Planning guide · updated October 2026
Los Gatos sits at the foot of the Santa Cruz Mountains, and the Town works hard to keep its neighborhoods and wooded hillsides looking the way they do. That shows up in the permit process. A new custom home, a large addition or a whole-home remodel here usually goes through a Town design review called Architecture and Site before the Building Division will take the plans, and hillside lots, protected trees and older homes each add their own layer. This guide walks through who reviews what, what the Town asks to see, and the order we line things up in.
Harrod Built is a general contractor building custom homes, whole-home remodels and additions on the Central Coast, the Peninsula and in the South Bay, including Los Gatos. To talk through a project in Los Gatos, call 805-712-8993 or send the form at the end of this page.
The short answer
Building permits in Los Gatos come from the Town’s Building Division, but a new house, and many large additions and remodels, first need Architecture and Site approval from the Planning Division. Projects are checked against the Residential Design Guidelines, often with comments from the Town’s consulting architect, and lots on the Hillside Area Map must also meet the Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines, including a constraints analysis and, where the house could be seen from town, story poles and a visibility analysis. Protected trees need a tree protection plan, homes built before 1941 or in historic districts go to the Historic Preservation Committee, and the Santa Clara County Fire Department reviews access, water and sprinklers. The decision comes from the Director, the Development Review Committee or the Planning Commission, depending on the project.
1. Who reviews what
In Los Gatos, the Town runs the process, with County Fire and outside consultants alongside
Los Gatos is an incorporated town, so planning and building permits come from the Town of Los Gatos Community Development Department at Town Hall, not from Santa Clara County. Several groups touch a typical home project:
| Agency or group | What it handles for a home project |
|---|---|
| Town of Los Gatos Community Development, Planning Division | Zoning, Architecture and Site applications, Minor Residential applications, design review, tree protection, story poles, environmental review and the conditions of approval. |
| Town Consulting Architect and Consulting Arborist | Outside experts the Town uses on many projects: the architect comments on neighborhood fit and design quality, the arborist prepares or peer-reviews tree reports. Their recommendations carry real weight. |
| Development Review Committee | A Town staff committee (Planning, Building, Fire and Engineering) that runs technical review and can approve some projects at a public meeting. |
| Planning Commission and Town Council | Public hearings on larger or more visible projects; the Town Council hears appeals of Planning Commission decisions. |
| Historic Preservation Committee | Reviews work on homes in historic districts, landmark sites and many older houses, and makes recommendations to the decision makers. |
| Parks and Public Works, Engineering | Grading permits, drainage, site improvement plans and geotechnical review. |
| Santa Clara County Fire Department | Fire and life-safety plan review: access, water supply for firefighting and fire sprinkler plans. |
| Town Building Division | Plan check, building permits and inspections once the planning approval is final. |
Summarized from Town of Los Gatos Planning and Building pages, the development review application package and the Residential Design Guidelines, read October 30, 2026.
Water, sewer and septic questions go to outside agencies; the Town lists the water company, the sanitation district and the County health department on its outside agencies page. A Los Gatos mailing address does not always mean the Town: some nearby homes are in Monte Sereno or unincorporated Santa Clara County, which have their own rules, so we confirm the jurisdiction on the Town’s interactive property map first. Our Los Gatos page covers building here more broadly, and we also work in Saratoga, Palo Alto, Atherton and Woodside and Portola Valley.
2. Which approval you need
Architecture and Site, Minor Residential, or a building permit alone
Architecture and Site approval is the Town’s main design review. Under the Town Code it is required for any new principal building, including a new single-family home, and for an exterior alteration that changes the architectural style of a house. Additions and exterior changes also need it when the Residential Design Guidelines or the hillside standards send them to the Development Review Committee or the Planning Commission. On lots covered by the hillside standards, the Town requires it for all new construction, including major additions and remodels.
