Permit Review Detail
Review Status: Requires Resubmit
Review Details: RESIDENTIAL NEW DWELLING v.5
Permit Number - TC-RES-0425-01781
Review Name: RESIDENTIAL NEW DWELLING v.5
Review Status: Requires Resubmit
| Review Date | Reviewer's Name | Type of Review | Description | Status | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 03/26/2026 | Bldg Permits - Post Review Express | PENDING ASSIGNMENT | |||
| 03/26/2026 | Residential Building Standard | PENDING ASSIGNMENT | |||
| 03/26/2026 | Residential Zoning | REQUIRES RESUBMIT | PDSD TRANSMITTAL FROM: Jeffrey W. Cassidy, Planner Planning & Development Services Department – Current Zoning Review Section PROJECT: TC-RES-0425-01781 – Residential Building – Second Dwelling 101 S MELROSE AV Unit 2 TUCSON, AZ 85745 (R-2 Zoning) Plan Review – 3rd Review TRANSMITTAL DATE: March 26, 2026 This site is in the R-2 Residence Zone (UDC 4.7.9). A single-family residence is a permitted use in this zone (Table 4.8-2) subject to Use Specific Standards 4.9.7.B.6, .9, & .10. Plan review for the above referenced second dwelling has been completed. This letter reflects comments to be addressed. For facilitating a shorter back check time, please provide updated plans and calculations with a written response to each of the notated items indicating action taken. Do not cloud the changes made for comment updates; revisions are processed if changes occur after the permit is issued. 1. COMMENT: Zoning requires clarification on the scope type of this project. It was submitted as a ‘Second Dwelling’ but the drawings are using ‘Middle Housing’ language. The ramifications vary from parking to landscaping requirements depending on the route chosen. The following comments will be made in order to help guide the choice moving forward. 2. COMMENT: As presented, this project would be eligible to be executed as Middle Housing (Ordinance 12219) and reviewed accordingly. The following requirements will need to be met: A. One parking space is required per every unit, thus, 2 are required and you are currently showing one stall for the existing residence. However, this requirement can be entirely/partially waived as you are less than ¼ mile from a bus stop (public transit route). B. Should you decide to keep the parking stalls, a total of 400 square feet of parking (two parking spaces) is permitted in the front yard with an additional 400 square feet toward vehicular maneuvering. The remaining parking spots must be located at the side and/or rear of the property. Revise design accordingly to meet this standard. C. As you are pursuing a design that is two stories in height adjacent within 10’-0” of a property with an existing one-story residence and their zoning is R-2 or more restrictive, privacy mitigation will be required in the form of a wall, landscape materials, screening materials, building placement and orientation so as to avoid the visual accessibility into side and rear yards. 3. COMMENT: A. As part of the passing of Ordinance 12219 this past December of 2025, the following landscaping is required for all new single family residential, middle housing development, and accessory dwelling units, as of January 01, 2026, per UDC 7.6.10. 1. One tree / 1,000 floor area. 2. A 5’-0” wide strip of vegetative groundcover is required within the front yard setback per the calculation below (minus the sections that have a driveway and/or pedestrian sidewalk (from the street sidewalk to the units’ front entrance). Parcels with less than 30 lineal feet of street frontage may place the required ground cover in alternate locations indicated on the site plan. (X Linear feet of Street Frontage) – (Y curb cut width) x (5 Foot Depth) = Z Square Feet of required vegetative groundcover. 3. Plants must be low to very low water use with a hardiness rating of 15 degrees Fahrenheit or lower and non-invasive. Options are listed in Section 5-02.5.0 of the Technical Standards Manual. Exceptions to these criteria or plants that are not listed in Section 5-02.5.0 of the Technical Standards Manual, may be approved by the PDSD Landscape Architect. B. Required landscaping must be located as follows: 1. A minimum of fifty percent of the required canopy trees must be located within the front yard setback area. i. Exception: If site constraints prevent new tree placement in a front yard, five shrubs may be substituted per required tree. Required trees must still be placed elsewhere on the site. Shrubs used as a substitute plant material for the required tree shall range from three feet in height by three feet in width, or larger. Shrubs must follow the relevant spacings from utility lines in section 5 01.5.11of the Technical Standards Manual but can be planted one radius of their mature width from foundations, enclosed sidewalks, sidewalks, and curbs. 2. Trees may be planted at varying distances apart. 3. Required landscaping is not restricted to the first 10 feet onto the property from the existing or future right-of-way line. 4. Newly planted trees must be placed at a minimum distance from existing or proposed City of Tucson-owned or private utility-owned lines, as found in section 5-01.5.11 of the Technical Standards Manual. Tree plantings are not permitted in El Paso Gas Easements or under overhead power lines. 5. Trees shall be placed a minimum of ten feet from the center of the tree trunk to any enclosed structure. 6. Trees shall be placed a minimum of five feet from the back of the sidewalk or curb. If this standard cannot be met, then root barriers are required and must be illustrated on the submitted construction plans. 7. Trees must be planted in a six-to-nine-inch depressed planting area of at least 50 square feet (four-foot radius, or alternatives as proposed) and at least ten feet away from a building foundation. 