Residential Design Standards
Chapter 26.410

Sections:
A. Purpose.
The purpose of the following design standards is to preserve established neighborhood scale and character, and to ensure that Aspen's streets and neighborhoods are public places conducive to walking. The standards do not prescribe architectural style, but do require that each home, while serving the needs of its owner,contribute to the streetscape.

Neighborhood character is largely established by the relationship between frontfacades of buildings and the streets they face. By orienting buildings parallel to the street and maintaining a certain consistency in front setback patterns. there is interaction between residents and passersby and the built environment.

The area between the street and the front door of the home is a transition between the public realm of the neighborhood and the private life of a dwelling. Lowfences and hedges may be used to delineate the edge of a property,, but it is important not to close off views of the front lawn and house. Certain elements of the front facade of a house are particularly important components of neighborhood character. Front porches provide outdoor living space and animation to the streetscape, and one story. entryways provide an appropriate domestic scale for a private residence. Street-facing windows can establish a hierarchy of spaces with larger, formal windows denoting public areas and smaller ones suggesting private rooms.

Acknowledgement of the context that has been established by the existing built environment. is important to protecting the uniqueness of the town. Avoiding building materials which have no relevance to Aspen's history or climate helps to meet this goal, as does avoiding a significant overshadowing of small homes by larger structures.

Finally, along with creating homes which are architecturally interesting and lively, the pedestrian nature of a neighborhood can be further enhanced by reducing conflicts between people and automobiles, and by making alleys an attractive place to walk.

Parking areas are to be concentrated to the rear or side of each residence. Secondary structures and accessory dwelling units, located along the alleys and inspired by the tradition of outbuildings in Aspen, are encouraged.

B. Applicability.
This section applies to all residential development in the City of Aspen requiring a building permit, except for residential development within the R-15B zone district.

C. Application.
An application for residential development shall consist of an application for a Development Order as may be required by the Community Development Director, Historic Preservation Commission, Planning and Zoning Commission, or City Council, pursuant to Section 26.304.030, and an application for "Residential Design Standards" review, pursuant to Section 26.410.020.

D. Exemptions.
No application for a residential development order shall be exempt from the provisions of this section unless the Planning Director determines that the proposed development:

1. Is an addition or remodel of an existing structure that does not change the exterior of the building; or
2. Is a remodel of a structure where alterations proposed change the exterior of the building but are not addressed by any of the Residential Design Standards; or
3. Is an application only for the erection of a fence, and the application meets Section 26.410.040.A.3.

26.410.020 Procedures for Review.

A. Determination of Applicability.
The Community Development Director at a pre-application conference shall make a determination as to whether the proposed project is exempt from the requirements of this chapter. If it is determined that the design review standards shall apply to the proposed project, the applicant shall receive an application form for Residential Design Standards review, which shall include a copy of the administrative checklist referenced at Section 26.410.030.

B. Determination of Consistency.
Upon receipt of an application for Residential Design Standards review, the Community Development Director shall determine if the development plan is consistent with the Residential Design Standards set forth at Section 26.410.040.

C. Appeal of Adverse Determination.
If an application is found to be inconsistent with any item of the Residential Design Standards, the applicant may either amend the application or seek a variance as set forth below.

D. Variances.
Variances from the Residential Design Standards, Section 26.410.040, may be granted by the Design Review Appeal Committee as established in Chapter 26.222. An applicant who desires to consolidate other requisite land use reviews by the Historic Preservation Commission, the Board of Adjustment or the Planning and Zoning Commission may elect to have the variance application decided by the board or commission reviewing the other land use application.



26.410.030 Administrative checklist.

The Director of Community Development shall create a checklist for use by applicants and community development staff in identifying the approvals and reviews necessary for issuance of a development order for an application that is consistent with the Residential Design Standards.



26.410.040 Residential design standards

A. SITE DESIGN.
The intent of these design standards is to encourage residential buildings that address the street in a manner which creates a consistent "facade line" and defines the public and semi-public realms. In addition, where fences or dense landscaping exist, or are proposed, it is intended that they be used to define the boundaries of private property without eliminating the visibility of the house and front yard from the street.

1. Building orientation. The front facades of all principal structures shall be parallel to the street. On comer lots, both street facing facades must be parallel to the intersecting streets. On curvilinear streets, the front facade of all structures shall be parallel to the tangent of the midpoint of the arc of the street. One element, such as a bay window or dormer, placed at a front comer of the building may be on a diagonal from the street if desired.


2. Build-to lines. On parcels or lots of less than. 15,000 square feet, at least 60% of the front façade shall be within 5 feet of the minimum front yard setback line. On comer sites, at least 60% of both street facades of the building shall be within 5 feet of the minimum setback lines. Porches may be used meet the 60% standard.


3. Fences. Fences, hedgerows, and planter boxes shall not be more than forty-two inches (42") high, measured from natural grade, in all areas forward of the front facade of the house.

