New Home Construction in San Bruno, CA

No Architectural Review Permit for a compliant second story. Since 2024, San Bruno requires an Architectural Review Permit only when an R-1 or R-2 project exceeds a standard. A second story that meets the standards, including a 28-foot height on flatter lots (26 feet on steep downslope lots, 30 feet upslope), second-story front decks of 72 sq ft or less, and side-window limits, needs no ARP but must follow the Residential Design Guidelines. The Director can approve modest exceptions, such as setback encroachments up to 2 feet, lot coverage up to 110%, FAR up to 0.62 or height up to 3 feet over, after notice to adjacent owners at least 10 days ahead; anything beyond goes to the Planning Commission. Appeals are due within 10 days.

Planning submittal: data chart (FAR, coverage, impervious area, average slope), a site plan showing neighboring buildings for two-story projects, elevations showing the daylight-plane or articulation option, a landscape and tree plan, and a boundary survey if within 3 inches of a setback. On hillside lots, FAR drops from 0.55 toward 0.383 as average slope rises. First building review typically takes 3 to 4 weeks, with rechecks in 1 to 2.