CARLSBAD — Although no changes are being made to height limits, changes to the way developers, architects and private contractors are to measure are being proposed.
On June 3 the Planning Commission also approved recommending City Council amend the language of the city zoning codes.
“It is for clarification in the wording of building height definitions and methods used to measure building heights,” Corey Funk, a project planner with the city’s planning department, said.
The changes hope to clarify that above-ground basements and exposed exterior walls be calculated in the measurements. The wording took into consideration slopes as well. However, entrances to underground parking structures were exempt from measurements.
Building height limits in the city’s village and business parks range from 35 to 45 feet. There are nine different land use districts within the village area, said Debbie Fountain, director of housing and redevelopment for the for the city.
The language for the redevelopment plan for the “Village” was updated in 2007 to accommodate higher density mixed-use projects.
“No height changes were made,“ Fountain said. “We just took out some of the requirements, such as the roof pitch requirements … (and) different conditions on when you could get that requirement.”
For single-family residential homes, or R-1 zones, the height limits are 30 feet. In higher-density housing areas where duplexes area allowed, the height limits are set at 35 feet.
The changes are expected to go before City Council next month for final approval, Funk said.
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