Minor Residential Development is a lighter, administrative review used when Architecture and Site approval is not required. The Town’s Minor Residential Development packet lists what it covers, including a new second story, larger second-story additions and rebuilding part of a house that sits in a nonconforming setback.
Who decides. The Director of Community Development, the Development Review Committee or the Planning Commission makes the call, depending on how much a project could affect its neighbors and the town. On hillside lots, for example, the committee can approve a new house that stays within the allowed floor area and can’t be seen from an established viewing area, while other hillside homes go to the Planning Commission. These are discretionary decisions: the Town can approve a project, approve it with special conditions, or deny it.
Appeals. Committee decisions can be appealed to the Planning Commission, and Planning Commission decisions to the Town Council. Building permits are not filed until the appeal period has run or any appeal has been heard, and an approval expires if it isn’t used in time, so the build schedule matters from the start.
3. How the review runs
From a planner meeting to a hearing
The Town’s development review application package lays out the path. The Town strongly recommends meeting with a planner before drawings are far along, and talking with the neighbors before you submit, then folding their concerns into the design where you can. Applications go in through the Town’s online portal with the submittal checklist and any consultant studies.
Next comes technical review: staff from Planning, Building, County Fire and Engineering meet with the applicant to confirm the application is complete, meets code and policy, and satisfies the state’s environmental review law. Consultant work is part of this step, including geotechnical and geologic reports, tree reports and the consulting architect’s design comments, with peer review where the Town calls for it. Once complete, the application goes to the Development Review Committee or the Planning Commission. Both are public meetings, notice goes to nearby owners and residents, and the applicant or a representative needs to attend.
Story poles. The Town’s story pole and netting policy requires height poles and netting for new homes and second-story additions in the hillside area, for many two-story projects next to single-story neighbors, for projects asking for an exception to the development standards, and for new homes and second-story additions on historic properties. The poles show the planned rooflines and heights, and a project sign gives the hearing dates. Installation has to be certified before a Planning Commission hearing.
Planning a home, remodel or addition in Los Gatos? We can look at the property and plans with you, sort out the Town review path, hillside rules, trees and fire, and give you a written estimate. Call 805-712-8993 or contact us.
4. Design review in town
The Residential Design Guidelines and the consulting architect
Outside the hillsides, most houses are reviewed against the Town’s Residential Design Guidelines. The emphasis is on neighborhood compatibility: designs should blend into the street rather than stand out, respect the scale and character of the immediate neighborhood, and keep street setbacks, entries and garages in line with the homes around them. The guidelines also set the floor area formula used to decide how big a house can be.
For a remodel or addition, the guidelines favor placing second-floor mass where it least affects the street and the neighbors, adding at grade behind the house in one-story neighborhoods where possible, and keeping garages from dominating the front. For many projects the Town’s consulting architect reviews the design, and the Town says it gives substantial weight to the consulting architect’s and staff’s recommendations. In practice, that review is where designs most often get revised, so we estimate the plans before and after those comments so the owner sees what a change means for the budget.
5. Hillside lots
The Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines
The Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines cover every lot on the Town’s Hillside Area Map: all Hillside Residential and Resource Conservation zoning, plus some single-family lots with a hillside setting or steep slopes. They apply to new hillside homes and to major additions and remodels of existing ones. The Town’s Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines page breaks them out by chapter, and the hillside compliance checklist lists every standard and guideline an application has to address.
The core idea is to fit the house to the land rather than the land to the house. The standards distinguish firm standards, which must be met, from guidelines, which are expected unless there is a good reason not to follow them. A written letter of justification explains how the project meets the General Plan, the Hillside Specific Plan and the hillside standards, and exceptions for height or floor area can only come from the Planning Commission or Town Council.