8. Existing, established trees on property, at least 4 inches trunk diameter at chest height, located at least ten feet from the foundation or with an unobstructed dripline at maturity, shall count toward this requirement. The root systems of existing trees used for this requirement must be protected from soil compaction during construction using perimeter protective fencing around the dripline. Established trees are not required to have a depressed planting area. Existing shrubs and vegetative groundcovers may also be used toward the required landscaping. C. Vegetation shall be established, maintained, and sustained throughout its life in support of the City’s tree count, climate, and walkability goals. One of the following two options may be used: 1. Drip or bubbler irrigation with backflow protection. A simple irrigation system can be part of the domestic water supply for the residence. 2. Alternate methods, such as rainwater harvesting, hand watering, and greywater systems, as proposed by the property owner and approved by the PDSD Landscape Architect. 4. COMMENT: The site plan provided is incomplete. Provide a site plan that meets the requirements show in the plot plan example at the following link: https://www.tucsonaz.gov/files/sharedassets/public/v/2/pdsd/documents/plan-samples/full-site-plan_feb2026.pdf Specifically: A. Draw, label and dimension everything that exists on the property to a scalable drawing graphic (examples include the principal residence, porches, breezeways, sidewalks, driveways, parking spots, walls, fences, ramada, shed, carport, shade sail, cistern, pool, guest house, sleeping quarters, accessory dwelling unit) and provide dimensions of any structure as it relates to nearby structures and property lines and provide the heights (measured from above finish grade to top of wall, etc.) of those structures that run parallel-perpendicular to any nearby adjacent property lines. Label missing parking (regardless of option you choose (and if you keep parking in the middle housing choice)). B. Provide Middle Housing landscape graphics and associated notes (if middle housing is the chosen path). C. The street side yard setback along W Cedar St is 10’-0”. Update labels and notes and adjust proposed unit location accordingly. D. The lot coverage calculation table is not correct as the lot square footage total is incorrect (52’-0” x 120’-0” = 8,320 sf). Per UDC Article 6.4.3.C.1.a roofed areas, porches, open on at least one side are NOT included in the calculation and per UDC Article 6.4.3.B.3.b Vehicular use areas, measured within the outside edges of any area allocated to vehicle use, whether improved or unimproved, are included in the lot coverage. Calculate (measure) square footage of every enclosed (NOT open structures like a porch, ramada, carport) structure on site and all vehicular use area (driveway, parking, turnaround, backup) and input into lot coverage calculation table. A carport would be calculated under vehicular use area. These separate ‘category numbers are added together and divided by the total parcel square footage to produce the lot coverage percentage that demonstrates compliance (or not). E. Setbacks need to be updated to 20’-0” for the front yard, 10’-0” for the street side yard and 5’-0” for both the east and south property lines in the notes (6’-0” or 2/3 height of the proposed wall no longer applies). F. Provide R-2 zoning labels on all four sides of this parcel. G. Update the scale from 1” = 16’-0” to 1/16” = 1’-0”. 5. COMMENT: Should you choose the additional single family dwelling option; Per UDC Table 7.4.4-1 and under the Residential Use Group and Single-Family Dwellings, 2 spaces per dwelling unit plus visitor parking required at a ratio of 0.25 space per unit. Per UDC Table 7.4.6-1, a 90-degree orientation requires a 8’-6” width by 18’-0” length per stall. 6. COMMENT: Zoning has acknowledged this property has a structure on-site with a with ‘contributing status’ with the National Register of Historic Places and advises the owner to contact the State Historic Preservation Office (HPO) to determine if this project will impact the status. Contact https://azstateparks.com/SHPO for more information. This comment is purely made as a courtesy as there may be tax implications. No action is required and is at the discretion of the owner. 7. COMMENT: Currently, the plan communicates access to the new dwelling unit through the existing alley. Per UDC 7.4.6.K.2 (below), the alley does not meet the access standard and access off of W Cedar St will be required via a separate permit to do work in the right of way. 7.4.6.K.2 : An alley, when used for access, must be a minimum of 20 feet wide, free of obstructions, and surfaced with a dust control method that is acceptable to the TDOT City Engineer. 8. COMMENT: Additional comments may be forthcoming on the next review based on responses to Zoning and other PDSD reviewer comments. RESUBMITTAL OF THE FOLLOWING IS REQUIRED: 1. Corrected building permit 2. Provide a detailed response letter (clarification narrative) with your submittal that clearly shows how you have addressed all Zoning comments. 3. Resubmit ALL documents associated with this permit (all drawings in sheet index) To resubmit visit Tucson Development Center at https://tdc-online.tucsonaz.gov/#/home Instructions for resubmittal - https://www.tucsonaz.gov/files/sharedassets/public/v/1/pdsd/documents/tdc-faq/old-pdfs/double-old/resubmittals.pdf If you have any questions about this transmittal, please contact jeffrey.cassidy@tucsonaz.gov The Unified Development Code (UDC) can be found at: https://www.tucsonaz.gov/Departments/Planning-Development-Services/Codes/Zoning-Code |
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| 02/20/2026 | PDSD Application Completeness Express | REVIEW COMPLETED |