County code sets strict standards for approval of flag lots

Box Elder County’s land-use ordinance (Ordinance 249) lays out detailed conditions for creating a flag lot, including dimensional and safety requirements. The ordinance requires that “The staff of the flag lot has a minimum width of thirty (30) feet” and that the staff (stem) has a maximum length of two hundred fifty (250) feet; the code also requires the flag portion to meet zoning requirements or be a minimum of one‑half acre. Applicants must submit a plan showing the location of fire hydrants and obtain Fire Marshal approval, and all improvements including hard surfacing and hydrants must be installed at the applicant’s expense before a certificate of occupancy will be issued.

The code limits flag-lot approvals to subdivisions containing four lots or fewer and authorizes the Planning Commission to impose additional conditions or to require a public hearing with notice to property owners within 300 feet. These constraints are framed as safeguards to the general plan and public interest: the ordinance states the Commission may approve a flag lot only if it finds that approval will not substantially affect the general plan, will not be contrary to the public interest, and is necessary, reasonable and feasible in the area. The rule that “no certificate of occupancy shall be issued for the proposed flag lot until the improvements are fully installed” creates a clear sequencing requirement for developers and applicants.