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HomeMy WebLinkAboutbocc.ord.007.2002 AN EMERGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF PITKIN COUNTY,COLORADO,ADOPTING AMENDMENTS TO THE PITKIN COUNTY LAND USE CODE SECTION 3-80-070,WILDFIRE AREAS Ordinance No. 46 7 -2002 1. The Board of County Commissioners(`BOCC")has directed the preparation of amendments to the Wildfire Hazard Areas section of the Pitkin County Land Use Code("the Code"). 2. The amendments to section 3-80-070 of the Code are clarifications relating to the coverings of roofs in 1041 Wildfire Hazard Areas of Pitkin County. 3. The Planning and Zoning Commission("P&Z")reviewed the Code amendments at a regularly scheduled meeting on February 5,2002 and recommended approval of the amendments as contained in this Ordinance. 4. The BOCC considered the amendments to section 3-80-070, Wildfire Area,of the Land Use Code to allow fire treated shake shingles in low wildfire areas at regular meetings on February 13, 2002, February 27, 2002 and March 13, 2002. 5. The BOCC adopted an Emergency Ordinance amending section 3-80-070, Wildfire Area, of the Land Use Code on March 27,2002 and confirmed said Emergency Ordinance at a publicly noticed hearing held on April 24,2002. NOW,THEREFORE,BE IT ORDAINED by the Pitkin County Board of Commissioners that it hereby enacts the following amendments to Section 3-80-070, Wildfire Areas, of the Pitkin County Land Use Code, as contained in Attachment A. ADOPTED ON THE 27m DAY OF MARCH,2002 AND SET FOR CONFIRMATORY PUBLIC HEARING ON THE 24TH DAY OF APRIL. NOTICE OF PUBLIC IJEARING PUBLISHED IN THE WEEKEND EDITION OF THE ASPEN TIMES ON THE_[,L — DAY OF z4y0 1 ,2002. CONFIRMED AT A PUBLIC HEARING ON 24TH DAY OF APRIL,2002. PUBLISH D AFTER ADOPTION IN THE WEEKEND EDITION OF THE ASPEN TIMES ON THE DAY OF ZI-VtV 2002. EFFECTIVE ON THE 27TH DAY OF MARCH,2002. Ordinance No. 2002 Page 2 ATTEST: BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF P TKIN COUNTY,COLORADO /-V-MF1t7 ee R.Dean or Patti Kay-Clappe , Clerk to the Board Chairperson Date: OJT-d-y-O-Z APPROVED AS TO FORM: APPROVED AS TO CONTENT: John Ely, Cindy Houben, County ey Community Development Director Ordinance No. 0072002 Page 3 ATTACHMENT A Repeal and Re-enact Section 3-80-070,Wildfire Areas 3-80-070 Wildfire Areas A. Severe Hazard Wildfire Areas: Development is prohibited within any of the following areas: I. Areas designated as "C- Severe Hazard: Trees" or "X- Severe Hazard: Brush" wildfire hazard on Pitkin County's adopted wildfire hazard area maps. 2. Areas that are not mapped but are identified by the Colorado State Forest Service and/or the Pitkin County Sheriffs Department as areas containing "C -Severe Hazard: Trees" or "X- Severe Hazard: Brush"wildfire hazard. 3. Areas that are incorrectly mapped and-but.are identified by the Colorado State Forest Service and/or the Pitkin County Sheriffs Department as areas containing "C - Severe Hazard: Trees" or "X- Severe Hazard: Brush"wildfire hazard. 4. Note: In all cases mapping will be field verified by the Colorado State Forest Service or the Pitkin County Sheriffs Department. In the event that there is no area of a development site free of"C - Severe Hazard: Trees" or "X- Severe Hazard: Brush" wildfire hazards and a development application is subsequently denied, an applicant may appeal the denial to the Board of County Commissioners pursuant to Section 3-290 of this Code. If an appeal of a project denial is granted by the Board,then the development application shall incorporate hazard mitigation according to the standards in subdivision C of this subsection. B. Low and Medium Hazard Wildfire Areas: If the development proposal is located within any of the following areas: 1. Areas designated as "A- Low Hazard: Trees and Grass", "B - Medium Hazard: Trees" wildfire hazard on Pitkin County's adopted wildfire hazard area maps. 2. Areas that are not mapped but are identified by the Colorado State Forest Service and/or the Pitkin County Sheriffs Departments as areas containing "A- Low Hazard: Trees and Grass," "B - Medium Hazard: Trees"wildfire hazard. 3. Areas that are incorrectly mapped and-but are identified by the Colorado State Forest Service and/or the Pitkin County Sheriffs Department as areas containing "A-Low Hazard: Trees and Grass," "B - Medium Hazard: Trees" wildfire hazard. 