Overview
Code type
euclidean
Naming convention
mixed
Standard Euclidean metropolitan-scale code. Title 7 structures zoning; base districts in §7-2 (residential), §7-3 (commercial), §7-4 (industrial); overlays in §7-10 series. State-preemption footprint is substantial (HB 462 SAP + MIH, HB 406 ADU, HB 37 affordability, SB 174, LUDMA framework). | naming_convention_raw=standard numeric (R-1/R-2/R-3/R-4, C-1/C-2, MU, I-1/I-2); no parenthetical or density-encoded variants ; sub_flags_raw=[utah, metropolitan, salt-lake-metro, hb462-sap-mih-applicable, trax-served, slc-airport-part77]
Worth knowing
- UTA TRAX Green Line triggers HB 462 SAP density floors — West Valley Central, Decker Lake, and Redwood Junction stations each require WFRC-certified Station Area Plans within ½-mi radius. Minimum weighted residential density ≥10 du/ac SAP-wide effectively upzones base R-/C- districts near stations. This is the single largest state-preemption lever affecting WVC zoning.
- Chesterfield is the sole historic district — Unlike SLC (which has multiple historic districts), WVC's historic-preservation footprint is concentrated in Chesterfield neighborhood. Rest of city has no heritage-preservation overlay; individually listed landmarks may exist outside district boundary.
- Jordan River bisects city east-west — FEMA SFHA constraints affect multiple base districts. Reduces effective developable land by ~10–15% in central/northern city. BFE+1 ft freeboard is state minimum; city may impose higher.
+ 6 more in Quirks & notes
Districts
res_sf 2res_mf 2com 2ind 2mu 1
| Code | Name | Category | Min lot | Height | Coverage | FAR | Du/ac | Parking | Setbacks F/S/R |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R-1 | Single-Family Residential Low Density | res_sf | 6,500 sf | 35 ft | 0.45[1] | 0.45[2] | 6[3] | 2 | 20 / 6 / 25 |
| R-2 | Single-Family / Duplex — Medium Density | res_sf | 12,500 sf | 40 ft | 0.55[4] | 0.7[5] | 14[6] | 1.75 | 20 / 10 / 20 |
| R-3 | Medium-Density Multi-Family | res_mf | 17,500 sf | 45 ft | 0.62[7] | 1[8] | 25[9] | 1.4 | 20 / 10 / 15 |
| R-4 | High-Density Multi-Family | res_mf | 25,000 sf | 60 ft | 0.67[10] | 2[11] | 50[12] | 1 | 15 / 10 / 15 |
| C-1 | Neighborhood Commercial | com | 7,500 sf | 45 ft | 0.75[13] | 0.8[14] | — | 4 | 15 / 5 / 10 |
| C-2 | General / Highway Commercial | com | 12,500 sf | 55 ft | 0.8[15] | 1.2[16] | — | 3.5 | 20 / 10 / 15 |
| MU | Mixed-Use / Downtown (Fairbourne Station area) | mu | — | 80 ft | 0.95[20] | 3[21] | — | 2 | 0[17] / 0[18] / 5[19] |
| I-1 | Light Industrial | ind | 30,000 sf | 50 ft | 0.65[22] | 0.45[23] | — | 3 | 25 / 15 / 20 |
| I-2 | Heavy Industrial | ind | 50,000 sf | 75 ft | 0.55[24] | 0.6[25] | — | 1.5 | 30 / 20 / 25 |
Confidence: confirmed partial under review not found
Overlays
FP
Floodplain Overlay
SPECFEMA FIRM Special Flood Hazard Area boundaries (Zone A, AE, AO) for Jordan River corridor (bisects city east-west), Lee Creek, Decker Lake drainage, and tributary systems within WVC municipal boundary
| prohibited_uses_100yr_sfha_without_bfe_compliance | residential, critical facilities, hazmat storage |
|---|---|
| lowest_floor_above_bfe_ft | 1 |
| mechanical_elevation_above_bfe_ft | 1 |
| ao_zone_minimum_elevation_ft | 3 |
| compensatory_storage_ratio | 1[26] |
| nfip_participation | City participates per FEMA Community Status Book (Community ID 490104) |
| floodway_encroachment | prohibited absent no-rise certification by registered engineer[27] |
AH
Airport Hazard Overlay — SLC International Part 77
SPECFAA Part 77 imaginary surfaces radiating from KSLC runway ends. Northern/northeastern WVC falls under horizontal surface (150 ft above airport elevation) and conical surface (20:1 slope). Salt Lake County Airport Authority compatibility planning area overlaps city.
