SitePlanWorks

67 styles · redrawn by the engine on every build

What can go on your lot?

67 styles across 12 categories, each drawn on a lot with its setbacks and lot coverage measured. 0 failed to draw.

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Rendered site plan of the worked example lot on 1952 Waverley St
Worked example · one real lot

What’s there now, what a pool would look like, and the drawings to permit it

One real 17,434 sq ft lot, read from an address and a satellite photo. Before and after, 5 drawings with what each one is for — and the piece of the lot we refused to guess at.

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Decks & patios

8 sheets · DECK 01–08

The cleanest category to permit: most decks fall inside the prescriptive tables (IRC R507 and the AWC span tables), so no engineer has to stamp anything. What the counter wants is a site plan and a framing plan.

DECK 01Attached deckadds noneLevel with the back door, one step down to the yard. The default.DECK 02Wrap-around L deckadds noneTurns the corner of the house and joins the side yard to the back.DECK 03Deck with pergolaadds noneSlatted overhead, so about half the sun. Watch the height limit.DECK 04Tiered deckadds noneFor a yard that slopes — it steps down instead of standing on posts.DECK 05Detached platformadds noneSet away from the house with a path to it. Easiest setbacks to clear.DECK 06Raised deck with railadds noneWhen the floor sits well above grade. Stairs come off the side.DECK 07Ground-level patioadds nonePoured on grade, nothing framed. The cheapest way to get the same room.DECK 08Enclosed courtyardadds noneWalled on three sides — blocks the wind and the neighbours at once.

Patio covers & pergolas

5 sheets · COVER 01–05

Roofed but not enclosed, which is its own category in most codes — often exempt from coverage, rarely exempt from setbacks.

COVER 01Attached patio coveradds noneFixed to the back wall, so the deck still works in the rain.COVER 02Freestanding pergolaadds noneFour posts out in the yard, clear of the house entirely.COVER 03Carport coveradds noneRoof over the driveway with no walls — different rules from a garage.COVER 04Shade sailadds noneThe light version, seasonal. Often below the permit threshold.COVER 05Breezewayadds noneLinks the house to whatever is behind it under one roof.

Pools & water

6 sheets · POOL 01–06

A pool is rarely refused for the pool. It is refused for the barrier, the equipment location, and the distance to the property line.

POOL 01Rectangular pooladds noneThe standard one, laid along the long axis of the yard.POOL 02Lap pooladds noneNarrow and long, for a yard that has length but no width.POOL 03Plunge pooladds noneSmall enough for a small lot and still deep enough to matter.POOL 04Pool with surroundadds nonePool plus the hard surface around it — count both against paving limits.POOL 05Standalone spaadds noneJust the hot tub, set against the house. Still needs the barrier.POOL 06Ornamental pondadds noneNot for swimming, which changes how it is classified.

Accessory dwelling units

6 sheets · ADU 01–06

The most-drawn category in California and the one whose rules move most often. Everything here needs a full sheet set; two of those sheets need a licensed stamp we do not give.

ADU 01Studio ADU+5.6%One room and a bath. The smallest unit that still counts as a dwelling.ADU 02One-bedroom ADU+6.3%Bedroom walled off from the living space. The most commonly permitted size.ADU 03Two-bedroom ADU+10.0%For family staying long term, or for rent.ADU 04Loft ADU+5.0%Small footprint, height instead of width. Good on a tight lot.ADU 05ADU over the garage+6.7%Sits on what is already built, so the yard stays a yard.ADU 06Junior ADU+2.7%Carved out of the existing house rather than added to the lot.

Garage conversions

4 sheets · CONVERSION 01–04

Nothing new is built, so coverage does not move — which is exactly why this route clears zoning on lots where a detached unit cannot.

CONVERSION 01Full garage conversion+4.6%The whole garage becomes living space. Coverage does not change.CONVERSION 02Partial conversion+2.8%Half stays parking, half becomes room.CONVERSION 03Garage to workshop+3.8%Not habitable space, which is a different permit path entirely.CONVERSION 04Conversion plus replacement parkingadds noneFor cities that still want the parking space back somewhere.

Additions

9 sheets · ADDITION 01–09

An addition is measured against the same setbacks as the house it grows out of, and it is the fastest way to run out of coverage.

