4.3.5. AVOIDANCE OF SENSITIVE AREAS.
A. Intent. Protect and preserve significant natural features, resources, and sensitive areas to minimize the impacts of development on the environment and create more distinctive neighborhoods and mixed-use areas. Such features shall be used as amenities to enhance the value of development.
B. Standards. The following standards apply in Subareas B and C.
1. Subdivisions shall be organized to protect, appropriately use, or enhance the following types of natural resources and features, by including such areas in private common space and dedicated public park land and open space areas, by requiring construction in these areas to avoid sensitive land features to the maximum extent practicable, or by mitigating the impacts of construction on these features to the maximum extent practicable. These features shall be connected or integrated with similar features on adjacent lands to the maximum extent practicable:
a. Water features, and bodies of water (in addition to floodplains);
b. Private common space, dedicated public park land, open space areas, trails, and greenways on or adjacent to the site;
c. Historic or archeological sites or areas that have been recognized by the City Council as significant;
d. Significant views of the Front Range or of designated open space areas as viewed from dedicated public parks and open space, from the E-470 right-of-way, or from collector or arterial streets;
e. Significant wildlife habitat, as defined by Colorado Parks and Wildlife, or a natural or open space, as designated in the Comprehensive Plan or other applicable planning document;
f. The approximate topographic form of major ridgelines and swales;
g. Natural or geologic hazard areas or soil conditions, such as unstable or potentially unstable slopes, faulting, landslides, rockfalls, or expansive soils; and
h. Other natural features such as bluffs, ridges, steep slopes, stands of mature trees, rock outcroppings, or wetlands.
2. Grading on or near major ridgelines and swales shall maintain their approximate topographic form. Significant reconstruction of major or prominent topographic features shall be avoided to the maximum extent practicable.
3. Slope conditions shall be addressed as follows:
a. Lands that show evidence of slope instability, landslides, avalanche, flooding, or other natural or manmade hazards shall not be included in platted lots. If requested by the Planning Director or Director of Public Works, based on the topography of the land, the applicant shall demonstrate that the slope's ground surface and subsurface are stable and that the proposed development will not cause instability or increase the potential for future hazards.
b. New structures shall not be built on any portion of any parcel of land that contains an existing average slope of 30 percent or more. Structures shall be exempt from this requirement if not more than10 percent of the total area of the lot is located on slopes in excess of 30 percent. Any site disturbances that remove existing vegetation from a property shall not be permitted unless a storm water quality permit for erosion control has been previously approved, as required by the Aurora City Code.
4. Potential wildlife habitat shall be protected from potential water quality impacts as follows:
a. New structures intended for human occupancy shall not be located within 100 feet of any perennial stream or any public lake, reservoir, or element of a public water supply system, unless the Director of Water determines that a smaller setback would adequately protect water quality and wildlife habitat.
b. In making the determination required in paragraph (a) of this Section, the Director of Water shall consider factors such as the proposed use of the land, the intensity of proposed human activity on the land, the types of existing vegetation on the land, the existence of wetlands or floodplains on the property, probable future water levels and habitat quality based on potential upstream development, the importance of the property to existing water supply sources and habitat networks, water quality and habitat quality improvements included in the design of the proposed development, and the existing and proposed uses of nearby lands.
c. Roads, bridges, trails, public access sites for recreation, fences, irrigation and water diversion facilities, erosion and flood control devices, underground utilities, and similarly necessary structures may be located within the required setback if the Director of Water determines that the encroachment is minimized and water quality and wildlife habitat are adequately protected.
5. All subdivisions shall be designed to avoid and/or minimize soil erosion, both during construction and at final stabilization, in accordance with the Aurora Rules and Regulations Regarding Storm water Discharges Associated with Construction Activities.
6. Avoidance of natural features identified in this Section 146-4.3.5 shall be accomplished through the inclusion of a site analysis with each Master Plan, or with each Site Plan or plat when a Master Plan is not required. The site analysis shall describe the following:
a. The location and extent of the natural features described in this Section;
b. The extent to which these features will be included in private common space and dedicated public park land and open space areas;
c. The extent to which construction of land uses and roads, utilities and other infrastructure will occur in or adjacent to these features;
d. The manner in which these features will be protected or used as amenities when construction or grading occurs in or adjacent to the features; and
e. The manner in which the impacts of construction or grading will be mitigated. (Ord. No. 2019-49 § 1, 08-19-2019)