El Paso | Infill, Historic and Mountain Rules

El Paso Infill, Historic and Mountain Rules: Section 20.10.280, H-Overlays, NCOs and Slope Density

Three sets of El Paso rules change what a lot allows beyond its base district. Infill development rules loosen parking, density and setbacks in older parts of the city. Historic and conservancy overlays add design review. Mountain development rules tie the number of homes to the slope of the land. This page sets out each, with the section that controls it. The El Paso overview gives the short version.

Infill Development: Where It Applies

Section 20.02.471 defines infill development as "any development activity, including but not limited to new construction, renovation, addition, rehabilitation or redevelopment, associated with vacant or underutilized parcels within existing, largely developed urban areas." Section 20.10.280, rewritten by Ordinance No. 18688 on May 30, 2017, sets the rules. A parcel must meet at least one of seven location criteria:

• land in a historic district, developed under Section 20.20.080;
• land in the downtown plan area;
• land annexed before 1955;
• land within, or sharing a property line with, a subdivision platted at least twenty-five years ago;
• a brownfield or greyfield site (previously developed land);
• land in the comprehensive plan's "G-2 traditional neighborhood" or "G-7 industrial and/or railyards" areas;
• a site now or once used for civic buildings, public spaces or schools.

The section excludes "any greenfield development" (land never built on), additions on lots restricted to single-family use that do not add homes, and structures built into setbacks without permits. The code speaks of "the ordinance designating the infill development overlay," and Section 19.26.020 refers to designation "by special permit overlay." The City's infill review criteria checklist tells applicants to "Complete and submit a Special Permit Application for increases in density or reductions in required setbacks," so plan for a City Council hearing.

Infill Development: Design Rules and Incentives

A project must meet three mandatory design requirements and at least three of eleven "selective design guidelines." The mandatory three are: surface parking at the rear (reached from an alley when possible) or at the side and screened, and never in the front yard; buildings oriented toward the main street with the entrance from the sidewalk; and, next to existing homes, a front setback within fifteen percent of the block's average. The zoning administrator may waive the parking location rule for five listed conditions, among them a driveway grade over fourteen percent, a lot with less than fifty feet of street frontage, and an unpaved alley. Selective guidelines include a floor area of at least eighty percent of the lot, a mix of uses, a building at least as tall as half the width of the widest street, low impact storm water design, a recognized green building certification, and, in residential districts, a parcel left vacant or underdeveloped for at least fifteen years.

Source: El Paso Municipal Code, Sec. 20.10.280(D) to (J), Ord. No. 18688, May 30, 2017.

Title 19 adds subdivision incentives in Section 19.26.020. The city manager or designee "shall waive the development fees associated with the subdivision review and approval process for qualified projects," and El Paso Water Utilities may waive water and wastewater fees, including hookup fees. Replats "with less than four lots may be administratively approved" without a public hearing, where state replat law allows. Projects creating "less than ten thousand square feet of new impervious surface are exempt from the stormwater requirements, excluding stormwater utility fees."

Section 19.26.030 allows a private access lane in place of a public street: a lane twenty feet wide within a thirty-foot easement can serve up to eight lots. Up to four lots may front a lane that reaches two hundred feet deep; a longer lane must be twenty-four feet wide, sit in four more feet of easement, and be marked as a fire lane. These lanes are allowed with infill designation, or in other single-family districts when the City Plan Commission finds that physical conditions or existing buildings rule out a public street.

Historic Landmarks and H-Overlay Districts

Under Section 20.20.040, City Council designates historic landmarks and districts after a recommendation from the Historic Landmark Commission (HLC), which has forty-five days to forward it to the City Plan Commission. The suffix "H" then appears after the zoning district on the map, and the city clerk files the ordinance in the El Paso County real property records and sends notice to the owner. The H-overlay does not change the uses the base district allows.

Section 20.20.080 says no one may "construct, reconstruct, alter, change, remove, demolish, or fail to maintain" an H-overlay property without a certificate of appropriateness (approval of the design by the HLC) or approval through administrative review. "No building permit shall be issued for such proposed work until a certificate of appropriateness has first been issued." Section 20.04.320 repeats the rule for "the erection, rehabilitation, enlargement or demolition of any building in a designated historic area."

The historic preservation officer (HPO) approves listed work through administrative review, including landscaping, new fences other than chain-link, replacement doors that match the originals, windows "similar to the original in appearance and purpose," routine maintenance and painting, and an accessory structure of no more than 120 square feet placed outside the front and side yards when no other accessory building exists on the site. An ADU or other accessory building larger than 120 square feet is outside that list, and subsection F sends work outside the list to the HLC. The HPO's decisions may be appealed to the HLC.

