Whittier Remodeling, Pools & Outdoor Living | Remodel Your Vibe

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Whittier

Whittier, California

Luxury Remodeling in Whittier

Every backyard plan needs three checks: hillside zoning, historic district and fire zone.

Book a Consultation Call 818-300-2393

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Building Here

Hillside Rules Only Voters Can Change

Whittier's hillside zoning chapter can be amended or repealed only by a vote of the people, and where the city's zoning rules conflict on a hillside property, it tells the Planning Commission and City Council to give preference to protecting the natural environment.

The city also has four locally designated historic districts, from Hadley-Greenleaf, where the Craftsman bungalow is the predominant style, to College Hills, subdivided in 1923 on land that was once part of Worsham Ranch, where many properties have panoramic views.

In College Hills even the retaining walls, the original street lamps and the Canary Island pines along Bryn Mawr Way and Philadelphia Street are listed as contributing features of the district. A backyard plan here starts with three questions: whether the lot is zoned H-R, whether it sits in a historic district, and where it falls on the state fire hazard map.

Hillside parcels in the H-R zone take their lot area, building site and building heights from each approved hillside development plan. Elsewhere, new R-1 lots generally must be at least 7,000 square feet and new R-E estate lots at least 15,000, buildings including accessory buildings may cover no more than 40 percent of the lot in either zone, and heights top out at 35 feet in R-1 and 30 feet in R-E.

Where an R-1 neighborhood is predominantly single story, the city may limit or prohibit second-story additions.

The team that plans your Whittier project is the team that builds it.

Part of our service area in Los Angeles County .

The Essentials

Permits issued by

City of Whittier Community Development Department, Building & Safety Division

Licensed, bonded and insured

CSLB license #1119054

Ownership

Veteran-owned and family-operated

Experience

Years of experience building across Southern California

Who builds it

Our own crews design, permit and build

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Local Conditions

The Ground Rules in Whittier

Permits in Whittier

City of Whittier Community Development Department, Building & Safety Division

Projects are first evaluated by the Planning Services Division, then go through plan review and permit issuance with the Building & Safety Division, both part of the Community Development Department. In the H-R Hillside Residential zone no building permit is issued until a hillside development plan is approved, and later buildings and structures must be found consistent with that approved plan.

In the Hadley-Greenleaf, Central Park, College Hills and Earlham historic districts, alterations, additions and new improvements need a Certificate of Appropriateness, or a waiver, before a permit is issued. Additions or accessory structures under 500 square feet and ADUs of 800 square feet or less that are not visible from a public right-of-way can qualify for the waiver when they follow the preservation and design guidelines.

Permit details checked September 2026 against Whittier Municipal Code . Rules change, so we confirm them again for your parcel.

What We Plan For

Hillside development plan and grading design

Certificate of Appropriateness submittals

Brush clearance and fire-retardant roofing on H-R lots

Enclosed pool equipment placement

Retaining wall and pool-fence detailing

In the H-R Hillside Residential zone, cuts and fills may not exceed 20 feet in height or a 2:1 slope, ground of 50 percent slope or steeper cannot be graded except to correct earlier grading, landslides or unstable soil, and each building and structure must fit the natural landform as closely as possible.

CAL FIRE's 2025 Local Responsibility Area map shows parts of the northern hills, near Hellman Park, Rideout Way and Turnbull Canyon Road, in a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone. The city code treats every H-R lot as high fire risk, requiring fire-retardant roofing and native brush cleared for at least 20 feet around each habitable structure, replanted with fire-resistant cover on automatic sprinklers.

The California Geological Survey's Alquist-Priolo fault trace map shows the Whittier Fault, part of the Elsinore Fault Zone, crossing the eastern part of the city, and any hillside development plan must show the location of known fault lines.

Pool equipment may project into a required yard only inside a fully enclosed structure, and then no more than four feet or 40 percent of the yard's width, whichever is less. Walls and fences in interior side and rear setbacks are generally limited to six feet, the same height allowed for a see-through pool enclosure fence in an interior side yard.