Provo City Zoning Code

14.01 General

Provisions

14.01.010 Short Title.

This Title shall be known as the Planning and Zoning Title of the Provo City Code, and may be so cited and pleaded. Said Title shall be referred to herein as this “Title,” and the chapters and sections hereinafter referred to shall be chapters and sections of this Title.

14.01.020 Purpose.

This Title and the regulations and restrictions contained therein are adopted and enacted for the purpose of promoting the health, safety, morals, prosperity, convenience, and general welfare of the present and future residents of Provo City; and

(1) To encourage and facilitate the orderly growth and development of the City;

(2) To provide adequate open space for light and air, air quality, to prevent overcrowding of the land, and to lessen congestion on the streets;

(3) To secure economy in municipal expenditures, to facilitate adequate provision for public or alternative transportation, water, sewerage, schools, parks, vegetation, trees and landscaping, and other public facilities and services;

(4) To increase the security of home life and preserve and create a more favorable environment for the citizens and visitors of Provo City;

(5) To secure safety from fire, panic, and other dangers;

(6) To stabilize and improve property values;

(7) To enhance the economic and cultural well being of the residents of Provo; and

(8) To promote the development of a more wholesome, serviceable, and attractive City resulting from an orderly, planned use of resources.

14.01.030 Intent.

It is hereby declared to be the intent of the Municipal Council of Provo City that this Title and the regulations set forth herein shall be so construed as to further the purpose of this Title and promote the objectives and characteristics of the respective zones.

14.01.040 Conflicting Provisions.

This Title shall not nullify the more restrictive provisions of the Provo City Code or other private covenants and agreements or other laws or general ordinances of the City, but shall prevail and take precedence over such provisions which are less restrictive.

14.01.050 Licenses to Conform.

All departments, officials, and employees of Provo City which are vested with duty or authority to issue permits and licenses shall conform to the provisions of this Title and shall issue no permit or license for a use, building, or purpose where the same would be in conflict with the provisions of this Title. Any such permit or license, if issued in conflict with the provisions of this Title, shall be null and void.

14.01.060 Building Permits Required.

No building or structure shall be constructed, reconstructed, altered, or moved, nor shall the use of land be changed except after the issuance of a permit for the same by the Building Inspection Division. For the purposes of this Section the issuance of a building permit will constitute a full building permit or fast track permit.

14.01.070 Permits to Comply with the Zoning Rules.

(1) Permits shall not be granted for the construction or alteration of any building or structure, or for the moving of a building onto a lot, or for the change of the use in any land, building, or structure if such construction, alteration, moving, or change in use would be a violation of any of the provisions of this Title.

(2) No sewer service line, no water service line, or electrical utilities shall be installed to serve such premises if such use will be in violation of this Title.

14.01.080 Building Permits - Plat Required.

(1) When property boundaries are unclear or indeterminate all applications for building permits for new construction (and not interior remodels) shall be accompanied by:

(a) A plat drawn to scale showing the actual dimensions of the lot to be built upon, the size and location of existing buildings, buildings to be erected, and existing buildings on adjacent property and such other information as may be deemed necessary by the Building Inspector or the Planning Commission for the enforcement of this Title.

(b) A complete and accurate legal description of the property, which is the subject of the application, together with a certified survey of the property showing any conflict with adjoining property, overlaps or discrepancies between the legal description, and any existing fence lines. Also to be submitted will be a preliminary title search showing legal ownership of the property. If the developer is not the legal owner of the property, the developer shall, in addition, submit written proof of the developer’s right to develop the property. Such proof shall consist of options, contracts, or other documents. The developer will be entitled to redact confidential information on such documents as, for example, the amount of consideration paid and the amounts of periodic payments. A careful record of such applications and permits shall be kept in the Office of the Building Inspector for a period of one (1) year from the date of receipt thereof.

14.01.090 Certificate of Occupancy and Zoning Compliance.

(1) It shall be unlawful to use or occupy, or to permit the use or occupancy of any building or premises until a Certificate of Occupancy and Zoning Compliance shall have been issued for the premises and/or building by Provo City. It shall also be unlawful to occupy or to allow to be occupied any building which has a greater intensity of use or different occupancy than provided for specifically in the Certificate of Occupancy and Zoning Compliance.

(2) Issuance of Certificates. A Certificate of Occupancy and Zoning Compliance, hereinafter referred to as “Certificate” is required to be issued by the Planning Commission of Provo City at the time a building is completed and final inspection granted by the Building Inspection Division. In addition, a new certificate shall be required at any time the occupancy of the building changes to a more intensive use or that the number of occupants in an apartment or multiple residential building increases more than five percent (5%) above the number declared in the previously-issued certificate.

(3) Information Required. The following information shall be made a part of any application for a Certificate of Occupancy and Building Compliance issued by the Provo City Planning Commission:

(i) The number of residential units in the building or buildings. (If there is more than one (1) building, the number of units should be listed separately for each building.)

