21A.37.050: DESIGN STANDARDS DEFINED:
The design standards in this chapter are defined as follows. Each design standard includes a specific definition of the standard and may include a graphic that is intended to help further explain the standard; however, in cases where a conflict exists between the definition and the graphic, the definition shall take precedence. The table that follows (Section 21A.37.060) highlights the connection between each design standard and the zoning districts. It identifies whether a standard is required or not. Standards that are required are identified by an X or a number referencing the applicable standard. If there is a specific detail for the standard, it will also be identified in the table.
A. Ground Floor: This standard's purpose is to increase the amount of active uses on the ground floor of a building. Active uses support the vibrancy and usability of the public realm adjacent to a building. Allowed uses shall occupy a minimum percentage of the length of the street- facing facade of the ground floor according to Table 21A.37.060.
1. Active Use: The ground floor use space shall be occupied by any allowed use in the zone, excluding parking and/or storage uses, except where an “Enhanced Active Ground Floor Use” is required by Table 21A.37.060 or the underlying zoning district.
2. Enhanced Active Use: Where required by Table 21A.37.060 or the underlying zoning district, the ground floor use space shall be occupied by an “Enhanced Active Ground Floor Use” such as retail, restaurants, bars, art studios, civic spaces (theaters, museums, etc.), and other uses determined to be substantially similar by the planning director and/or planning commission. The planning director and/or planning commission shall consider whether uses are substantially similar based on the level of public access for the purpose of receiving a service or product from the use.
a. Lobby Exception: Notwithstanding these provisions, a lobby may occupy up to twenty five percent (25%) or fifty feet (50'), whichever is less, of the length of the required ground floor use area when public access is provided along such façade.
b. Prohibited Uses: The following uses shall not count toward the enhanced active ground floor use requirement:
(1) Residential amenity spaces, mailrooms, common rooms, and other amenity spaces limited to use by building occupants. This excludes the lobby allowance in this section.
(2) Areas that are not accessible to customers, such as kitchens, storage, bicycle parking, and utility space.
(3) Vehicle parking areas.
3. General Exceptions: The following exceptions apply to all ground floor use requirements:
a. Outdoor Active Uses: Outdoor space may count for up to twenty five percent (25%) of the length of the required ground floor use area when located within a required or provided front or corner side yard setback and if it includes outdoor dining space, an outdoor recreation use, fenced off areas for pets, patio space with seating, or other similar use. The space shall be located in front of uses not considered to be active by this section.
b. Single- and two-family uses: For single or two-family uses, garages occupying up to fifty percent (50%) of the length of the ground floor building facade are exempt from the ground floor use requirement.
c. Vehicle Access: Vehicle entry and exit ways necessary for access to parking are exempt from this requirement. Individual dwelling unit garages do not qualify for this exemption.
4. Dimensions: The following dimensional requirements apply to all ground floor use requirements of this section.
a. Depth: The minimum depth of the required ground floor use space shall be:
(1) Ten feet (10') for residential dwellings or dwelling units, including in multifamily, cottage developments, urban houses, row houses, single-family, and two-family uses.
(2) Twenty five feet (25') for all other uses.
b. Height: For enhanced active ground floor uses, the required ground floor use space shall have a minimum floor-to-ceiling height of twelve feet (12'), unless the underlying zone specifies a greater requirement. The minimum height does not apply to cottage developments, urban houses, row houses, single-family, or two-family developments.
B. Building Materials:
1. Applicability: New buildings and buildings where proposed modifications will exceed seventy five percent (75%) on the exterior facade shall comply with the material requirements detailed below. Buildings at least fifty (50) years old are exempt from this requirement if alterations are consistent with the existing architecture.
2. Durable Material: For the purpose of the requirements of this chapter, a durable material is defined as any material that has a manufacturer's warranty of a minimum of twenty (20) years from color fading, weather, and local climate-induced degradation of the material or is a natural material such as stone or wood, provided the wood is treated and maintained for exterior use. Durable materials include stone, brick, masonry, textured or patterned concrete, and fiber cement board. Other materials proposed to satisfy the durable requirement may be approved at the discretion of the planning director if it is found that the proposed material is durable and, if applicable, is appropriate for the ground floor of a structure.
3. Ground Floor Building Materials: Other than windows and doors, a minimum amount of the ground floor facade's wall area of any street facing facade shall be clad in durable materials according to Table 21A.37.060. Other materials may be used for the remainder of the ground floor facade adjacent to a street.
4. Upper Floor Building Materials: Floors above the ground floor level shall include durable materials on a minimum amount of any street facing building facade of those additional floors according to Table 21A.37.060. Windows and doors are not included in that minimum amount.
C. Glass:
1. Ground Floor Glass: The ground floor building elevation of all new buildings facing a street, and all new ground floor additions facing a street, shall have a minimum percentage of glass, as calculated between three feet (3') and eight feet (8') from finished first floor according to Table 21A.37.060. All ground floor glass shall allow unhampered and unobstructed visibility into the building for a depth of at least five feet (5'), excluding any glass etching and window signs when installed and permitted in accordance with Chapter 21A.46, "Signs", of this title. The planning director may approve a modification to ground floor glass requirements if the planning director finds:
a. The requirement would negatively affect the historic character of an existing building;
b. The requirement would negatively affect the structural stability of an existing building; or
c. The ground level of the building is occupied by residential uses that face the street, in which case the specified minimum glass requirement may be reduced by fifteen percent (15%), except when the applicable requirement is fifteen percent (15%) or less.
[image omitted; see the official code]
2. Upper Floor Glass: Above the first floor of any multi-story building, the surface area of the facade of each floor facing a street must contain a minimum percentage of glass according to Table 21A.37.060. Portions of a building that are used for parking garages in accordance with Subsection 21A.37.050.L, are exempt from this requirement. The planning director may approve a modification to upper floor glass requirements if the planning director finds:
a. The requirement would negatively affect the historic character of an existing building; or
b. The requirement would negatively affect the structural stability of an existing building.
3. Reflective Glass: The maximum percentage of reflective glass, defined as glass with a coating that creates a mirror-like appearance, is allowed according to Table 21A.37.060, on both the ground floor and upper floor of buildings.
D. Building Entrances: A building entrance is defined as an entrance to a building that includes a door and entry feature such as a recess or canopy that provides customers with direct access to the use. The purpose of this section is to ensure building entrances are located along street-facing facades for the convenience of building occupants and visitors. All of the requirements of this subsection apply where this subsection is noted as applicable in Table 21A.37.060.
1. At least one operable building entrance on the ground floor is required for every street facing façade. Buildings without public street frontage shall include at least one operable building entrance on the primary facade. Where a length is noted in Table 21A.37.060, operable building entrances shall be required, at a minimum, at each specified length of the street facing building facade subject to the following:
a. All building entrances shall include an ADA-compliant walkway that provides a minimum clearance width of five feet and that connects to a public sidewalk.
b. Entrances shall be open and accessible to customers during the hours that the business is open. This only applies to nonresidential uses that are open to the public.
c. The center of each additional entrance shall be located within six feet (6') in either direction of the specified location.
d. Each ground floor nonresidential leasable space facing a street shall have an operable entrance facing that street.
e. Corner entrances, when facing a street and located at approximately a forty five degree (45°) angle to the two adjacent building facades (chamfered corner), may count as an entrance for both of the adjacent facades.
[image omitted; see the official code]
2. Ground Floor Residential Entrances: All ground floor residential dwelling units shall have a primary entrance facing the street for each unit adjacent to a street.
a. Units may have an additional entrance located on a courtyard, midblock walkway, or other similar area if the street-facing facades have an entrance.
b. Multi-family dwellings located on the ground floor of a building are exempt from this provision if the building contains no more than four ground floor dwellings facing a street and the building has a common entry located along any street-facing façade.
