Vail Wildland Urban Interface Building, Planning and Development Standards Summary

The Town of Vail recently adopted amendments to the Vail Town Code to address the risk of wildfire in the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI), that encompasses all of the Town of Vail. Below is a short summary of the changes made:

• Fire Resistive Construction
  • Chapter 7A Fire Resistive Construction has been added to include specifications for compliance with ignitions resistant requirements.
  • Applies to the construction, alteration, movement, repair, maintenance and use of any building, structure or premises into or within the wildland-urban interface areas of the Town of Vail.
    • Except for
      • Additions less than 500 square feet of gross floor area;
      • Repair or replacement of less than 25% of a deck surface or structure;
      • Accessory structures not exceeding 120 square feet;
      • Agriculture building located not less than 30 feet from buildings containing habitable space.
• Non-Combustible or Ignition Resistant Materials
  • Chapter 7A requires the use of non-combustible or ignition resistant material be used in the exterior wall coverings, decking, eves and soffits, exterior doors and vents.
  • Non-combustible materials include metal, stone, stucco and concreate. 
  • Cal Fire maintains a comprehensive database of materials meeting the ignition resistant materials guidelines
    • https://osfm.fire.ca.gov/divisions/fire-engineering-and-investigations/building-materials-listing/bml-search-building-materials-listing/
• Landscaping
  • All projects must design and install landscaping in accordance with Title 14- Design guidelines including the incorporation of ignition resistant landscaping beginning at the drip edge of the building and extending out to 100 feet or the property line, whichever is less.
  • Landscaping shall be designed and installed to minimize the spread of fire across the property. The Vail Fire Ignition Resistant Landscaping Guide and supplemental Plant Selection Guide will aid in landscape design and maintenance.
    • https://www.vailgov.com/Portals/0/FireResistBroch2020.pdf?ver=2020-04-10-084231-987
    • http://www.vailgov.com/Portals/0/PlantRecomBroch2020.pdf?ver=2020-04-10-085120-777
  • For additions or deck repair/ replacements only the affected landscaping shall be required to conform with the code amendments.
  • Landscape materials must show maturity at 15 year growth

(For additions, only the added portion of the building is required to comply with the provisions of Chapter 7A however the materials shall be compatible with the existing structure.)

For a complete list of the changes made and references to the affected Town Code please see Ordinance 19, Series of 2019.