Ketchum's Proposed Zoning Changes: What Ordinance 1279 Would Mean for Your Property

If you own a home or a lot in Ketchum, or are weighing a purchase here, one fact shapes everything that follows: the parcel's zone district. Ordinance 1279, the set of zoning changes the City calls its Priority Code Updates, is written district by district, and two neighboring lots can sit under different rules.

The ordinance would lower residential building heights, end new single-family construction in two Tourist districts, cap downtown buildings at three or four floors and change how community housing contributions are calculated. The Planning and Zoning Commission recommended it with revisions on October 5, 2026. It has not been adopted, and the City Council holds its first public hearing on Thursday, November 12.

This guide covers what would change, what would stay the same, and what to confirm before the Council acts.

What would Ordinance 1279 change?

As recommended by the Planning and Zoning Commission, Ordinance 1279 would lower the maximum height in most Ketchum residential districts from 35 to 30 feet, prohibit new single-family homes in the T and T-3000 districts, limit downtown buildings to three or four floors, reduce Retail Core density and narrow one community housing calculation. None of it is in effect yet.

Sources: City of Ketchum, Phase 3 Code Updates; City staff memo and draft Ordinance 1279, August 6, 2026. Floor area ratio (FAR) and the other terms here are defined at the end of this guide.

How do you know whether your Ketchum property is affected?

Check the parcel's zone district on the City of Ketchum's official zoning map, or ask the Planning and Building Department. Ordinance 1279 applies by district rather than by neighborhood name, so two lots on the same street can fall under different rules, and the district decides which height, use and density changes reach the property.

Here is where each change lands:

• Residential height: the Limited Residential districts (LR, LR-1, LR-2), General Residential Low Density (GR-L) and all Short Term Occupancy (STO) districts, plus smaller-scale projects below 0.5 FAR in General Residential High Density (GR-H) and the three Tourist districts (T, T-3000, T-4000).
• Single-family homes: the T and T-3000 districts only. Single-family homes remain permitted in T-4000.
• Downtown form and density: the Community Core, meaning the Retail Core (CC-1) and the Mixed-Use Subdistrict (CC-2).
• Community housing calculation: any project building above base FAR through the City's community housing incentive.

When someone asks me about a Ketchum lot right now, the zone district is the first thing I look up, ahead of views or access. Hillside lots deserve a second look, because the recommended version treats stepped hillside buildings separately from the standard height limit.

What happens to existing single-family homes in the T and T-3000 districts?

Under the recommended version, a legally established single-family home in the T or T-3000 district would keep its permitted status and would not be treated as nonconforming because of this ordinance. The change stops new single-family homes in those two districts. It does not require existing homes anywhere in Ketchum to be altered.

The City's draft language is direct: a lawfully established single-family dwelling "remains a permitted use on that lot" and "shall not be considered a nonconforming use or structure." That distinction matters, because nonconforming status can limit what an owner may later do with a building. The Commission also added rebuild options, which the Idaho Mountain Express reported as rebuilding to the home's previous square footage or a 0.5 FAR, whichever is greater, including after a voluntary demolition. Confirm the final terms in the version the Council considers.

City staff counted 248 lots in the T district and 60 in T-3000, where the minimum lot size is 8,000 square feet. Outside those two districts, the height changes apply to future construction, not to homes already standing. An owner planning a significant remodel or rebuild should review the rules with an architect and a land-use attorney before design work begins.

What if you already have an approval or a project underway?

The recommended ordinance would clarify how projects with unexpired development approvals may proceed, and it would add a three-month grace period for specified changes, including the residential height limits and the T and T-3000 single-family change. Local reporting describes that window as starting on the ordinance's effective date, with applications filed during it reviewed under existing standards.

The final transition language had not been published when this guide was written. Anyone holding an approval should read that section of the Council staff report closely or ask the Planning and Building Department directly.

An owner with an architect already engaged should put three questions to the design team and the City: which application, at what level of completeness, counts as filed during the grace period; which provisions the grace period covers; and how an application under existing standards interacts with any later design review.

What should a buyer check before the City Council decides?

Confirm the parcel's zone district, then ask a designer what could be built under both the current code and the recommended version. For T and T-3000 parcels, confirm whether a single-family home on the lot is legally established. If closing falls near the Council's decision, build time into the contract to review the outcome.

A practical diligence list for land or a home in an affected district:

• Confirm the zone district, and whether the lot sits in the Mountain Overlay or on a hillside.
• Ask an architect to sketch what is possible under current code and under the recommended version, especially height, roof form and floor area.
• For T and T-3000 parcels, review the permit history showing whether the existing home was legally established, and what the rebuild provisions would allow.
• For downtown property, review the floor limits, stepbacks and the Retail Core FAR change with an architect who works in Ketchum's Community Core.
• Ask your attorney how to structure contract timing around the Council's decision.

None of these steps predicts what the Council will do. They show which version of the rules a plan depends on, which is the part a buyer can control.

What should an owner preparing to sell have ready?

Gather what an informed buyer will ask for: the parcel's zone district, the permit history and certificate of occupancy showing the home was legally established, and the status of any unexpired approvals. In the T and T-3000 districts, the recommended protections for existing homes depend on that legal establishment, so the paperwork carries weight.

Buyers who plan to rebuild, expand or add a second structure will compare what the lot allows today with what it would allow under the recommended version. Having that comparison prepared by an architect, rather than estimated during a showing, keeps the conversation on the property.

If the property holds an unexpired approval, ask the City how the transition rules would treat it, and ask your attorney what that means for a sale. I'd rather an owner learn those answers before listing than in the middle of a negotiation.

How would the height, downtown and housing rules work in practice?