| maximum_structure_height_per_part77 | parcel-specific per Part 77 imaginary surface intersection; typically 35–150 ft in north WVC |
|---|---|
| faa_form_7460_notification_required | for structures >200 ft AGL OR penetrating Part 77 surface |
| noise_contour_sensitive_use_restrictions | schools, hospitals, residential care facilities require avigation easement or sound attenuation within 65 dB DNL |
| avigation_easement_dedication | required for residential development within SLC airport influence area |
| obstruction_lighting_required_ft | 200 |
HP
Historic Preservation Overlay — Chesterfield District
SPECChesterfield neighborhood (approximately bounded by 3200 S, 3500 S, and adjacent residential grid) per city historic preservation map and Utah SHPO register. Additional individually designated landmarks may exist citywide.
| design_review_required | Historic Preservation Commission approval for alterations, demolition, new construction within district |
|---|---|
| demolition_restrictions | permit required; denial possible if resource is contributing; stay period before approval |
| exterior_material_standards | period-appropriate materials preferred (brick, clapboard, wood windows); vinyl/aluminum siding restricted[28] |
| setback_massing_compatibility | new construction must respect adjacent contributing structure setbacks and scale[29] |
| clg_program_eligibility | Certified Local Government status enables federal historic tax credit pass-through |
TOD
Transit-Oriented Development Overlay — TRAX Green Line / Blue Line
SPEC½-mile radius around UTA TRAX Green Line stations (West Valley Central at 2750 W 3590 S; Decker Lake at 2200 W 2630 S; Redwood Junction) within WVC; Blue Line adjacency. HB 462 SAP certification area coincident with or expanding beyond this buffer per WFRC-certified plan.
| minimum_residential_density_du_ac | 10 |
|---|---|
| maximum_height_bonus_ft | 25[30] |
| reduced_parking_pct | 0.5[31] |
| mixed_use_requirement | commercial ground-floor required on station-proximal parcels >1 acre[32] |
| pedestrian_bicycle_infrastructure | station access, ped-scale lighting, streetscape standards per SAP |
| biennial_wfrc_reporting | city must report SAP compliance to WFRC per HB 462 |
GPR
Gravel Pit Reclamation Overlay
SPECHistoric and active gravel/sand extraction pits in western and southern WVC (notable sites along 5600 W corridor and near Decker Lake) per city GIS and Utah DOGM permitted-site inventory
| reclamation_plan_approval_required | required before extraction and before post-extraction redevelopment |
|---|---|
| post_extraction_max_slope | 3:1 for residential redevelopment; 2:1 for industrial[33] |
| groundwater_mitigation | hydrogeologic study required for pits intersecting water table[34] |
| compatible_post_use | typically industrial (I-1/I-2), open space, or master-planned residential after reclamation certification |
| dogm_bond_release_required_for_rezone | city will not accept zoning change to residential until DOGM reclamation bond release issued[35] |
State preemptions
UT-HB82-InternalADUapplies
Qualifying condition
Applies to all Utah cities. West Valley City is a 1st-class city (pop 140,230 per Census PEP 2024) with residential R-1/R-2 zones — internal ADUs must be permitted by right in all residential zones. | statute=Utah Code §10-9a-530 ; effect_on_city=City must allow internal ADUs (within existing residential structure) as a permitted use in R-1/R-2/R-3/R-4. May retain authority over size/design/parking and limit to one per primary dwelling. Does NOT mandate detached ADUs.
UT-HB406-ADUExpansionapplies
Qualifying condition
HB 406 (2024) applies to all Utah cities. WVC's R-1/R-2 standards are subject to the strengthened ministerial-approval requirement. WVC may not impose minimum lot size, owner-occupancy, or discretionary CUP review on internal ADUs. | statute=Utah Code §10-9a-530(2) ; effect_on_city=City must process internal ADU permits ministerially (no CUP, no discretionary design review, no owner-occupancy requirement). Utility-capacity review permitted. Preempts any Title 7 Chapter 7-2 provision requiring CUP or conditional review for internal ADUs.
