New Construction in Burbank
New houses in Burbank planned so roof and yard water drains away from the foundation, permitted through the city, with an ADU placed on the site plan.
Keeping water off the slab edge of a new Burbank house starts with the soil around it. Finished grade falls away from the walls on every side, and each downspout empties into solid pipe or a planter that carries the flow toward the street. When an ADU is planned on the same lot, its roof water joins that drainage plan, so neither building sends runoff toward the other.
Gutters, pipe and grade
Each gutter run is sized to the roof area it collects, and the downspout positions go onto the drawings early, placed where they will not dump water at a doorway or across a walk. Underground, solid pipe carries roof water clear of the foundation, and a perforated drain can sit beside the footing if the soils report calls for one. The slab rests on a vapor barrier over a gravel layer, which stops ground damp from rising into the finished floor. Around the ADU the same details repeat at a smaller scale, tied into the same outlets.
What Burbank's reviewers check
Burbank's Building and Safety Division reviews a new house and reads the grading and drainage sheet alongside the architecture. Reviewers look for finished grades that slope away from the walls, an outlet for every downspout and the route water takes to leave the property. An inland lot can sit dry for long spells and then take a hard storm, so drains are sized for the heavy one. A planned ADU adds its own items to the review: its address, its utility connections and how its drainage joins the main system.
New Construction in Burbank: common questions
If Burbank's rules allow a second dwelling on the parcel, yes. Siting the unit at the start lets its sewer and water tie into a single trench and lets its roof drainage join the main plan, which keeps the two buildings from draining into each other's yards.
City plan review sits in the middle of that stretch. Survey and soils work come before it, along with design and engineering through our consultants. Where an older house occupies the lot, its utilities are disconnected and a demolition permit is issued. Excavation follows approval of the full set.
Burbank's zoning code fixes height, setbacks and parking. State building, energy and green building standards cover the structure and envelope, and the city's grading and stormwater requirements cover the site. An ADU also has to meet state ADU law as Burbank applies it.
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