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Building on a hillside in Grass Valley

Grass Valley's own rules on building on a hillside, with the code text for every value.

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Each rule below links to the section of the Grass Valley Municipal Code it was read from, with the code text one click away (checked October 2026). General information, not legal advice.

What Grass Valley's code says

Grass Valley code What Grass Valley's code adds
Grading and retaining walls
  • No new grading or building on a slope of more than 30%.
    Applies: Unless the existing parcel has no other building site with a slope of 30% or less.
    § 17.54.020 · code text
    No new grading or other construction shall occur on a slope of more than thirty percent, except where the review authority determines that there is no alternative building site available on an existing parcel with a slope of thirty percent or less.
  • Above 6 feet, retaining walls step back: each at most 36 inches tall, each bench at least 36 inches wide.
    Applies: Hillside sites: slope of 20% or more in the protected ridgelines map area.
    § 17.54.040 · code text
    An embankment to be retained that is over six feet in height shall be benched above six feet in height so that no individual retaining wall above six feet in height is taller than thirty-six inches, and each bench is a minimum width of thirty-six inches.
Height on hillside lots
  • Buildings may be at most 24 feet tall.
    Applies: Hillside sites with a slope of 20% or more in the protected ridgelines area; the zone height limit also applies.
    § 17.54.040 · code text
    No structure shall exceed a height of twenty-four feet, measured in compliance with Section 17.30.050 (height limits and exceptions), and shall not exceed a total height of thirty-five feet, measured from the lowest elevation on the site where the structure touches the grade, to the highest point of the roof.
  • Total height may be at most 35 feet.
    Applies: Hillside sites; measured from the lowest point where the building meets the ground to the top of the roof.
    § 17.54.040 · code text
    No structure shall exceed a height of twenty-four feet, measured in compliance with Section 17.30.050 (height limits and exceptions), and shall not exceed a total height of thirty-five feet, measured from the lowest elevation on the site where the structure touches the grade, to the highest point of the roof.
  • Buildings may be at most 16 feet above the highest ridgeline or hilltop point within 100 feet.
    Applies: Older legal lots with no workable building site other than one that extends above the ridgeline.
    § 17.54.040 · code text
    proposed structures shall not exceed a height of sixteen feet above the highest point on the ridgeline or hilltop within one hundred feet of the proposed structure.
  • The lowest floor may be at most 6 feet above the lowest point where the foundation meets the ground.
    Applies: Hillside sites.
    § 17.54.040 · code text
    The vertical distance between the lowest point where the foundation meets grade and the lowest floor line of the structure shall not exceed six feet (see Figure 5-8).
  • Any single downhill wall may be at most 15 feet above ground.
    Applies: Houses on hillside sites; more height allowed in 15-foot steps, each set back at least 10 feet.
    § 17.54.040 · code text
    No single building wall on the downhill side of a house shall exceed fifteen feet in height above grade.
  • A deck floor with visible supports may be at most 6 feet above ground.
    Applies: Hillside sites.
    § 17.54.040 · code text
    No portion of the walking surface of a deck with visible underpinnings shall exceed a height of six feet above grade.
  • Support walls below the lowest floor may be at most 6 feet high.
    Applies: Downhill side of a house on a hillside site.
    § 17.54.040 · code text
    Support structure wall surfaces shall not exceed six feet in height.
When hillside rules apply
  • Hillside rules apply on building sites with a slope of 20% or greater.
    Applies: Sites in areas on the city's protected ridgelines map.
    § 17.54.020 · code text
    The requirements and guidelines in this chapter apply to subdivisions, and all other proposed development or a new land use on a building site with a slope of twenty percent or greater in an area identified on the city's protected ridgelines map.

Who this affects

HomeownersContractorsDesigners

Frequently asked questions

What extra rules apply to a hillside lot in Grass Valley?

Grass Valley's code: Hillside rules apply on building sites with a slope of 20% or greater. (Sites in areas on the city's protected ridgelines map.) (§ 17.54.020); No new grading or building on a slope of more than 30%. (Unless the existing parcel has no other building site with a slope of 30% or less.) (§ 17.54.020).

General information, not legal advice.

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