4. Note: In all cases mapping will be field verified by the Colorado State Forest Service or the Pitkin County Sheriffs Department. Or if an appeal of a project denial in a "C - Severe Hazard: Trees" or"X- Severe Hazard: Brush" wildfire hazard area is granted by the Board, then a development application shall be reviewed according to the following standards: C. Mitigation Standards: Ordinance No.07 2002 Page 4 1. Location: The building envelope shall not be located in draws, canyons or on slopes greater than thirty percent(30%). 2. Defensible Space: The area around the structure shall incorporate landscaping with wildfire defensible space considerations as follows: Note: Actual vegetation manipulation to meet these conditions may not be necessary where the natural vegetation patterns have already fulfilled these conditions. a. Brush, debris, and non-ornamental vegetation shall be removed within a minimum ten- foot(10')perimeter around the structure. b. Vegetation shall be reduced to break up the vertical and horizontal continuity of the fuels a minimum of a thirty-foot(30')foot perimeter around a structure built on flat ground. (For greater slopes reference CSFS Safety Zone chart. Page 13, Wildfire Guidelines For Rural Homeowners). C. Spacing between clumps of brush and vegetation within the thirty-foot(30') perimeters shall be a minimum of two(2)times the height of the fuel. Maximum diameter of the clumps shall be two (2)times the height of the fuel. All measurements shall be from the edges of the crowns of the fuel. d. All branches from trees and brush within the thirty-foot(30') perimeter shall be pruned to a height of ten feet(10')above the ground and removal of ladder fuels from around trees and brush. e. Tree crown separation within the thirty-foot(30')perimeters shall have a minimum of ten feet(10')between the edges of the crowns. This does not apply to mature stands of Aspen trees where the above recommendation for removal of ladder fuels have been complied with. In areas of Aspen regeneration,the spacing guidelines shall be followed. f. All branches which extend over the roof eaves shall be trimmed and all branches within fifteen feet(15')of the chimneys shall be removed. g. The density of fuels within a one hundred-foot(100')perimeter of the structures shall be reduced where natural reduction has not already occurred. h. All deadfall within the one hundred-foot(100')perimeter shall be removed. i. The applicant shall be responsible for the continued maintenance of the defensible space vegetation requirements. 3. Structural Design and Construction Requirements a. Roofing: Roofs shall have a non-combustible roof covering on a Class A assembly. Wood shake/shingle roof covering are prohibited in all wildfire hazard areas. Roofs with less than 3:12 pitch are not permitted in 1041 Wildfire Areas unless they comply with the following: 1) All roof coverings shall be non-combustible materials as defined in the Uniform Building Code(UBC) 1997 Section 1504 and installed on a Class A roof assembly. 2) All roof coverings shall have a surface that shall facilitate the natural process of clearing the roof. Ordinance No. d�2002 Page 5 3) All roof designs shall facilitate the natural process of clearing roof debris. Protrusions above the roofline, such as parapets, shall be prohibited. 4) Roofs shall be installed as required by UBC 1997 Chapter 15 and shall have a minimum slope of 1:48. 5) All roof designs, coverings, or equivalent assemblies shall be specifically approved by the Fire Marshall prior to submittal of a building permit application. b. Notwithstanding the prohibition against wood shake shingles in paragraph a above the Board of County Commissioners may select one or more "test"development projects where wood shake shingles may be installed in a manner that results in a Class A roof covering installed in accordance with product listing. Listing agencies accredited by the American National Standards Institute are acceptable. These "test" sites shall be in mapped or field verified Low Hazard Wildfire Areas and within a 5-minute response time from a Fire Station. Prior to designation as a"test"project a protocol for the monitoring and testing procedures shall be accepted by the BOCC. The protocol criteria shall include the suitability of the use for scientific review and study of the results of the application. This testing protocol shall be developed in conjunction with the Colorado State Forest Service the affected local fire districts and the wood shake shingle provider or manufacturer. This provision section 3-80-070(C)(b), shall expire on its own accord without further action by the Board of County Commissioners on April 24 2003. 