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Council adopts state‑mandated wildland‑urban interface building code, residents press for map changes
Summary
Citing Utah House Bill 48, the council unanimously adopted a wildland‑urban interface (WUI) building code that applies to parcels on the city's WUI map. Speakers urged the city to include city‑owned extreme‑risk parcels and to mitigate insurance and property impacts; councilors said concerns will be pursued after adoption.
The Salt Lake City Council voted unanimously to adopt a wildland‑urban interface building standard required by the Utah Legislature’s 2025 House Bill 48. Michael Sanders, a council policy analyst, said the code applies only to parcels identified on the city's WUI map (attachment A in the draft ordinance) and is not a citywide code.
Ian McCubbin, a District 3 resident who participated in the planning commission hearing, said the current WUI map excludes extreme‑risk areas owned by the city, including Foothills Open Space, and warned that excluding those parcels shifts wildfire risk onto private property and could lead to insurance rate increases or policy cancellations. McCubbin asked the council to prioritize protections for the City Creek Watershed and to integrate city‑owned lands into mitigation planning.
Council members moved to approve the ordinance; Council member Wharton said she would vote yes but would continue to press for the concerns raised by constituents. The ordinance was approved by a unanimous recorded aye vote. Council members and staff signaled that staff-level follow-up and mapping corrections can be pursued after adoption.