| What the Town looks at | What the hillside standards ask for |
|---|---|
| Where the house goes | A constraints analysis maps slopes, trees, creeks, septic, geology, wildlife corridors, fire danger, views and ridgelines. What is left is the least restrictive development area, and the house belongs there. |
| Views from town | Lots that could be seen from the Town’s established viewing areas get a visibility analysis with story poles and photographs, and sometimes photo simulations or a model. |
| Ridgelines | Ridgelines are protected, and homes are kept below them and out of view where possible. |
| Size | Floor area is limited on hillside lots, and the Town notes that not every lot can fit the most the zoning allows, a two-story house or a pool. |
| Shape | Homes step down with the slope, avoid bulky volumes and tall wall planes, and use overhangs, offsets and stepped upper floors to break up mass. |
| Materials and color | Colors and materials that blend with the hillside, dark earth-tone roofs, low-reflectivity finishes and no mirror-like window tint. |
| Grading and drainage | Grading kept to a minimum with natural-looking contours, done in the dry season with erosion control, and runoff handled on site. |
| Driveways, fences and landscape | Driveways placed to limit grading, with the fire department consulted early; limited fencing so wildlife can pass; a landscape plan that creates defensible space. |
| Fire-resistive construction | A Class A roof, noncombustible gutters, protected eaves and exterior walls, and enclosed underfloor areas and decks. |
Simplified from the Town of Los Gatos Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines (adopted by the Town Council in January 2004, as revised) and its compliance checklist, read October 30, 2026.
On a hillside job, grading, retaining walls, drainage and the driveway often move the schedule and the budget more than the house itself; our hillside lot guide covers how we plan foundations and retaining on a slope. (we confirm per lot) applies to all of this: each lot’s constraints are different.
6. Trees and creeks
Protected trees, arborist reports and stream setbacks
Los Gatos protects most trees above a modest trunk size, and large oaks, California buckeyes and Pacific madrones get extra protection. Under the Town’s tree protection requirements, any project where a protected tree’s canopy reaches into or near the work needs a tree protection plan, and many need an arborist report prepared or peer-reviewed by the Town’s consulting arborist. During construction, a fenced tree protection zone keeps soil disturbance out of the root area unless the arborist approves and supervises the work.
Removing a protected tree takes a tree removal permit, and the Town must make findings that the tree qualifies. Removed trees are replaced under the Town’s canopy replacement standard before the Building Division’s final inspection. On wooded lots the trees often decide where the house and driveway can go, so the tree survey comes before design, not after.
Lots near a creek follow the Town’s standards for land use near streams, adopted by the Town Council in 2007 with the Santa Clara Valley Water District and other agencies. Building is set back from the top of the bank based on the creek and the lot, native streamside plants are kept, and a geotechnical study of bank stability can be required. (we confirm per lot)
7. Older homes, historic districts and demolition
What changes when the house is older
Los Gatos has a lot of older housing, and the Town’s historic rules reach further than many owners expect. The historic preservation section of the Residential Design Guidelines applies to designated historic districts, landmark sites and all residential buildings built before 1941, though some pre-1941 houses can be removed from the historic inventory. The Town’s historic districts include Almond Grove, Broadway, Fairview Plaza and University-Edelen. Work on these homes goes to the Historic Preservation Committee, which reviews the design and recommends approval or denial to the decision makers.
For historic houses, the guidelines ask that additions match but stay subordinate to the original, sit toward the rear, and keep protected exterior elements, with restoration materials matching the originals as closely as possible.
When a remodel becomes a demolition. The Town defines demolition by how much of the existing exterior wall is removed or enclosed, with a stricter test for historic homes. A whole-home remodel that crosses that line is treated as a demolition, which can change the review path. The Town’s demolition affidavit must be signed by the owner, the designer, the engineer and the contractor, and it is blunt: finding dry rot does not exempt the project, and if hidden damage or an unexpected condition changes the scope, work stops and the Planning Division is called before going on. We plan wall-by-wall framing reuse with the designer before the permit, and our guide to remodeling an older home covers what older houses tend to hide.