• HLC hearing. On ten days written notice, with a certificate or a written denial sent within ten days after the hearing.
• Deadline. "If no action has been taken by the historic landmark commission within forty-five days of the receipt of a completed application, the application shall be approved as submitted."
• After a denial. No new application for twelve months unless the HLC finds a substantial change in conditions. An applicant may appeal to City Council under Section 20.20.190.

Demolition has its own track in Section 20.20.120. Before applying, the owner must notify the mayor and City Council, the county historical commission and any recognized neighborhood association. The HLC must delay a demolition "for a period of at least sixty days from the date of submission of a completed application," then may approve, deny or suspend action "for a period not to exceed six months." An application with no action within ninety days is approved as submitted. Under Section 20.20.140, a person who demolishes a landmark without a permit and a certificate of demolition owes damages equal to the cost of restoring it or, where it cannot be restored, of building "a reasonable facsimile of the historic landmark," plus attorney, architect and appraiser fees.

State law keeps these rules in force for apartment projects. Local Government Code 218.003, part of SB 840, says the chapter does not affect a city's authority to apply "regulations related to historic preservation, including protecting historic landmarks or property in the boundaries of a local historic district."

Neighborhood Conservancy Overlays

Section 20.10.400 creates the neighborhood conservancy overlay (NCO) for "places and areas of historic, cultural, or architectural importance and significance." It adds the design standards of an adopted study area plan to the base district, and properties carry the suffix "NCO." It "shall not prohibit the use of a property that is otherwise permitted by the existing zoning."

• Who may start one. A property owner or group of owners, the City Plan Commission or City Council. The area must include at least one block face, which the section defines as "a parcel of land entirely surrounded by public highways, streets, or alleys."
• Owner veto. "No NCO shall be designated and approved by the El Paso City Council if owners of more than fifty-one percent of the total land area within a neighborhood described in the application object in writing to the designation."
• Permit review. A city review committee (CRC) of the planning official, the building official and the historic preservation officer reviews permits for new construction and exterior renovation. Neighborhood associations and abutting owners in the NCO get written notice of each meeting.
• Deadline and appeal. A permit application not disapproved within twenty days "shall be deemed to have been approved." A CRC decision may be appealed to the City Plan Commission within fifteen calendar days.

Where the study area plan's design standards are stricter than Title 20, "the design standards of the applicable study area plan shall govern."

Mountain Development and the Franklin Mountains

PMD, the Planned Mountain Development District, protects "the significant natural features of the mountain development and hillside area within the city" (Section 20.06.020). Section 20.10.370 lets homes be clustered to keep larger areas of open space, with a minimum district area of one acre where common or public open space is provided. For uses other than qualifying apartment, mixed-use residential and small lot projects, which follow Appendix B, the maximum homes per gross acre and the open space that must stay undisturbed both follow the average slope of the land.

Source: El Paso Municipal Code, Sec. 20.10.370(D) and (E), Supplement 95 Update 4.

Buildings must blend with the desert. Section 20.10.370(F) prohibits mirrored and reflective materials, requires bright copper and metal to be treated against reflection, keeps exterior lighting low and shielded, and bars "exterior paint colors ... which have a light-reflecting value (LRV) greater than forty percent." Every building sits on a plat approved by the City Plan Commission, every house is platted on its own lot before occupancy, and each structure keeps ten feet of setback "for each story or fraction thereof" from the outside boundary of the development.

Title 19 adds the subdivision side. Chapter 19.24 governs land in the mountain development area of Appendix 111 and states its first purpose as "Preserve the scenic quality of the Franklin Mountains." It bars ponding areas for storm drainage unless the City Plan Commission approves them and protects natural watercourses carrying more than five cubic feet per second in a 100-year storm. Section 19.20.060 excludes all PMD-zoned property from the parkland dedication requirement. Chapter 19.27 sets a Hillside Development Area between the mountain area and streets such as Interstate 10, Mesa Street and U.S. Highway 54, and sends its plats to the open space advisory board for comment.

The code disagrees with itself on one map. Section 19.27.010 says the Hillside Development Area is "more particularly described in the boundary map at Appendix 112," but the appendix that carries that number is titled "Infill Development Map," and Section 19.26.020 uses Appendix 112 for infill park fee reductions. The code does not say which map controls, so ask the planning division for the official boundary of each area.

Where to Go Next

Related on VanPlex: the El Paso overview, how Texas zoning works, and SB 840 on commercial land.

Frequently Asked Questions

Official sources (checked October 2026)