What are story poles?
What are story poles? They are a temporary, full-scale outline of a proposed building or addition, built on the actual site from poles and flagged string line or netting. They show the height, footprint, ridge lines and eaves of the project so that planning staff, design review boards, HOAs and neighbors can see its real scale and its effect on views, light and privacy before the project is approved. In California, many towns require them before a public hearing.
That is the planning-review meaning, and it is what this guide covers. There is a second, older meaning. In carpentry and masonry a “story pole” (or story stick) is a marked board used to transfer measurements from one place to another. If you searched for the tool, this is not that page. If you have a project in front of a planning department or an architectural committee, read on.
Story poles definition, and what they look like
Picture the house drawn in the air. Vertical poles stand at the outer corners of the proposed building and at the ends of the main roof ridges, each reaching the exact elevation of the building at that point. String line runs between the pole tops along the ridges and the eaves. The line carries flagging, usually international orange pennants, or a band of orange mesh netting, so the outline reads from the street and from the neighbors’ windows.
On a simple single-story addition that might be six or eight poles. On a two-story hillside home with a complex roof it can be twenty or more, braced with guy wires against the wind. Some towns also want ground-level stakes and ribbon around the footprint, pools, sports courts and driveway changes, and tape on trees to be removed. Several ask for the poles to be painted or marked so a viewer can read heights above grade by eye.
Why California towns require them
A drawing shows what a building will be. A story pole installation shows what it will do to the street. Towns with hillsides, view corridors, tight lots and strict design review use story poles because the questions a hearing has to answer are physical. Is it too tall for the block? Does it block the neighbor’s view of the bay or the ocean? How much bulk sits at the property line? Does the second story loom over the yard next door?
Story poles let the review board and the public walk the site and judge those questions themselves. Many policies say so directly. The Town of Hillsborough requires them “to assist in the visualization of the project on the site, the bulk and mass of the structure, and the differing and maximum heights” (Town of Hillsborough, story pole requirements). The City of Santa Barbara groups them with photo simulations and 3D models as “visual aids” that help the City and the public understand a project’s size, bulk and scale in relation to the neighborhood and its effects on public scenic views (City of Santa Barbara, Visual Aids and Story Poles). Los Gatos adds that they also give the community visual notice that a hearing is coming.
The other names for story poles
Depending on the jurisdiction the same installation goes by several names.
- Silhouette or silhouette poles (common in Southern California coastal cities and HOAs).
- Temporary framing (used by our company and several Bay Area towns).
- Staking or staking plan (Laguna Beach's municipal code uses this term).
- Height poles and netting (Los Gatos, Los Altos Hills and Monte Sereno).
- Story pole and netting or simply story poles (most towns).
They all mean the same thing. Use the term your town’s policy uses so the planner recognises your submittal.
Which projects usually need story poles
Every town writes its own trigger list, but the same project types come up again and again.
- new single-family homes, especially on hillside, ridgeline or view-corridor lots;
- second-story additions;
- additions above a size threshold (500, 900 or a percentage of existing floor area, depending on the town) or that raise the roof;
- new commercial, multi-family and mixed-use buildings;
- any project asking for a height variance or exception;
- projects in coastal zones or scenic overlay areas.
Some towns exempt small projects, single-story work, or projects that are clearly consistent with the neighborhood, and a few allow a rendering or 3D model instead. Our town-by-town requirements guide lists the triggers for 13 California jurisdictions, and each of our city pages covers one town in detail.
How the story pole process works
- The plan. Nearly every town requires a story pole plan approved by the planner before a pole goes in, a simplified roof plan showing each pole's location, its top-of-roof elevation and the string-line connections. Many towns specify the format (an 8.5 x 11 reduction, an 11 x 17 with poles in red, a numbered table of elevations). How we draft story pole plans.
- The installation. A crew sets the poles to the planned elevations, with grading accounted for so the outline shows the final building height, strings the ridges and eaves, and attaches the flagging or netting the policy specifies. How we install.
- Photographs. Most towns want photos from the street and neighbor vantage points, some with a key map, submitted with the application or before notices go out.
- Certification. Many towns require a licensed land surveyor (or, in some, an engineer, architect or contractor) to inspect the poles against the plan and sign a letter, a town form or the plan itself. How certification works.
- Notice and hearing. The poles must be up a set number of days before the hearing, often before the town will even mail the notice: 7 days in Santa Barbara, 10 in Mill Valley, 14 in Tiburon, 21 in Laguna Beach, four weeks in Calabasas.
- Appeal period and removal. The poles stay through the appeal window and come down within the town's deadline, anywhere from 48 hours to several weeks after the decision.
Who pays for story poles, and who arranges them
The property owner pays, as part of the cost of design review, and the architect or contractor usually arranges the installation on the owner’s behalf. Costs depend on the size of the outline, the number of ridges and eaves, the height, site access, netting or certification requirements, and how long the poles stay up. A single-story addition on a flat lot and a hillside new build with view netting and a surveyor’s letter sit at opposite ends of the range.
What neighbors and boards learn from them
Story poles are honest. They show the real height and bulk, which sometimes raises questions and sometimes settles them. A design that looks large on paper can read as modest on the lot; a design that looks fine on paper can turn out to block a view. Either way, an accurate installation moves the hearing from arguing about the drawings to discussing the actual project. Inaccurate poles do the opposite. Every town on our list continues the hearing if the poles are wrong or missing.
Story poles in Northern and Southern California
All American Story Poles drafts the plan, installs the poles and coordinates certification across California, with a Northern California crew covering the Peninsula, Marin, the South Bay and Monterey (Hillsborough, Los Altos Hills, Los Gatos, Mill Valley, Tiburon and more) and a Southern California crew covering Los Angeles, Malibu, Laguna Beach, Calabasas, Burbank and Santa Barbara. Send your plan set and project address to hello@AllAmericanStoryPoles.com, or call or text (650) 613-1721 in the north and (310) 980-2543 in the south.
Frequently asked questions
What is the purpose of a story pole?
To show a proposed building at true size and in its real setting before it is built, so reviewers can assess height, bulk, placement and view or privacy effects, and neighbors can understand what is coming.
What does a story pole look like?
Vertical poles at the building corners and roof high points, connected by string line along the ridges and eaves, with orange flagging or a band of mesh netting so the outline reads from a distance. Some towns require painted stripes or black tops so heights can be read by eye.
What is the difference between a story pole and a totem pole?
A totem pole is a carved monument. A story pole in planning is a temporary marker pole showing a proposed building’s height; in carpentry it is a marked measuring stick. They share only the word.
How do you build story poles?
Working from an approved story pole plan, we set poles at the plotted locations, bring each to its top-of-roof elevation with grading accounted for, brace them, string the ridges and eaves, and attach the flagging or netting the town requires. Most towns then require photographs and a licensed professional’s certification.
Are story poles required everywhere in California?
No. There is no state law. Each city, town, county, HOA or review board sets its own policy, and some have none. Check your town’s story pole policy or ask us.
Story pole requirements are set by each city, town, county or review board and change from time to time. Town details in this guide reflect published policies as of September 2026. Confirm current requirements with the planning department before your submittal.