The height changes set a 30-foot limit with a partial roof allowance, the downtown changes cap floors and push upper floors back from the street, and the housing change adjusts one step in how a required contribution is measured. The table above summarizes each one; the mechanics follow.

Height and roof form

On non-hillside lots under the 30-foot limit, up to one-third of the roof area could reach 35 feet. That lets a gable, a ridge or a pitched section rise above the main limit while most of the roof stays at 30 feet. Qualifying stepped hillside buildings could reach 35 feet overall, with any exposed building face held to 30 feet.

The ordinance would also define more precisely how height is measured. City staff wrote in August that the existing definition had led to different interpretations over the years.

Downtown floors and stepbacks

A stepback is a required offset on an upper floor, so it sits farther from the street than the floor below. Under the recommended version, third floors in both the Retail Core (CC-1) and the Mixed-Use Subdistrict (CC-2) would step back 10 feet from the ground-floor façade along front and street sides. In CC-2, a fourth floor would step back from the third-floor façade by 10 feet along front and street sides and 5 feet along interior sides.

Retail Core density

The maximum FAR in the Retail Core would drop from 2.25 to 2.0. The City's August staff draft also proposed raising the Retail Core base FAR, the amount buildable by right, from 1.0 to 1.2. Confirm whether that change remains in the Council's version.

Community housing contributions

Projects that build above base FAR would still contribute community housing equal to 20% of the added gross floor area. The 15% reduction that converts gross floor area to net livable floor area, accounting for walls, stairs and corridors, would apply only when the contribution is provided as housing units, which the City's summary describes as on-site or off-site. It would not apply when a developer pays an in-lieu fee instead.

Why is Ketchum considering these changes, and how has the proposal changed?

City staff tie the updates to the 2025 Comprehensive Plan, which calls for buildings of up to two stories in Low and Medium Density areas and a lower-scale Retail Core that keeps views of Baldy, Dollar Mountain and other surrounding natural features. In May 2026, the Council and Commission asked staff to move a short list of changes ahead of the larger code rewrite.

The City Council adopted the Comprehensive Plan in September 2025, and the City consolidated its zoning and subdivision rules into a single Land Development Code effective January 1, 2026. The City describes the broader effort to align that code with the plan as a series of installments running from 2026 into 2028. Ordinance 1279 is the fast-tracked piece, reviewed by the Commission over five public hearings beginning August 11 and recommended 3-1 on October 5.

The phrase "with revisions" carries weight here. The first staff draft differed in several places:

Sources: City staff memo and draft ordinance, August 6, 2026; Idaho Mountain Express coverage of the August and September hearings (subscription); City of Ketchum, Phase 3 Code Updates. The Council can adopt, revise or decline any of it.

What happens after the November 12 hearing?

November 12 is the City Council's first public hearing on Ordinance 1279, not a final vote. Ketchum ordinances generally move through three Council readings, which the Council may consolidate, and this one would take effect only after passage, approval and publication. The Council can also continue the hearing or revise the text along the way.

The City posts each Council agenda about a week ahead in its Agenda Center. Regular Council meetings begin at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall, 191 5th Street West, and can be joined by Zoom. Written comments go through the City's Public Comment page.

If the grace period is adopted as recommended, it would run three months from the effective date. I'll update this guide after each Council step so the dates and terms stay current.

Terms used in this guide

The zone districts named in the ordinance:

Talk it through with a specific property in mind

Code changes read differently once there is a specific address in front of you. If you are weighing a purchase or a sale in one of these districts, I'm glad to walk through it with you and introduce you to architects and land-use attorneys who work with Ketchum's code.

Michelle Englert Compass | Sun Valley, Hailey, Ketchum and Bellevue.

Frequently asked questions

Does Ordinance 1279 apply in Sun Valley, Hailey or elsewhere in Blaine County?

No. Ordinance 1279 amends the City of Ketchum's Land Development Code, so it applies to property under Ketchum's zoning. The City of Sun Valley, Hailey, Bellevue and Blaine County each have their own codes. Locally, "Sun Valley" often refers to the whole valley, so confirm which jurisdiction governs a property before assuming these rules apply.

Are Ketchum's STO districts related to short-term rentals?

STO stands for Short Term Occupancy, the name of a group of Ketchum zoning districts. Ordinance 1279 changes building height there, not rental rules. Since July 1, 2026, short-term rental regulation in Idaho has been set largely by state law, and HOA covenants apply separately. Confirm any specific property with counsel and its governing documents.

Where can I read the full text of Ordinance 1279?

The City's Phase 3 Code Updates page tracks the ordinance and its hearings, and the August 6, 2026 staff memo with the draft ordinance shows the original text. The version going to the Council will appear with the staff report in the November 12 agenda packet.

Sources

• City of Ketchum, Cohesive Ketchum: Phase 3 Code Updates, accessed October 2026
• City of Ketchum, Cohesive Ketchum: Comprehensive Plan and Land Development Code, accessed October 2026
• City of Ketchum, Planning and Zoning Commission memo, Priority Code Updates, Ordinance 1279, August 6, 2026
• City of Ketchum, Notice of public hearing, Ordinance 1279
• City of Ketchum, City Council agenda, November 12, 2026
• City of Ketchum, Public Comment
• Idaho Mountain Express, Commissioner dissents as Ketchum P&Z advances development law revisions, October 7, 2026 (subscription)
• Idaho Mountain Express, Ketchum P&Z softens height-limit proposal, September 2026 (subscription)
• Idaho Mountain Express, Ketchum P&Z trudges through fast-tracked ordinance revisions, August 2026 (subscription)

This guide is general information, not legal or zoning advice. Ordinance 1279 is proposed and may change before or during City Council review. Confirm details for any property with the City of Ketchum Planning and Building Department and your own counsel.