13:c. Vents: Vents shall be screened with corrosive resistant wire mesh with mesh one-fourth- inch(1/4")maximum. 4. Structural Design and Construction Options: It is the policy of Pitkin County to encourage development to avoid wildfire hazards; however, when this is not possible,the Board may, in its discretion, approve a development which incorporates the following architectural design standards in substitution for the defensible space requirements in subdivision(C)(2) of this Subsection. Where structural design is proposed in lieu of defensible space requirements,the Board must find that the same level of protection would be provided as that gained through measures to create defensible space. a. Projections (Heat Traps) 1) Projections at the roof line(which include but are not limited to eaves, cornices, soffits and roofs over open decks)shall be sheathed with materials approved for one hour fire-resistive construction. 2) For projections below the roof line(including but are not limited to exterior balconies, decks, porches, cantilevered floor projections, and bay windows which extend over a flat or sloped surface)the open space between grade and the underside of projections below the roof line shall be enclosed by solid,vertical walls. These walls shall be constructed with materials approved for one-hour fire-resistive construction on the exterior side of the wall and shall extend from the top of grade to the underside of the floor decking or walls of the projection. An alternative construction method for such projections would require use of noncombustible building materials, or heavy timber or log wall construction, if the underside of the projecting portion is covered with materials approved for one-hour fire-resistive construction and if there are no inside angles of less than seventy-five degrees(75°). Areas below such projections shall be void of vegetative or other combustible materials. These areas below projections shall be protected from accumulation of vegetative materials by placement of a vegetative barrier covered with rocks or gravel or by coverage with concrete ' III I�Ill��l�l�gl I���II���■ Ordinance No. BB 2002 Page 6 or stone. There shall be no storage of combustible materials under projections. The walls underneath projections shall be constructed with materials approved for one-hour fire-resistive construction on the exterior side of the wall. Window openings in walls below projections shall be tempered glass. Doors shall be noncombustible or one and three-fourths inch(1 3/4")solid wood. b. Windows and Glass: Glazed openings shall be provided with closable, solid, exterior non- flammable shutters or shall be tempered glass. C. Exterior Walls and Siding: Siding and exterior wall construction shall have a minimum one-hour fire-resistive rating ground level to roof line. Exterior doors shall be noncombustible or one and three-fourths inch(1 3/4")solid wood. d. Foundations: Foundations, skirting and crawl space openings shall be fully enclosed and constructed with materials approved for one hour fire-resistive construction on the exterior side of the walls and shall extend from the top of grade to the underside of the floor decking or walls. e. Stilt Construction: The underside of decks and structures with stilt foundations shall be fully enclosed and constructed with materials approved for one hour fire-resistive construction on the exterior side of the walls and shall extend from the top of grade to the underside of the floor decking or walls. 5. Maintenance a. Roofs and gutters shall be kept clear of debris. b. Yards shall be kept clear of all litter, slash, and flammable debris. C. All flammable materials shall be stored on a parallel contour a minimum of fifteen feet (15')away from any structure. d. Weeds and grasses within the ten-foot(10')perimeter shall be maintained to a height not more than six inches(6"). 