(ii) Number of households residing in or anticipated to live in the building.

(iii) The number of baching tenants and/or roomers anticipated to reside on the premises.

(iv) The number of automobiles anticipated to belong to tenants of the premises (recognizing that this number will vary, a ten percent (10%) variance will be allowed before a new Certificate of Occupancy is required to be filed for).

(v) The number of legal-sized off-street parking spaces being provided on the premises.

(vi) A signed certification of the property owner of the building or premises or the property owner’s authorized agent stating that the information contained therein is accurate and that the stated conditions will be maintained on the premises.

(vii) A notice directed to the owner of the building or premises that any change in intensity of use of the building or premises, or an increase of more than five percent (5%) in the number of occupants in an apartment or multiple residential building, will require the issuance of a new certificate.

(i) The number of employees on the premises.

(ii) The number of off-street parking spaces provided for employees on the site.

(iii) The number of off-street parking spaces provided for customers or visitors.

(iv) The number and type of restroom facilities provided.

(v) The square foot area within the building used for each separate type of occupancy.

(vi) A signed certificate by the owner of the building or premises or the owner’s authorized agent stating that the information and conditions set forth are true and will be maintained upon the site in this condition.

(vii) A warning directed to the owner of the premises that a change in intensity of use or occupancy of the building will require the issuance of a new certificate.

(4) Penalty for Violations. Failure to obtain a Certificate of Occupancy and Zoning Compliance for occupying or allowing to be occupied any residential, commercial, industrial, or institutional building or premises, or for changing the intensity of use or increasing the number of occupants as provided for in the Certificate of Occupancy and Zoning Compliance issued under this Title, shall be a misdemeanor and shall be punishable under the provisions of Chapter 14.42, Provo City Code.

(5) Nuisance. The occupation of any building for which a Certificate of Zoning Compliance has not been issued is hereby declared to be nuisance and shall be abated as such. It shall also be a nuisance for any building to be occupied with greater density than authorized herein or for any other occupancy than is authorized in the Certificate or required under this Section.

14.01.100 Construction and Use to Conform to Plans.

Building permits or Certificates of Zoning Compliance, issued on the basis of plans and specifications approved by the Building Inspector, authorizes only the use, arrangement, and construction set forth in the approved plans and applications and no other use, arrangement, or construction. Use, arrangement, or construction at variance with that authorized in said plans and specifications shall be deemed a violation of this Title and shall be punishable as provided in Chapter 14.42, Provo City Code.

14.01.110 Prohibition of Sham Property Transactions.

(1) It shall be unlawful for a person to avoid an owner occupancy requirement set forth in this Title by engaging in a sham property transaction. For the purpose of this Section a “sham property transaction” means a transaction that:

(a) is designed primarily to avoid an owner occupancy requirement set forth in this Title;

(b) but for the avoidance of an owner occupancy requirement has no commercially reasonable purpose and would be unlikely to occur; and

(i) the original owner maintains beneficial title to the property pursuant to an oral or written agreement; or

(ii) has executed documents whereby the property will be transferred back to the owner upon the happening of a future event.

(2) A sham transaction shall be presumed regarding premises required by this Title to be owner occupied when:

(a) the name of a person who does not occupy the premises periodically appears as the owner of the property in the chain of title over a period of time;

(b) the name of the person who occupies premises and claims to be the property owner does not appear in any instrument in the land records of Utah County which grants a fifty-one percent (51%) or greater property interest in the property to such person;

(c) a property owner who does not occupy the premises transfers the owner’s interest in the property, or a portion thereof, to another person who:

(i) occupies the premises as the purported property owner and agrees to transfer the property back to the non-occupying property owner upon termination of person’s occupancy of the premises on the property or some other event, or

(ii) executes, as a condition of occupancy, documents that will have the effect of transferring the title to the property back to the first property owner upon termination of the person’s occupancy of the property; or

(d) if the property owner is an LLC or trust, the following types of ownership changes occur within the first year of ownership by an LLC or trust, occur within the first year after applying for a rental license, or repeatedly occur during the rental period, unless every member or trustor can be demonstrated to occupy the premises as their primary residence:

(i) changes in ownership involving members of the LLC or trustors; or

(ii) transfer of the property to another LLC or trust, if any member or trustor of the new owner entity was also a member or trustor of the transferring owner entity, or an immediate family member of a member or trustor of the transferring owner entity.

(3) When a presumption of a sham transaction arises, the burden of proving otherwise shall be upon the persons alleged to have engaged in such a transaction. Such burden of proof may be met if each person involved a given transaction provides a notarized affidavit:

(a) acknowledging the person has read and understands the requirements of this Section; and

(b) swearing the transaction at issue is not a sham transaction as set forth in this section and was entered into for a valid, good faith purpose.

(4) A person who is a party to a sham transaction shall be guilty of a class B misdemeanor. A person who falsely furnishes an affidavit under this Section shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor.