Civil Engineering in Salt Lake City, Utah.
We work with developers, architects, and landowners on civil engineering for Salt Lake City land development, from downtown and Granary District infill to east bench sites where the fault and the slope decide the layout before anything else does.
Licensed Professional Engineer in Utah. The engineer designing your Salt Lake City project is the same engineer answering your call.
(612) 567-2154 →How stormwater is regulated in Salt Lake City.
Salt Lake City is the only Utah city with its own individual MS4 permit, and it runs its own construction stormwater program on top of the state one. The city threshold is well below the state acre.
Salt Lake City holds individual MS4 permit UTS000002 rather than sitting under the county or general permit. The city administers its own construction stormwater program, and Public Utilities reviews and approves the SWPPP before permit issuance and ground disturbance.
State coverage starts at an acre. Salt Lake City requires its own discharge permit for sites disturbing more than a quarter acre. A project well under the state trigger can still need a city permit, which is the most common surprise on small Salt Lake City sites.
The design storm for retention is the 3-hour, 100-year event, and the 80th percentile storm is 0.45 inches of precipitation. Retention of the 80th percentile storm is expected where feasible, with low impact development considered on applicable sites.
Who reviews a Salt Lake City project.
Salt Lake City splits stormwater review across two groups inside Public Utilities, which is worth knowing before you send a plan to the wrong one.
Development review for water, sewer, and storm drain design on private projects. This is the group that handles the infrastructure side of a site plan.
SWPPP review, inspections, and enforcement, separately from development review. The SWPPP has to be submitted and approved here before a permit is issued and before ground is disturbed.
Site plan, zoning, subdivision, and building permit review, including historic districts and the design standards that come with them.
State construction stormwater coverage under UTRC00000, filed through NeT CGP, plus the Notice of Termination at final stabilization. This is separate from the city permit, not a substitute for it.
Access and drainage permits on I-15, I-80, and the state highway system. UDOT holds its own MS4 permit UTS000003 for work in state right-of-way.
Surface fault rupture and liquefaction studies on sites in mapped hazard zones, prepared by a qualified engineering geologist. On the east bench this is routine and it shapes where buildings can go.
What is different about engineering in Salt Lake City.
A valley floor with a shallow water table, a mountain front with an active fault, and a city that regulates more tightly than the state. All three show up in the design.
- •The city permit starts at a quarter acre. Four times more sites need a city discharge permit than need state coverage. Planning around the one-acre state threshold alone is how projects end up disturbing ground without the right permit in hand.
- •The Wasatch fault runs along the east bench. Sites in mapped fault zones need a surface fault rupture study, and a fault setback is a band on either side of the trace where occupied structures are not allowed. That is buildable area removed from the site, so it belongs in due diligence rather than in design.
- •Liquefaction on the valley floor. Much of the valley sits on saturated young sediment. Site-specific liquefaction investigations are commonly required based on a land use and liquefaction potential matrix, and the findings feed straight into foundation and utility design.
- •Dewatering is its own permit. Shallow groundwater across much of the city means excavation frequently hits water. A Dewatering Control Plan is a separate requirement from the SWPPP, and on a downtown site it is often the thing that sets the construction sequence.
- •Retention is sized to a 3-hour storm. The 3-hour, 100-year event is a shorter, sharper design storm than the 24-hour events used in most of the Midwest. Volume and outlet design come out differently, and a plan carried over from another state usually has to be re-run.
- •Everything drains to the Great Salt Lake. Discharges reach the Jordan River or the canal network and from there the Great Salt Lake, largely without treatment along the way. That is the reason the water quality expectations sit where they do.
What we work on in Salt Lake City.
Tight-site grading, structured parking, dewatering control, and treatment volume that has to fit where there is no room for a pond.
Slope, fault setback, and liquefaction findings driving the layout, with grading and drainage designed around them.
Site layout, access, grading, and retention sized to the 3-hour 100-year storm, with the city discharge permit handled alongside state coverage.
Large impervious areas, truck circulation, UDOT access, and treatment ahead of the Jordan River and canal system.
Common questions about civil engineering in Salt Lake City.
Does Salt Lake City require its own stormwater permit?
Yes, and its threshold is lower than the state. Sites disturbing more than a quarter acre need a city discharge permit, while state coverage under UTRC00000 starts at an acre. The SWPPP also has to be submitted to and approved by the city before a permit is issued and before ground disturbance. The city permit and the state permit are separate obligations.
What design storm does the city use for retention?
The design storm for retention is the 3-hour, 100-year storm. The 80th percentile storm event is 0.45 inches of precipitation, and retention of the 80th percentile storm is expected where feasible, with low impact development practices considered. A 3-hour design storm produces different volumes than the 24-hour storms used in many other states, so plans do not transfer directly.
Who do I send the plans to?
It depends on the plan. Public Utilities Development Review handles the water, sewer, and storm drain design on private development. Public Utilities Storm Water Quality handles SWPPP review, inspections, and enforcement. They are separate groups, and sending a submittal to the wrong one costs time.
Do I need a fault study for my site?
If the parcel is in a mapped fault zone, which covers much of the east bench, yes. A surface fault rupture study by a qualified engineering geologist determines whether an active trace crosses the site, and a fault setback prohibits occupied structures within a band on either side of it. That can take real buildable area off the parcel, so it is a due diligence item, not a design item.
Is dewatering handled in the SWPPP?
No, it is separate. Salt Lake City requires a Dewatering Control Plan in addition to the SWPPP. With shallow groundwater across much of the city, excavation regularly hits water, and on a downtown site the dewatering approach often drives the construction sequence more than anything else on the plan.
Are you licensed in Utah?
Yes. Paul Wallick is a licensed Professional Engineer in Utah, along with Minnesota, Colorado, and North Dakota. Drawings submitted in Utah have to be sealed by an engineer licensed in the state, and the engineer who seals yours is the engineer you talk to.
Working on a Salt Lake City project?
Tell us about the site. You will get a same-business-day response from Paul, with a real read on the civil scope, the regulatory path, and the likely permitting timeline.