Setbacks.
San José Municipal Code § 17.04.410
in effect17.04.410 - Setbacks.
A. Setbacks. The tops and the toes of cut and fill slopes shall be set back from property boundaries as far as necessary for safety of the adjacent properties and to prevent damage from water runoff or erosion of the slopes, and shall be set back from structures as far as necessary for adequacy of foundation support and to prevent damage as a result of water runoff or erosion of the slopes.
Unless otherwise recommended in the approved soil engineering and/or engineering geology report and shown on the approved grading plan, setbacks shall be no less than shown in Table No. 1:
TABLE NO. 1
H(ft) | a (private) | a (public) | b | c | d*
0 - 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5
1 - 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 5
3 - 10 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 5
10 - 30 | H/2 | H/5 | 3 | H/2 | H/2
30 & over | 15 | 6 | 3 | 15 | 15
* Dimension "d" is the horizontal distance from the bottom of a structure footing to the face of an adjacent slope.
[image omitted; see the official code]
B. Exceptions. Foundation setbacks from property lines and slopes of cuts and fills shall not apply with respect to construction of multiple dwelling units with common and integral foundations with suitably joined and reinforced retaining walls, abutments, piers, columns, and other common structural members.
(Prior code § 8127; 17.04.280; Ord. 21719.)
Source: City of San José, Municipal Code (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/ca/san_jose/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=TIT17BUCO_CH17.04BUCO_PT6EXGR_17.04.410SEFetched: 11/1/2026