B. BUILDING FORM.
The intent of the following building form standards is to respect the scale of Aspen's historical homes by creating new homes which are more similar in their massing, by promoting the development of accessory units off of the City alleys, and by preserving solar access.

1. Secondary Mass. All new structures shall locate at least 10% of their total square footage above grade in a mass which is completely detached from the principal building, or linked to it by a subordinate connecting element. Accessory buildings such as garages, sheds, and Accessory Dwelling Units are examples of appropriate uses for the secondary mass.

C. PARKING, GARAGES AND CARPORTS.
The intent of the following parking, garages, and carport standards is to minimize the potential for conflicts between pedestrian and automobile Waffle by placing parking, garages, and carports on alleys, or to minimize the presence of garages and carports as a lifeless part of the streetscape where alleys do not exist.

1. For all residential uses, parking, garages, and carports shall be accessed from an alley or private road if one exists.
2. For all residential uses that do not have access from an alley or private road, the following standards shall be met:
   
   • On the street facing facade(s), the width of the living area on the first floor shall be at least five (5) feet greater than the width of the garage or carport.
   • The front facade of the garage or the frontmost supporting column of a carport shall be set back at least ten feet (10' 0") further from the street than the frontmost wall of the house.
   
   
   • On lots of at least 15,000 square feet in size, the garage or carport maybe forward of the front facade of the house only if the garage doors or carport entry are perpendicular to the street (side-loaded).
   
   
   • When the floor of a garage or carport is above or below the street level, the driveway cut within the front yard setback shall not exceed two (2) feet in depth, measured from natural grade.
   
   
   • The vehicular ramp width of a garage or carport shall not be greater than twenty-four feet (24').
   • The garage doors shall be single stall doors.

D. BUILDING ELEMENTS.
The intent of the following building elements standards is to ensure that each residential building has street-facing architectural details and elements which provide human scale to the facade, enhance the walking experience, and reinforce local building traditions.

1. Street oriented entrance and principal window. All single-family homes, town, houses, and duplexes shall have a street-oriented entrance and a street facing principal window. In the case of townhouses and accessory units facing courtyards or gardens, entries and principal windows should face those features.
   
   On comer lots, entrie and principal windows should face whichever street has a greater block length. Multiple unit residential buildings shall have at least one street oriented entrance for every four (4) units, and front units must have a street-facing principal window. This standard shall be satisfied if all of the following conditions are met:
   • The entry door shall be nomore than ten feet (10'0") back from the frontmost wall of the building. Entry doors shall not be taller than eight feet.
   • A covered entry porch of fifty (50) or more square feet, with a minimum depth of six feet (6'), shall be part of the front facade. Entry porches and canopies shall not be more than one story in height.
     
     A street-facing principal window requires that a significant window or group of windows face street.
2. One story element. All residential buildings shall have a one-story street facing element the width of which comprises at least twenty (20) percent of the building's overall width. For example, a .one story element may be a porch roof, architectural projection, or living space.


3. Windows.
   • Street facing windows shall not span through the area where a second floor level would typically exist, which is between nine (9) and twelve feet (12) above the finished first floor. For interior staircases, this measurement will be made from the first landing if one exists. A transom window above the main entry is exempt from this standard. All street facing areas with an exterior expression of plate height greater than ten (10) feet shall be counted as two (2) square .feet for each one (1) square foot of floor area. Exterior expression shall be defined as facade penetrations between nine (9) and twelve (12) feet above the level of finished floor.
   
   
   • No more than one non-orthogonal window shall be allowed on each facade of the building.A single non-orthogonal window in a gable end may be divided with mullions and still be considered one non-orthogonal window.
4. Lightwells. All areaways, lightwells and/or stairwells on the street facing facade(s) of a building shall be entirely recessed behind the frontmost wail of the building.

E. CONTEXT.
The intent of the following standards is to reinforce the unique character of Aspen and the region by drawing upon Aspen's vernacular architecture and neighborhood characteristics in designing new structures.

1. Materials. The following standards must be met:
   
   • The quality of the exterior materials and details and their application shall be consistent on all sides of the building.
   
   
   • Materials shall be used in ways that are true to their characteristics. For instance stucco, which is a light or non-bearing material, shall not be used below a heavy material, such as stone.
   • Highly reflective surfaces shall not be used as exterior materials.
2. Inflection. The following standard must be met for parcels which are 6,000 square feet or over:
   • If a one (1) story building exists directly adjacent to the subject site, then the new construction must step down to one story in height along their common lot line. If there are one story buildings on both sides of the subject site, the applicant may choose the side towards which to inflect.
     A one story building shall be defined as follows: A one story building shall mean a structure, or portion of a structure, where there is only one floor of fully usable living space, at least 12 feet wide across the street frontage. This standard shall be met by providing a one story element which is also at least twelve (12) feet wide across the street frontage and one story tall as far back along the common lot line as the adjacent building is one story.