SETBACK DEVIATION

WHAT IS A SETBACK DEVIATION?

The Kern County General Plan divides the county into three (3) distinct planning regions: Desert, Mountain, and Valley. The Circulation Element of the General Plan requires the county to routinely protect all surveyed section lines in the Desert and Valley regions for major highway rights-of-way. The county shall also routinely protect all midsection lines for secondary highways in the same regions. To that end, the Kern County Zoning Ordinance requires a "setback" for buildings and other structures from all existing and proposed major and secondary highways.

In some instances, strict adherence to these setback requirements may result in an undue hardship to a property owner and, in others, projected area growth may not warrant a major or secondary highway in the foreseeable future.

Therefore, in 1973, the Kern County Board of Supervisors empowered the Planning Director to authorize deviations or exceptions to setback requirements in connection with approval of permits for buildings, other structures, and wells along section and midsection lines when, in his opinion, such deviation will not be in conflict with the goals and objectives of the Kern County Circulation Plan.

Setback deviations are normally limited to distances between 55 feet to 80 feet in the case of a section line and between 45 feet to 70 feet in the case of a midsection line.

In cases where the proposed encroachment would be located within the ultimate road right-of-way along a section or midsection line, a formal amendment to the Circulation Element of the appropriate plan will usually be required unless the Planning Director can conclude with certainty that the applicable section/midsection line will not be needed for future major/secondary highway purposes.

WHAT ARE THE SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS FOR A SETBACK DEVIATION?

There is no formal application for setback deviation. The applicant should submit a letter to the Planning Director requesting the deviation. The letter should contain the following minimum information:

1. Applicant's name, mailing address, and telephone number;

2. A description of the section and/or midsection line(s) to be considered, including Section(s), Township, and Range;

3. The desired amount of deviation. The normally required setbacks are 80 feet from a section line and 70 feet from a midsection line. These distances will accommodate 55-foot and 45-foot half-width street (respectively); and

4. The reason for the deviation.

The report of the setback deviation study will be done at the applicant's expense. The study report will provide information that will aid the Planning Director in deciding the importance and future need of the right-of-way. The study should include a review of existing and proposed land uses. Setback deviations may be authorized where it is demonstrated that expressway or secondary highway construction will not occur while the structure in question is usable or valuable. Other project-specific information may be required from individual applicants.

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires that an environmental study be prepared for some types of projects. The environmental study can take the form of an exemption, a Negative Declaration, a Mitigated Negative Declaration, or an Environmental Impact Report (EIR). If the Planning Department determines that an environmental study will be required, an applicant will be requested to submit a completed Environmental Information Form, which asks more specific questions about the proposed deviation.

In order to determine whether or not an environmental study will be required, the applicant may request an appointment to meet with a member of the planning staff; otherwise this determination will be made when a preliminary review of the request has been completed.

WHAT IS THE PROCESS A SETBACK DEVIATION REQUEST GOES THROUGH?

After the request for setback deviation is received, the request is reviewed to make sure all necessary information has been submitted, as well as all required fees. When the application has been determined to be complete, a file is made and the project is assigned to a staff member. If the project requires an environmental study, the study will be done in accordance with the procedures outlined in the brochure describing that procedure.

The staff member will conduct a study which may include a field inspection and consultation with other county departments or other agencies as deemed necessary to permit a full evaluation of the proposal.

After the study, the staff member will prepare a memorandum for the signature of the Planning Director outlining the proposal, the findings, and the recommendation. The recommendation could be for approval, conditional approval, or disapproval of the request. The Planning Director will sign the memorandum which constitutes his decision on the matter. A copy of the memorandum is then forwarded to the applicant.

Any person or county officer dissatisfied with any such decision of the Planning Director may, at any time prior to the issuance of a permit to which such a deviation or exception relates, appeal to the Board of Supervisors from such decision by filing a written notice of appeal both with the officer empowered to issue such permit and with the Planning Director along with any necessary fees. The Planning Director will promptly report such notice to the Board of Supervisors. The Board of Supervisors shall, within a reasonable time, conduct a hearing on the appeal and shall make a final determination on the matter. The Board must find that the request will not be in conflict with the goals and objectives of the Circulation Plan.

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO PROCESS A REQUEST FOR SETBACK DEVIATION?

Before an application is accepted as complete, staff performs a preliminary review to make sure all necessary information and fees are present. Applicants should allow approximately two (2) weeks for completion of the preliminary review of the setback deviation request.

If the request is found to be incomplete, the applicant will be notified in writing of what additional information will be required to complete the application. Generally, setback deviation requests do not require environmental studies and can, therefore, be completed in about four (4) weeks. In the rare cases where a Negative Declaration is required, processing time will be approximately three (3) to four (4) months.

AFTER THE REQUEST IS APPROVED, WHAT NEXT?

After the Planning Director has made his decision, and assuming no appeal to the Board of Supervisors, the applicant can obtain any necessary permits for the erection of buildings or other structures. Approval of the setback deviation does not include approval of any other permits such as building or grading permits, nor does it imply the approval of any pending land division applications. Before any permits can be obtained, the applicant will have to demonstrate that any conditions of approval attached to the approval have been satisfied.

Staff is available to answer any questions you may have regarding the setback deviation process. Please telephone (661) 862-8600 if the Department can be of assistance.

(FORM206.PDS 11/96)