8. Fire
Santa Clara County Fire Department review and hillside fire rules
The Santa Clara County Fire Department serves Los Gatos and reviews fire and life safety for land development, new homes and remodels, with published standards for fire access roads, water supply and fire sprinkler systems. Fire sprinkler plans are a separate submittal to County Fire with a copy of the Town building permit and water flow data from the water purveyor; the department’s plan submittal page lists what to send. The Town also has an appeal form for County Fire decisions on exception requests.
Much of the hillside area is wildland-urban interface. County Fire offers wildfire preparedness inspections for hillside homes and runs a brush clearance program each year; see its wildfire preparedness page. The State Fire Marshal’s fire hazard severity zone maps show the mapped hazard zones, and the Town’s hillside standards add their own fire-resistive construction rules. Our guide to building in a fire hazard severity zone covers what the state’s wildfire building code changes on the roof, vents, walls, windows and decks.
9. The building permit
Plan check, conditions of approval and inspections
The Building Division reviews all new construction, additions and remodels and inspects the work. The Town has moved to an all-digital process: you register on the online portal, file a pre-application with the forms, one bookmarked and signed plan set and the supporting documents, and staff confirm the file is complete before it becomes a full application and goes to plan review. Comments, marked-up plans and resubmittals all run through the same system, and the Building Division doesn’t accept submittals by courier.
The Town’s plan check submittal requirements spell out what a new home or an addition and remodel needs. A few items that are easy to miss: the Planning conditions of approval are copied onto the first sheet, with a compliance memorandum explaining line by line how each condition will be met; a stormwater sheet goes in as the second page; the site plan shows every existing tree with a tree protection plan; and grading and site improvement plans go to Parks and Public Works Engineering as a separate package. Permits are issued to the property owner or a licensed California contractor, and contractors need a Town business license.
Applications filed on or after January 1, 2026 fall under the state’s 2025 Energy Code; our Title 24 overview explains what that means for heat pumps, solar and the building shell.
10. Remodels and additions
What changes for an existing house
Whole-home remodels and additions follow the same rules, scaled to the work:
- Second stories usually need at least Minor Residential review, and story poles when the neighbors on the same side of the street are single-story.
- Style changes that alter the architectural style of the house trigger Architecture and Site review even without new floor area.
- Hillside homes: major additions and remodels must meet the hillside standards, including colors, materials and grading.
- Older homes: pre-1941 houses and homes in historic districts go to the Historic Preservation Committee, and the demolition definition decides how much of the existing structure can come off.
- Trees: additions toward a protected tree need a tree protection plan, and sometimes an arborist report.
- Floor area: the Town’s floor area formula applies to the whole house, so an addition can run into the limit even on a large lot.
Interior-only kitchen and bath work without structural changes has a faster plan check track at the Building Division. For the bigger picture, see our pages on whole-home remodels and home additions.
11. Order of steps
How we usually sequence a Los Gatos project
| Step | What happens | What usually sets the pace |
|---|---|---|
| Parcel check | Zoning, hillside area, historic status, trees, creeks, fire hazard and utilities, using the Town’s property map and records. | Usually quick. |
| Talk to the Town and neighbors | A planner consultation before drawings are far along, and early conversations with neighbors, both of which the Town recommends. | Planner availability. |
| Survey and site studies | Topographic and tree survey, arborist report, geotechnical work and, on hillside lots, the constraints analysis. | Consultant scheduling. |
| Design | Siting, massing, materials and colors that meet the Residential Design Guidelines and, where they apply, the hillside standards. | How many design rounds the owner wants. |
| Application and technical review | Architecture and Site or Minor Residential application filed online; staff from Planning, Building, Fire and Engineering check completeness and code. | Completeness of the package and consultant peer review. |
| Story poles and notice | Poles and netting installed and certified where required; mailed notice to nearby owners. | Pole installation and the hearing calendar. |
| Decision and appeal period | Approval by the Director, the Development Review Committee or the Planning Commission, then an appeal period before building permits can be filed. | Hearing calendar and any appeal. |
| Plan check, permit and build | Working drawings with the conditions of approval and a compliance memorandum; grading plans to Engineering; fire sprinkler plans to County Fire; inspections through final. | Correction rounds, weather and the build itself. |
Our usual sequence for Los Gatos projects, from a first parcel check to final.