3. Permitted Entrance Features: Each required entrance shall include one of the below entry features:
a. Covered Porch: A covered, raised porch structure with or without railings spanning at least a third of the length of the front building façade.
[image omitted; see the official code]
b. Portico: A structure with a roof protruding over the building entry supported by columns over a landing or walkway.
[image omitted; see the official code]
c. Awning or Canopy: A cover suspended above the building entry over a landing or walkway where the wall(s) around the entry project out or recess in by at least one foot from the front building plane.
[image omitted; see the official code]
d. Emphasized Doorway: A doorway that is recessed by at least ten inches (10") from the front building plane and architecturally emphasized with a doorframe of a different material than the front façade, differentiated patterns or brickwork around the door, and/or sidelights.
[image omitted; see the official code]
e. Terrace or Lightwell: An entry feature where the street facing facade is set back from the front property line by an elevated terrace or sunken lightwell may include a canopy or roof. A sunken lightwell up to six feet (6') shall not be included when calculating building height.
[image omitted; see the official code]
f. Forecourt: An entry feature where a portion of the street-facing facade is close to the property line and the central portion is set back. The court created must be landscaped, contain outdoor plazas, outdoor dining areas, private yards, or other similar features that encourage use and seating.
[image omitted; see the official code]
g. Stoop: An entry feature where the street-facing facade is close to the front property line and the first story is elevated from the sidewalk sufficiently to secure privacy for the windows. The entrance contains an exterior stair and landing that is either parallel or perpendicular to the street.
[image omitted; see the official code]
h. Shopfront: An entry feature where the street-facing facade is close to the property line and the building entrance is at the sidewalk grade. The building entry is covered with an awning, canopy, or is recessed from the front building facade, which defines the entry and provides protection for customers.
[image omitted; see the official code]
i. Gallery: A building entry where the ground floor is no more than ten feet (10') from the front property line and the upper levels or roofline cantilevers from the ground floor facade up to the front property line.
[image omitted; see the official code]
4. Permitted Encroachments: A permitted entry feature may encroach up to five feet into a required front/corner side yard. A covered entry feature encroaching into the front yard/corner side may not be enclosed.
E. Maximum Length of Blank Wall: The maximum length of any blank wall uninterrupted by doors, art, or architectural detailing at the ground floor level along any street facing facade shall be as specified according to Table 21A.37.060. Changes in plane, texture, dimension or pattern of materials, art, bay windows, recessed or projected entrances, balconies, cornices, columns, or other similar architectural features are considered acceptable architectural detailing. The architectural feature shall be either recessed a minimum of twelve inches (12") or projected a minimum of twelve inches (12").
Illustration of Regulation 21A.37.050.E Maximum Length of Blank Wall
[image omitted; see the official code]
F. Maximum Length of Street Facing Facades: This requirement sets the maximum length of a single street facing façade of a structure. The purpose of this is to have building massing that is more consistent with the historic development pattern of buildings in Salt Lake City. No street facing building wall may be longer than specified along a street line according to Table 21A.37.060. For buildings longer than seventy five feet (75'), the space between additional buildings along the street in a development site shall be at least fifteen feet (15').
G. Upper Floor Stepback:
1. Upper Level Front Stepback: Street facing facades of buildings over eighty five feet (85') in height shall have an upper level stepback with a minimum depth as specified in Table 21A.37.060. The stepback can be at any height of the building above the ground floor. This provision shall be considered complied with if a front or corner side yard setback is provided that is equal to or greater than the requirement in Table 21A.37.060.
2. Landmark Buildings Stepback: This requirement is intended to promote a transition in scale between new buildings and lower scale historic buildings. This applies to properties abutting local historic landmark sites that include buildings less than fifty feet (50') in height. This does not apply when a right-of-way separates the properties. New buildings shall be designed so that no portion of the building within twenty five feet (25') of the abutting property line is taller than the height of a 45 degree angular plane extending from the top of the landmark building toward the new building, as shown in Illustration of Regulation 21A.37.050.G.2 Height Transitions.