ADDITION 01Rear addition+3.1%Out the back. The most common direction, and the rear setback decides it.ADDITION 02Side addition+3.7%Out the side, when the side yard has room to give.ADDITION 03Bump-out+1.1%Just enough for a dining nook or a bay. Small, but still a permit.ADDITION 04Second-storey addition+6.7%Up instead of out, so the lot coverage never moves.ADDITION 05Primary suite addition+4.0%A bedroom with its own bath attached to the house.ADDITION 06Sunroom+2.3%Mostly glazing, and classified differently from a conditioned room.ADDITION 07Screened porch+2.7%Roofed and screened but not conditioned, which is its own class in most codes.ADDITION 08Three-season room+2.7%Glazed enough to use in spring and autumn, not heated for winter.ADDITION 09Front porch+2.2%Out the front, where the setback is deepest and least forgiving.

Sheds & backyard studios

2 sheets · SHED 01–02

Below a floor-area threshold most jurisdictions exempt a shed entirely. Above it, or once power runs to it, it is a permit like any other.

SHED 01Tool shed+2.2%Mower-and-ladder size. Under the threshold in most places, so no permit.SHED 02Backyard studio+3.5%Nobody sleeps in it, but power runs to it — which is what triggers the permit.

Garages & carports

5 sheets · GARAGE 01–05

Detached garages are building footprint, so they compete directly with the rest of the lot for coverage.

GARAGE 01Detached two-car garage+4.7%The 22-foot square. The most-permitted accessory building there is.GARAGE 02Single-car garage+3.0%For a lot where the side yard will not take a double.GARAGE 03Garage with workshop+6.5%A deeper bay with room at the back for tools.GARAGE 04Attached garage+4.7%Shares a wall with the house, so you never step outside.GARAGE 05Two-car carportadds noneNo walls. Cheaper and faster, and covered differently by code.

Driveways & paving

5 sheets · PAVING 01–05

Not building coverage — but many cities cap impervious surface separately, and a new curb cut is its own approval.

PAVING 01New drivewayadds noneFrom the street in. The curb cut is a separate approval.PAVING 02Driveway wideningadds noneA second strip beside the one that is there.PAVING 03Turnaround apronadds noneA pad at the top so you are not backing into the street.PAVING 04Walkwayadds noneFront door round to the back yard.PAVING 05Parking padadds noneA slab for a car, a trailer or a boat.

Fences, walls & landscape

8 sheets · FENCE 01–08

Usually the cheapest permit on this list and the one most often skipped. Height and corner visibility are what get them refused.

FENCE 01Rear yard fenceadds noneAlong the back property line. Height is what gets it refused.FENCE 02Side yard fenceadds noneSeparates the side yard from the front — front-yard height limits are lower.FENCE 03Corner-lot fenceadds noneTwo street frontages, so two front-yard limits and a sight triangle at the corner.FENCE 04Front yard fenceadds noneAhead of the house line, where the height cap drops and stays dropped.FENCE 05Retaining walladds noneFor a grade change. Past a certain height it needs an engineer.FENCE 06Planting bedadds noneLandscape, and it counts as pervious surface.FENCE 07Lawnadds noneSoft surface over a large area.FENCE 08Gravel areaadds nonePervious — but cities disagree about that more than you would expect.

Septic, wells & equipment

4 sheets · UTILITY 01–04

Small footprints, and on every one of them the drawing is a clearance argument rather than a shape. This is also the group a photograph is worst at: most of what matters here is underground.

UTILITY 01Septic leach fieldadds noneThe drainage bed. Nothing may be built over it, so it decides where everything else goes.UTILITY 02Septic tankadds noneHolds its own clearances to the house, the well and every property line.UTILITY 03Water welladds noneIts protection radius is usually the widest clearance on an unsewered lot.UTILITY 04Standby generatoradds noneA small pad with clearances to the wall, the windows and the line.

Commercial & multi-family

5 sheets · COMMERCIAL 01–05

The counter asks a different question here: not “does it fit” but “does it count”. Stall counts, accessible routes and enclosure access are the arithmetic a commercial sheet is checked against.

COMMERCIAL 01Monument sign+0.1%Low and freestanding at the frontage. Its own permit, and its own setback.COMMERCIAL 02Parking layoutadds noneStalls, aisle and the count the use requires. The count is what gets checked.COMMERCIAL 03Accessible stalladds noneStall plus its access aisle, and a route to the door that has to be drawn.COMMERCIAL 04Trash enclosure+0.2%Optional on a house, mandatory on most commercial sites — and it needs truck access.COMMERCIAL 05Bike parkingadds noneRequired on most commercial and multi-family sites.