Qualifying condition
Salt Lake County is in WFRC MPO (Wasatch Front Regional Council). WVC pop 140,230 (Census PEP 2024) far exceeds 5,000 threshold for HB 462 MIH mandate. City must include MIH element in general plan, select ≥3 of 24 menu strategies (Utah Code §10-9a-403(2)(b)(ii)(A-X)), submit annual progress report to Utah DWS Workforce Services Housing Division by Oct 1. | statute=Utah Code §10-9a-403(2)(b)(ii) ; effect_on_city=City MIH plan required; ≥3 menu strategies. Non-compliance = loss of transportation funding eligibility + $250/day penalty. WVC qualifying menu strategies likely include: (A) ADU regulations, (F) rezone for MF near transit (TRAX corridors), (G) moderate-income dedicated zoning.
UT-HB462-StationAreaPlan-SAPapplies
Qualifying condition
WVC contains UTA TRAX Green Line fixed-guideway stations (West Valley Central at 2750 W 3590 S; Decker Lake at 2200 W 2630 S; Redwood Junction) and borders Blue Line stations. HB 462 requires cities with UTA fixed-guideway stations to adopt certified Station Area Plans within ½-mile radius of each station, achieve minimum weighted residential density (≥10 du/ac SAP-wide), and report biennially to WFRC. | statute=Utah Code §10-9a-403.1 ; effect_on_city=City must adopt WFRC-certified Station Area Plan for each TRAX Green Line station. Minimum residential density floor ≥10 du/ac SAP-wide (weighted average, not per-parcel). Effectively upzones base R-/C- districts within ½-mi buffer of each station. Biennial WFRC reporting required.
UT-HB37-HousingAffordabilityapplies
Qualifying condition
HB 37 (2023) applies to cities over 10,000 population. WVC pop 140,230 (Census PEP 2024) exceeds threshold. City must submit affordable housing plan amendment and is prohibited from adopting blanket moratoria on residential development. | statute=Utah Code §10-9a-403(3) ; effect_on_city=No blanket residential moratoria permitted. Affordable housing plan amendment required. Coordinates with HB 462 MIH framework.
Qualifying condition
Applies to all Utah cities. WVC R-1/R-2 single-family standards subject to SB 174 material/aesthetic limits beyond Utah Construction Code. | statute=Utah Code §10-9a-505.5 et seq. ; effect_on_city=City cannot impose certain aesthetic/material requirements (e.g., prohibition on vinyl siding, mandatory brick/masonry percentages) beyond Utah Construction Code on single-family dwellings. Bulk standards (lot size, height, setback) retained locally.
UT-LUDMA-LandUseDevelopmentManagementActapplies
Qualifying condition
LUDMA is the statewide framework statute governing all Utah city zoning. Applies to WVC without threshold condition. | statute=Utah Code §10-9a-101 et seq. ; effect_on_city=Framework statute: vesting rules (§10-9a-509 — complete application vests to standards on submission date), mandatory public-hearing procedures (§10-9a-204), allowed-use determination limits (§10-9a-509.5), general-plan/zoning consistency requirement. All WVC zoning actions must comply.
Non-applicable laws (1)
UT-DensityHeightBroadPreemptionunder_review
Qualifying condition
reason=Utah has NOT adopted broad statewide density, height, or middle-housing (duplex/fourplex) preemption comparable to CA SB 9 or OR HB 2001. WVC retains full base-district bulk authority, subject only to HB 462 SAP density floors within ½-mi of TRAX stations. R-1 lot size/height/setback values are NOT generally preempted.
Adopted building codes
Statewide; local may lag
Click a code label to open its state-by-state adoption atlas.
Quirks & notes
- UTA TRAX Green Line triggers HB 462 SAP density floors — West Valley Central, Decker Lake, and Redwood Junction stations each require WFRC-certified Station Area Plans within ½-mi radius. Minimum weighted residential density ≥10 du/ac SAP-wide effectively upzones base R-/C- districts near stations. This is the single largest state-preemption lever affecting WVC zoning.
- Chesterfield is the sole historic district — Unlike SLC (which has multiple historic districts), WVC's historic-preservation footprint is concentrated in Chesterfield neighborhood. Rest of city has no heritage-preservation overlay; individually listed landmarks may exist outside district boundary.
- Jordan River bisects city east-west — FEMA SFHA constraints affect multiple base districts. Reduces effective developable land by ~10–15% in central/northern city. BFE+1 ft freeboard is state minimum; city may impose higher.
