feet.
D. No lot shall be divided by a county, city, school district or other taxing boundary line.
E. The side lines of lots shall be approximately at right angles to the street line on straight streets or be radial to the curve on curved streets.
F. Double-frontage lots should be avoided.
G. Corner lots shall have a width sufficient to permit adequate side yards. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012; Ord. 156 § 9, 1956)
16.16.100 Blocks.
A. Blocks less than three hundred thirty feet in length, or more than nine hundred feet in length, may be cause for disapproval.
B. In blocks nine hundred ninety feet or over, pedestrian ways at least twenty feet wide may be required.
C. Long blocks are desirable adjacent to main thoroughfares in order to reduce the number of intersections. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012; Ord. 156 § 10, 1956)
16.16.110 Grades.
A. Manmade slopes shall be minimized to the greatest extent possible.
B. Any grade greater than six percent shall be subject to review. Grades of more than ten percent are cause for disapproval of the map.
C. Multiple building pads are encouraged to enable building sites to follow existing topography. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012; Ord. 156 § 11, 1956)
16.16.120 Curves and tangents.
Suitable tangents, when possible, must be used between all curves. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012; Ord. 156 § 12, 1956)
16.16.130 Site design.
A. Design of building sites shall be sensitive to the natural terrain. Structures shall be located in such a way as to minimize necessary grading and to preserve landform natural features.
B. Site design shall preserve views of significant visual features. When designing lots, homes shall be oriented to allow view opportunities; however, residential privacy should not be unreasonably sacrificed.
C. The configuration and orientation of lots shall be designed to maximize separation of building areas from significant environmental resources.
D. Site design shall allow for installation of water-efficient landscaping as provided in Chapter 18.50 PVEMC.
E. Site design shall provide, to the extent feasible, for future passive or natural heating or cooling opportunities within the subdivision. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012)
16.16.140 Biology.
A. To address sensitive biological resources, the planning director may require a biota report at the time of the application submittal.
B. All subdivision applications shall indicate all existing trees, watercourses, and other sensitive environmental resources currently shown on city-adopted resource maps on the site. Lot layouts and proposed building pads shall preserve as many trees as possible. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012)
16.16.150 Exceptions.
Conditional exceptions to the regulations defined in this chapter may be authorized if exceptional or special circumstances apply to the property. Such special circumstances may include limited size, unusual shape, extreme topography, dominating drainage problems, or the impracticability of employing a comprehensive plan or layout by reason of prior existing recorded subdivisions of contiguous properties; however, no exceptions may be made to any requirement imposed by the Subdivision Map Act. (Ord. 700 § 2 (Exh. 1), 2012; Ord. 156 § 13, 1956)