Illustration of Regulation 21A.37.050.G.2 Landmark Buildings Setback
[image omitted; see the official code]
3. Lower Level Interior Stepback: For buildings on property that abuts a parcel in (1) an R-1, R-2, SR, FR, FB-UN1, RMF-30, RMF-35, MU-2, or MU-3 zoning district, (2) a public trail, or (3) a public open space, floors that are entirety located above a height of thirty feet (30') from average finished grade shall be set back at least ten feet (10') from the required minimum yard located along the abutting parcel. This regulation does not apply when the parcel is separated from the subject property by a street or alley.
4. Sugar House Lower Level Front Stepback: This stepback applies to buildings located in the area bounded by McClelland Street and extending along the eastern boundary of Fairmont Park to 1300 East and 2100 South to I-80. For such buildings, floors that are entirely located above thirty feet (30') in height from average finished grade shall be set back a minimum horizontal distance of ten feet (10') from the front and corner side lot lines. This provision shall be considered complied with if a front or corner side yard setback is provided that is equal to or greater than the requirement.
H. Exterior Lighting: All exterior lighting shall be shielded and directed down to prevent light trespass onto adjacent properties. Exterior lighting shall not strobe, flash, or flicker.
I. Parking Lot Lighting: Poles for the parking lot/structure security lighting are limited to sixteen feet (16') in height and the globe shall be shielded and the lighting directed down to minimize light encroachment onto adjacent residential properties or into upper level residential units in multistory buildings. Lightproof fencing is required adjacent to residential properties.
J. Screening of Mechanical Equipment: All mechanical equipment for a building shall be screened from public view and sited to minimize their visibility and impact. Examples of screening include locating on the roof when screened by a parapet wall or setback fifteen feet (15') from the edge of the roof, enclosed or otherwise integrated into the architectural design of the building, or in a rear or side yard area subject to yard location restrictions found in Table 21A.36.020.B, "Obstructions in Required Yards". This standard shall also be satisfied by any other screening method authorized by this title.
K. Screening of Service Areas: Service areas, loading facilities, refuse containers, utility meters, and similar areas shall be screened from public view or located along a side or rear yard. All screening enclosures visible from the street shall be incorporated into the building architecture or site design. All screening enclosures shall be a minimum of one foot higher than the object being screened, and in the case of fences and/or masonry walls the height shall not exceed eight feet (8'). Dumpsters shall be located a minimum of twenty five feet (25') from any building on an adjacent lot that contains a residential dwelling or be located inside of an enclosed building or structure.
1. Exceptions: Exceptions may be approved by the planning director when the service provides power or some form of utilities in and around the surrounding area or when it is not feasible to accommodate these activities on the site interior. If such activities are permitted adjacent to a public street, a visual screening design approved by the planning director shall be required.
L. Parking Garages or Structures: The following standards shall apply to parking garages or structures whether stand-alone or incorporated into a building:
1. Parking structures shall be designed to conceal the view of all parked cars and drive ramps and improve visual character when adjacent to a public street or other public space. In addition to the materials authorized in Subsection 21A.37.050.B.4, allowed materials include heavy gauge metal screen, precast concrete panels, live green or landscaped walls, laminated or safety glass, decorative panels, or other materials matching the building materials and character of the principal building. The planning director may approve other materials not listed if the materials are in keeping with the nature of the parking structure. If parking is included on floors above the ground floor, a minimum of fifty percent (50%) of the surface area of the facade of each floor facing a street shall be wrapped in solid materials.
2. Facade elements shall align to parking levels. Internal circulation shall allow parking surfaces to be level (without any slope) along each parking garage facade adjacent to a public street or public open space. All ramps between levels shall be located along building facades that are not adjacent to a public street or public space or shall be located internally so that they are not visible from adjacent public streets or public spaces.