- SLC International Part 77 imposes parcel-specific height caps — Northern/northeastern WVC falls under FAA Part 77 horizontal surface (150 ft above airport elevation) and conical surface (20:1 slope). Developers must file FAA Form 7460-1 for structures exceeding Part 77 surface. 65 dB DNL contour restricts sensitive uses (schools, residential care).
- Gravel pit legacy requires DOGM reclamation bond release — Western WVC gravel pits require Utah DOGM reclamation certification before residential rezone. Transition from I-1/I-2 to residential is sequenced through bond release — not a simple base-district change.
- HB 406 prohibits CUP for internal ADU — WVC cannot require discretionary review, minimum lot size, or owner-occupancy for internal ADUs. Must be ministerial with utility-capacity-only review. This is a significant preemption over typical small-city discretionary-ADU practice.
- LUDMA vesting (§10-9a-509) — A complete land-use application vests to standards in effect on submission date, subject only to narrow public-health-and-safety exceptions. City rezoning mid-process cannot retroactively strip rights. Frequently litigated in Utah small-city practice.
- Hill AFB outside influence area — Hill AFB is ~30 mi north of WVC; no AICUZ overlay applies. Unlike Clearfield/Layton/Roy, WVC is not subject to military compatibility use zones.
- Fairbourne Station is urban center via base MU district — WVC's downtown core (Fairbourne Station) is addressed via base MU zoning rather than a downtown overlay. Street-wall build-to form, reduced setbacks, shared parking, ≤80 ft height.
Formulas
Definitions
- height
- Measured from grade to roof peak or parapet, excluding mechanical and antennas per Title 7
- lot_coverage
- Building footprint (all structures) / total lot area
- far
- Gross building floor area / total lot area
- du_ac
- Dwelling units per acre; calculated as 43,560 sf ÷ minimum lot size
- parking
- Spaces per dwelling unit (residential) or per 1,000 sf GFA (non-residential)
Capacity calculations
- max_footprint_sf
lot_area_sf * lot_coverage- max_gfa_sf
lot_area_sf * far- max_units_residential
lot_area_sf / min_lot_sf_per_unit- tod_sap_density_floor
≥10 du/ac weighted average within SAP ½-mi buffer (HB 462)
Massing explorer
Interactive 3D comparison across every district. Drag to orbit, scroll to zoom, use the slider to walk districts, and toggle applicable overlays in the right-side panel.
Sort by
Max height
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Setbacks (F / S / R)
— ft
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Parking
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Max density
— du/ac
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Min lot size
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| District | Category | Height | FAR | Coverage | Setbacks | Parking | Density | Min lot | Overlays |
|---|
Sources & references
Primary source
Retrieval failure: WVC DocumentCenter delivers Title 7 as large binary PDFs (not HTML-parseable section by section); MuniCode mirror is JS-rendered SPA. Section-level dimensional tables require browser-mediated retrieval; base-district bulk values below carry status=partial pending direct PDF parse or Planning Dept request.
Citations
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Research status
Publication gates
| primary url present | passed | |
|---|---|---|
| no aggregator cited | passed | |
| confidence tags full form | passed | |
| overlays have parameters trigger confidence | passed | |
| preempt section city specific | passed |
Data quality
62%completeness19 confirmed47 partial22 inferred
Documented gaps
- Title 7 §7-2 residential dimensional table — scripted retrieval blocked by DocumentCenter PDF delivery and MuniCode SPA
- Title 7 §7-3 commercial / §7-4 industrial dimensional tables
- Parking ratios by use type
- TOD overlay boundary geometry and WFRC-certified SAP density thresholds per station
- Chesterfield Historic District boundary map
- Gravel pit reclamation standard tables
- FAA Part 77 imaginary surface parcel-specific heights for north WVC
- Utah DWS MIH annual report submission status (to verify compliance)
Known issues
cohort:needs-dom-retrievalblocker:municodedata:gaps-present
Verification
| last_verified_at | 2026-04-19T00:00:00Z |
|---|---|
| verifier_specialist | verification-pass |
| verifier_version | 1.0 |
| verification_result | passed |
| atomic_claims_checked | 54 |
| atomic_claims_passed | 54 |
| atomic_claims_failed | 0 |
| failed_claims | |
| narrative_ref | zoning/narratives/west-valley-city-ut/09-verification-pass.json |
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