6. Miscellaneous a. Firewood/wood piles shall be stacked on a parallel contour a minimum of fifteen feet (15')away from the structure. b. Swimming pools shall be accessible by the Fire Departments. C. Fences shall be kept clear of brush and debris. d. Wood fences shall not connect to the structure. e. Any outbuildings or additional structures shall adhere to the same standards as structures. f. Fuel tanks shall be installed underground with an approved container. g. Propane tanks shall be installed according to NFPA 48 standards and on a contour away from the structure with standard defensible space vegetation mitigation around any above-ground tank. Any wood enclosure around the tank shall be constructed with materials approved for two(2)hour fire- Ordinance No. 007 2002 Page 7 resistive construction on the exterior side of the walls. h. Each structure shall have a minimum of one ten(10)pound ABC fire extinguisher. i. Addresses shall be clearly marked with two inch(2")non-combustible letters and shall be visible at the primary point of access from the public or common access road and installed on a non- combustible post. 7. Access a. Access roads shall be built to County standards; however,these standards may be increased to mitigate wildfire hazards based on comments provided by the Colorado State Forest Service, the Sheriffs Department or local fire protection districts. Where feasible, looped routes of access/egress to the main artery/highway shall be incorporated in the project design. Looped routes of access/egress is defined as two(2)or more dedicated access roads to the main artery/highway for widely separated ingress/egress; looped drives with one entrance point or divided single entrances do not satisfy this condition. Where this is not feasible,the Board may approve vehicular turnaround areas a maximum of seven hundred fifty feet(750')apart installed between the road intersection and its terminus. Turnaround areas shall be the same standard as cul-de-sac turnaround pads; these may be incorporated into the proposed driveway entries. b. Dead-end streets(not cul-de-sacs)shall not be permitted. C. Cul-de-sac turn around pads shall have a minimum of a thirty-foot(30')drivable surface inside turning radius. d. The driveways and access roadway shall enter the roadway at a ninety degree(90°) angle for the first twenty-five feet(25')of the driveway. e. Fuel breaks shall be incorporated into the roadways of the subdivision for one hundred feet(100') on each side of the roadway. (For greater slopes, reference CSFS Fuelbreak Guidelines for Forested Subdivisions). Note: Actual vegetation manipulation to meet this condition may not be necessary where the natural vegetation patterns have already fulfilled these conditions. f. Access roads shall be built at a minimum to County standards; however,these standards may be increased to mitigate wildfire hazards based upon comments provided by the Colorado State Forest Service, the Pitkin County Sheriffs department and the local fire protection districts. 8. Water Supply a. When access to a public or private pressurized water system is not available or if it is necessary to augment fire protection water systems, private ponds may be used if approved by Pitkin County and the local fire protection district. b. Any fire department recommendation for individual structure water supply and storage shall be accessible to fire department vehicle from the exterior of the structure through a Fire Department approved mechanism (such as a fire hydrant). The amount of storage capacity shall be determined by the fire protection district with a minimum of one thousand(1,000)gallon storage capacity per structure. Ordinance No. 00 7 2002 Page 8 C. Residential structures located within areas identified as containing "C - Severe Hazard: Trees" or "X- Severe Hazard: Brush" wildfire hazard shall be required to install in-house sprinkler systems which meet the standards of the local fire protection district and the Uniform Building Code. 9. Utilities: Utility lines shall be buried. 10. Additional: Additional recommendations from the Colorado State Forest Service,the Pitkin County Sheriffs Department and the local fire protection district may be incorporated into any conditions of approval as necessary to mitigate wildfire hazards.(Ord. 99-39)