3. No horizontal length of the parking garage façade adjacent to a public street or public open space shall extend longer than forty feet (40') without the inclusion of architectural elements such as decorative grillwork, louvers, translucent screens, alternating building materials, and other external features to avoid visual monotony.
4. The location of elevators and stairs shall be highlighted through the use of architectural features or changes in façade colors, textures, or materials so that visitors can easily identify these entry points both internally and externally.
5. Signage and wayfinding shall be integrated with the architecture of the parking structure and be architecturally compatible with the design. The entrances of public parking structures shall be clearly signed from public streets.
6. Interior garage lighting shall not produce glaring sources toward adjacent properties while providing safe and adequate lighting levels. The use of sensor dimmable LEDs and white stained ceilings are a good strategy to control light levels on site while improving energy efficiency.
7. Parking structures shall be designed to minimize vehicle noise and odors in the public realm. Venting and fan locations shall not be located on the primary street-facing façade or next to public spaces, and shall be located as far as possible from adjacent residential land uses.
8. If the parking structure is adjacent to a midblock walkway, pedestrian oriented elements shall be provided. These may include, but are not limited to, lighting, seating and vegetation.
9. No special design and setback restrictions shall apply to below ground parking facilities.
M. Public Improvements: The following public improvements are required to be installed where noted as required in Table 21A.37.060 for any new buildings. The specified improvements are subject to all additional, applicable standards adopted for public right-of-way improvements by city departments, including transportation, public utilities, and engineering.
1. Sidewalks:
a. Sidewalk Width: The minimum sidewalk width shall be as follows unless the underlying zoning district includes a different standard in which case the underlying zoning district regulations shall prevail:
(1) In Any FR, R-1, R-2, or SR Zoning District: When a park strip is present, four feet (4'). If a park strip is not present, five feet (5') shall be required.
(2) Zoning districts that allow buildings up to thirty five feet (35') in height: six feet (6').
(3) Zoning districts that allow buildings greater than thirty five feet (35') but less than fifty feet (50'): eight feet (8').
(4) Zoning districts that allow buildings greater than fifty feet (50') in height: ten feet (10').
b. Expanding Sidewalk Width: When adding width to a sidewalk, the sidewalk may be added to an existing park strip provided the park strip maintains a minimum width of twelve feet (12'). If the sidewalk width cannot be accommodated in the park strip, a portion of the sidewalk shall be placed on the subject property to accommodate the necessary width required by this section. The portion of the sidewalk that is on private property may be identified with a marker indicating it is private property, but the portion of the sidewalk may not be blocked. This may be modified by the planning director to accommodate existing trees or other structures that are already existing in the right of way after consulting with the urban forester, city engineer, and/or transportation director, depending on the nature of the feature that requires a modification.
2. Curb, Gutter, and Park Strips: This standard applies when a street that abuts a proposed development does not contain an existing curb, gutter, or park strip. When a curb and gutter is not present, the development shall include installing curb, gutter, and park strip that complies with standards adopted by the city. The curb and gutter shall be placed to provide a minimum park strip width of six feet (6').
3. Street Lighting: All development that is subject to this chapter shall install street lighting that is consistent with the most recently adopted street lighting master plan.
4. Public Improvements Identified in General Plan: When the general plan, as defined in Title 19, identifies specific public improvements or design of a public right of way, those public improvements shall be installed by the property owner when subject to this Chapter.
5. Exceptions: Exceptions and/or modifications to the improvement standards may be approved due to right-of-way limitations or other technical constraints by the planning director in consultation with the urban forester, city engineer, public utilities director, and/or transportation director. (Ord. 48-25, 2025: Ord. 47A-25, 2025: Ord. 70-24, 2024: Ord. 65-24, 2024: Ord. 37-24, 2024: Ord. 12-24, 2024: Ord. 10-24, 2024: Ord. 24B-23, 2023: Ord. 24-23, 2023: Ord. 68-22, 2022: Ord. 67-22, 2022: Ord. 14-19, 2019: Ord. 12-17, 2017)