Approvals and construction both take time, and our custom home timeline guide covers the full arc. If you are weighing doing the work yourself, our owner-builder vs licensed contractor guide explains what the state asks of an owner-builder.
12. Before you design
Questions to answer about your Los Gatos property
- Is the lot inside the Town of Los Gatos, or in Monte Sereno or unincorporated Santa Clara County?
- What is its zoning, and is it on the Hillside Area Map?
- Could the house be seen from one of the Town’s established viewing areas?
- Was the house built before 1941, or is it in a historic district or on the historic inventory?
- Where are the protected trees, and what does an arborist say about building near them?
- Is there a creek on or next to the lot?
- How much floor area does the Town’s formula allow, and how much of it is used now?
- For a remodel, how much of the existing exterior wall can stay?
- Will the project need Architecture and Site approval, Minor Residential review, or only a building permit?
- Is the lot in a mapped fire hazard zone, and does the driveway meet County Fire access standards?
- Is the house on sewer or septic, and who provides water?
- Who will run the survey, consultants, neighbor outreach, story poles, hearing and permit steps?
Working with an architect? We build from their drawings. Starting from scratch? Harrod Drafting & Design can draw the house and the permit set.
How we help
Building and remodeling in Los Gatos with Harrod Built
- Property and plans first. Harrod Built is a family general contractor, CSLB #986950, building custom homes, remodels and additions on the Central Coast and in the Bay Area. We start with the lot and any plans you have: hillside status, trees, historic status, floor area and fire access, followed by a written estimate. Our license is on the state license lookup, and the state’s guidance on hiring a licensed contractor is worth reading before you sign with anyone; see also how to check a CSLB license.
- Estimates before the hearings. We estimate the drawings early, so design changes from the consulting architect, the hillside review or the neighbors can be weighed against the budget before they are locked in.
- Consultants and story poles handled. We line up the surveyor, arborist, geotechnical engineer and civil engineer in the order the Town needs them, and we set and certify story poles.
- Construction that matches the approval. Approved colors, materials, tree protection, erosion control and the demolition limits on a remodel get built as approved.
- Design support. Harrod Drafting & Design, our drafting studio, draws custom homes, additions and permit sets, and we also build from your architect’s plans.
- Outside the house. Paso Robles Landscaping can handle landscape plans that suit the hillside standards and County Fire’s defensible space rules.
- Project managers on site. Our project managers and site leads run each job day to day, coordinate Town and County Fire inspections, and keep you posted.
We build custom homes, whole-home remodels and home additions in Los Gatos, Saratoga, Palo Alto, Atherton and Woodside and Portola Valley, and across Monterey, San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties, with general contracting and design-build; our process page explains how a job runs and our guide to choosing a contract type compares the two common contract types. For more on the area itself, see our page on building a high-end home in Los Gatos.
Planning a home, remodel or addition in Los Gatos? We can look at the property and plans with you, sort out the Town review path, hillside rules, trees and fire, and give you a written estimate. Call 805-712-8993 or contact us.
Sources: Town of Los Gatos Community Development: Planning Division page; Building Division page; plan check submittal requirements; planning documents page; applications and handouts page; Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines (January 2004, as revised) and compliance checklist; Residential Design Guidelines; development review application package; story pole and netting policy; Minor Residential Development packet; tree protection requirements; standards for land use near streams; demolition affidavit; Historic Preservation Committee and historic districts pages; outside agencies page; interactive property map. Santa Clara County Fire Department fire prevention, plan submittal and wildfire preparedness pages. CAL FIRE Office of the State Fire Marshal fire hazard severity zone page. California Energy Commission 2025 Building Energy Efficiency Standards. Contractors State License Board. All checked October 30, 2026. This guide is general information, not legal or code advice; the Town of Los Gatos and the local agencies have the final word on a given property.
