Real examples of examples of zoning ordinances (with 2025 trends)

Concrete examples of zoning ordinances you’ll actually see on the ground

Let’s skip theory and start with real examples of zoning ordinances that shape what you can build and where you can operate. These examples include rules you’ll see in many U.S. cities and counties, even if the exact numbers differ.

In a typical single‑family residential (R‑1) district, you might see an ordinance that:

• Limits building height to 30 feet or 2.5 stories.
• Requires a front setback of 20 feet, side yards of 5 feet, and a rear yard of 25 feet.
• Prohibits more than one dwelling unit on a lot.
• Allows home occupations (like a home office) but bans visible signage or customer traffic.

In a neighborhood commercial (C‑1) zone, examples include:

• Allowing retail, restaurants, and offices, but banning heavy industrial uses.
• Capping building height at 45–60 feet.
• Requiring on‑site parking at a ratio like 1 space per 300 square feet of floor area.
• Requiring landscaping along the sidewalk and screening for dumpsters.

Those are basic examples of examples of zoning ordinances that show up in almost every zoning code: they control use, height, bulk, yards, and parking.

Examples of use-based zoning ordinances: what you can do on the land

Use regulations are often the first thing people look for when they search for examples of zoning ordinances. These rules answer the question: What activities are allowed on this property?

Some common examples include:

• Residential‑only zones where only single‑family homes and a limited set of accessory uses (like ADUs, home offices, or small daycares) are permitted.
• Mixed‑use zones that allow apartments over ground‑floor retail, often with incentives for including affordable housing.
• Industrial zones that allow manufacturing, warehousing, and logistics, but prohibit housing and schools because of noise, truck traffic, or emissions.
• Special use permits for uses that are allowed only with extra review, such as gas stations, drive‑throughs, or churches in residential areas.

A classic example of a use ordinance: a city might allow short‑term rentals (Airbnb‑style) only if the property is owner‑occupied and only in certain residential or mixed‑use zones. The ordinance may cap the number of nights per year and require a local contact person. That’s a textbook example of how zoning and land use permits intersect.

For a sense of how detailed these can get, the Los Angeles Municipal Code divides uses into dozens of categories and subcategories, each with its own conditions and permit triggers. Many cities publish similar tables online in their zoning codes.

Dimensional and bulk standards: examples of height, setbacks, and lot coverage rules

Another big bucket of examples of zoning ordinances involves dimensional standards—the physical envelope of what you can build.

Common examples include:

• Height limits: For example, 35 feet in low‑density residential zones, 65 feet in neighborhood commercial, and 200+ feet in downtown core districts.
• Floor Area Ratio (FAR): An FAR of 2.0 on a 10,000‑square‑foot lot allows up to 20,000 square feet of building floor area. FAR is a quiet but powerful line in many zoning ordinances.
• Lot coverage: An ordinance might limit buildings to covering 40% of a lot in a single‑family zone to preserve yards and stormwater absorption.
• Setbacks: Front, side, and rear yard requirements that push buildings away from property lines, streets, and neighbors.

A practical example of a dimensional ordinance in action: You buy a 6,000‑square‑foot lot in a city’s R‑1 zone. The code requires a 20‑foot front setback, 5‑foot side yards, and a 25‑foot rear yard, and caps lot coverage at 40%. When you submit your building permit, the planner reviews your site plan against each of these numbers. If your design violates them, you’re either revising the plan or applying for a variance.

If you want to see real dimensional standards, the New York City Zoning Resolution and the Chicago Zoning Ordinance both publish detailed tables of height, FAR, and setbacks that are widely studied in planning circles.

Parking, access, and transportation: modern examples of shifting zoning rules

Parking requirements are some of the most controversial examples of zoning ordinances right now. Historically, many U.S. cities required generous minimum parking for almost every use. Think: 1 space per apartment, 1 space per 250 square feet of retail, 1 space per 4 restaurant seats.

Recent 2023–2025 trends are changing that. Examples include:

• Cities like Minneapolis, San Francisco, and Portland reducing or eliminating parking minimums near transit.
• Ordinances that allow developers to provide bike parking, transit passes, or car‑share spaces in place of some parking stalls.
• Shared‑parking provisions, where offices and churches can share lots because their peak demand happens at different times.

A real example of a modern parking ordinance: a city may waive parking requirements for small storefronts under 2,000 square feet in historic main‑street districts to encourage reuse of older buildings that physically can’t add new parking.

For background on how zoning and transportation interact, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) both publish research on parking, land use, and air quality impacts.

Environmental and health examples of zoning ordinances

Zoning isn’t just about aesthetics; it’s also about public health and environmental protection. Some of the best examples of zoning ordinances in this space include:

• Floodplain overlays that limit building in high‑risk flood zones or require elevated finished floors.
• Wetland buffers that prohibit development within a set distance (say 50–100 feet) of a wetland or stream.
• Noise‑sensitive use protections, like banning new hospitals or schools near major freeways or heavy industrial zones.
• Hazardous materials restrictions that limit where chemical storage, fuel depots, or waste facilities can locate.

For instance, many coastal communities have adopted ordinances that require new homes in flood‑prone areas to be built several feet above the base flood elevation. That’s not just zoning theory—it’s driven by FEMA flood maps and insurance realities.

Health‑related zoning shows up in rules about distance from schools for certain uses (like adult entertainment or cannabis dispensaries) and in air quality overlays that limit sensitive uses near major pollution sources. Agencies like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and NIH have highlighted how land use decisions affect asthma, obesity, and other health outcomes, which has pushed some cities to rethink older zoning patterns.

Examples of special districts and overlay zoning ordinances

Overlay districts are some of the most interesting examples of examples of zoning ordinances because they sit on top of base zoning and add extra rules.

