AnonymousSource: City of Santa Barbara
On October 20, 2020, City Council adopted grading regulations that are focused on improving the accuracy of land grading operations in hillside neighborhoods. The new regulations were inspired by several hillside neighborhoods that expressed concern with recent grading projects. These new Self-Certification regulations apply only to parcels in a Hillside Design District.(here)
The new regulations require that a Self-Certification of Grading form (found here) be completed by the owner and delivered to Building & Safety prior to conducting grading activities of greater than 40 cubic yards and less than 50 cubic yards during any 5 year period.
The City will keep a record of this form (currently free of charge) and will also validate the grading for at least 20% of the sites that file these forms each year. There are penalties for non-compliance. So, if you are an owner of property in a hillside design district, please be aware of this prior to performing any grading of your land.
These new regulations go into effect 11/20/2020.
The City’s Building & Safety Division is here to help you enhance our City and build a better community.