Who issues building permits in Los Gatos?
The Town of Los Gatos Building Division issues building permits for homes inside town limits. A new house, and many additions and remodels, first need a planning approval from the Town’s Planning Division, usually Architecture and Site approval or a Minor Residential approval, and the building permit follows once that approval is final and any appeal period has run.
Do I need Architecture and Site approval to build or remodel in Los Gatos?
For a new house, yes: the Town Code requires it for any new principal building. It is also required for exterior changes that alter a house’s architectural style, for additions the design guidelines send to the Development Review Committee or Planning Commission, and for new construction, major additions and remodels on lots covered by the hillside standards. Smaller second-story work often goes through the Minor Residential process instead.
What are the Los Gatos hillside standards?
The Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines, adopted by the Town Council in January 2004, apply to lots on the Town’s Hillside Area Map. They ask for a constraints analysis to find the least restrictive building area, story poles and a visibility analysis where a house could be seen from town, protection of ridgelines and trees, minimal grading, homes that step with the slope, earth-tone low-reflectivity colors and fire-resistive construction.
Will my remodel count as a demolition in Los Gatos?
It can. The Town defines demolition by how much of the existing exterior wall is removed or enclosed, with a stricter test for historic homes and houses built before 1941. A demolition affidavit signed by the owner, designer, engineer and contractor is part of the process, and if dry rot or another surprise changes the scope during construction, work stops until the Planning Division weighs in.
Do I need story poles in Los Gatos?
Often. The Town requires height poles and netting for new homes and second-story additions in the hillside area, for two-story projects next to single-story neighbors on the same side of the street, for projects requesting exceptions, and for new homes and second-story additions on historic properties. Poles have to be installed and certified before a Planning Commission hearing.
Who reviews fire safety for a Los Gatos home?
The Santa Clara County Fire Department reviews fire access, water supply and fire sprinkler plans for Los Gatos projects, and takes part in the Town’s technical review. Hillside homes also follow the fire-resistive construction rules in the Town’s hillside standards and the state’s wildfire building code where the lot is in a mapped hazard zone.
Planning guides
Budget and planning guides
Building on a hillside lot
Grading, retaining walls, foundations and drainage on a slope.
Building in a fire hazard severity zone
What Chapter 7A changes on the roof, vents, walls, windows and decks.
Remodeling an older home in California
What older houses hide, and how to plan a remodel around it.
Title 24 energy code for a new home
What California’s energy code asks of new homes and additions.
How long a custom home takes
Design, approvals, permits and construction, step by step.
Choosing a contract type
How each contract handles risk, allowances and changes.
How to check a CSLB license
Reading a contractor’s state record before you sign.
Owner-builder vs licensed contractor
What the law asks of an owner-builder in California.
Building or remodeling in Saratoga
The three design review paths, hillside lots, protected trees, heritage homes and County Fire review.
Building or remodeling in Palo Alto
Individual Review for two-story homes, protected trees, flood zones, basements and deconstruction.
Building or remodeling in Atherton
Zoning clearance, special structures permits, heritage trees, basements, drainage and construction rules.
Building or remodeling in Woodside and Portola Valley
ASRB and ASCC design review, story poles, geology, significant trees, grading and the fire district.
Building or remodeling in Los Altos
Design review, the Zoning Administrator, daylight plane, protected trees and the City permit path.
Building a new home in Los Altos Hills
Site development review, Fast Track, floor area by slope, story poles, oaks and the Town permit path.
Start your project
Planning a home, remodel or addition in Los Gatos? Tell us about your property.
A few details help us call you back with useful answers about budget, schedule and permits.
805.712.8993michael@harrodbuilt.com
1345 Riverside Ave, Paso Robles, CA 93446
CSLB License #986950