Common overlay examples include:

• Historic district overlays that require design review for exterior changes, limit demolition, and control building materials.
• Transit‑oriented development (TOD) overlays that allow taller, denser buildings near transit stops in exchange for reduced parking and sometimes affordable housing.
• Design overlays that require active ground‑floor uses, transparency (window) standards, and pedestrian‑friendly building placement along main streets.
• Airport overlays that control building heights and noise‑sensitive uses within flight paths.

Imagine a property that’s zoned C‑2 (general commercial) but also lies within a historic district overlay. The base zoning allows a three‑story mixed‑use building, but the overlay requires that the façade match the historic character of the street and bans certain modern materials. That combination of base and overlay rules is a classic example of how zoning ordinances layer together.

If you want to see real examples, cities like Boston, Charleston, and Savannah publish detailed historic district zoning guidelines online, including illustrated design standards.

Housing, ADUs, and affordability: 2024–2025 examples of zoning reforms

Housing policy is where you’ll find some of the most talked‑about examples of zoning ordinances right now. States and cities are rewriting codes to respond to housing shortages and affordability crises.

Recent examples include:

• Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) ordinances that allow backyard cottages, garage conversions, or basement units in single‑family zones with streamlined permits.
• Missing middle housing rules that allow duplexes, triplexes, or fourplexes on lots that used to be single‑family only.
• Inclusionary zoning ordinances that require or incentivize a percentage of units in new developments to be rented or sold at below‑market rates.

Several U.S. states—like California, Oregon, and Montana—have passed laws between 2019 and 2024 that effectively force local codes to allow more housing types in traditional single‑family zones. Local zoning ordinances then get updated to spell out the details: maximum ADU size, parking reductions, height, and design.

If you’re applying for a zoning or building permit for an ADU in 2025, you’re almost certainly working under one of these newer ordinances, not the old “single‑family only” rules. Checking your city’s current ADU ordinance is non‑negotiable before you draw plans.

For policy context, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) publishes research on zoning barriers to housing production, and universities like Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies maintain data on housing trends and zoning reforms.

Process‑oriented examples of zoning ordinances: permits, variances, and nonconformities

So far we’ve focused on what zoning ordinances regulate. But some of the best examples of examples of zoning ordinances are procedural—they spell out how you get approval or relief.

Common process examples include:

• Site plan review requirements for larger projects, with criteria like traffic impacts, landscaping, and compatibility with neighbors.
• Conditional use permits (CUPs) that allow certain uses only after a public hearing and with conditions attached (hours of operation, noise limits, fencing, etc.).
• Variance procedures that let a zoning board grant relief from strict dimensional rules when there’s a hardship, like an oddly shaped lot.
• Nonconforming use rules that govern what happens to uses or buildings that were legal when built but no longer match current zoning.

Take a small restaurant that wants to add outdoor seating in a district where that use is allowed only by conditional use permit. The zoning ordinance will spell out:

• What studies or plans you must submit (parking, noise, trash management).
• Who gets notice of the hearing.
• How the zoning board decides whether to approve, deny, or condition the permit.

That entire process is baked into the ordinance itself, and it’s a big part of why zoning and land use permit applications can feel so procedural.

How to use these examples of zoning ordinances when you file permits

When you’re staring at a zoning and land use permit application, the examples above aren’t just academic. They’re a checklist of what to look for in your local code:

• Use tables to see if your proposed activity is permitted, conditional, or prohibited.
• Dimensional standards (height, setbacks, lot coverage, FAR) to design your building envelope.
• Overlay maps to see if extra rules apply (historic, floodplain, TOD, airport, environmental).
• Parking and access standards to size your lot and driveways.
• Procedural sections to understand whether you need a simple administrative permit or a full public hearing.

When you can match your project to real examples of examples of zoning ordinances—“This is a conditional use in this zone,” or “This needs a variance because of the side setback”—your application becomes much more targeted and persuasive.

Most local governments publish their zoning ordinances on official websites, often with interactive maps. For U.S. readers, searching your city or county name plus “zoning ordinance” or “municipal code” will usually lead you to a .gov site with the current rules.

FAQ: common questions about examples of zoning ordinances

What are some common examples of zoning ordinances that affect homeowners?
Frequent examples include rules on maximum building height, front and side setbacks, lot coverage limits, ADU regulations, and home‑occupation standards. Many homeowners run into zoning when they try to build an addition, add a second unit, or run a small business from home.

Can you give an example of a zoning ordinance that limits businesses?
A typical example of a business‑related ordinance is one that allows restaurants in a commercial zone but bans drive‑through service, or that caps hours of operation to reduce late‑night noise near homes. Another example is a rule that requires a conditional use permit for bars within a certain distance of schools or churches.

Are there examples of zoning ordinances that are being rolled back or reformed?
Yes. Many cities are revising parking minimums, opening single‑family zones to duplexes or ADUs, and relaxing rules that block mixed‑use or higher‑density housing near transit. These reforms are often documented in planning department reports and housing action plans.

Do zoning ordinances differ a lot between countries?
They do. The basic ideas—separating incompatible uses, managing density, protecting health and safety—are common, but the details vary widely. European cities often allow more mixed‑use by default, while many U.S. suburbs historically leaned on single‑use zoning. Still, the types of examples of zoning ordinances discussed here (use, height, setbacks, overlays) show up in some form in most developed countries.

Where can I find the best examples of zoning ordinances for my project?
The most relevant examples will always come from your own city or county’s code. Look for the zoning ordinance on your local government’s official website (.gov), and check any planning or zoning guidance documents they publish. For background and research, agencies like HUD, EPA, and major universities provide helpful context on how local zoning trends are evolving.