Zoning › Tennessee › Hamilton County › Chattanooga

Chattanooga, TN Zoning

19 districts. 8 overlays.
This profile is an earlier edition — some fields may be incomplete. An updated profile is in progress.

Overview

Worth knowing
  • R-3MD (missing middle housing) is new 2025 district; reflects state preemption risk awareness
  • Historic district design guidelines specify roof material down to exact profile (slate, standing seam, clay tile); unusual level of specificity
  • Zero-lot-line workaround (RZ-1) permits one side zero setback with shared wall; addresses mid-century lot constraints

+ 6 more in Quirks & notes

Districts

com 6ind 4res_sf 3res_mf 3res_th 1cbd 1mu 1
CodeNameCategory Min lotHeight CoverageFAR Du/acParking Setbacks F/S/R
R-1Single-Family Residential — Standardres_sf7,500 sf35 ft[4]0.4[5]—5.8[6]—25[1] / 10[2] / 20[3]
R-2Duplex Residentialres_sf9,500 sf35 ft[10]0.45[11]—4.6[12]—25[7] / 10[8] / 20[9]
R-3Multi-Family Residentialres_mf7,500 sf40 ft[16]0.5[17]—10[18]1.5[19]20[13] / 10[14] / 15[15]
R-3MDMulti-Family Residential — Missing Middle (2025)res_mf7,500 sf[23]45 ft[24]0.55[25]—12[26]1.25[27]15[20] / 8[21] / 15[22]
R-4Office/Mixed-Use Residentialres_mf—50 ft[31]0.6[32]1.5[33]15[34]1[35]10[28] / 8[29] / 10[30]
RT-1Townhouse Residentialres_th2,625 sf40 ft[39]0.6[40]—16.5[41]1.5[42]15[36] / 5[37] / 10[38]
RZ-1Zero-Lot-Line Residentialres_sf2,625 sf40 ft[46]0.65[47]—16.5[48]1.5[49]15[43] / 0[44] / 10[45]
C-1Neighborhood Commercialcom—45 ft[51]0.7[52]1.5[53]——0[50] / — / —
C-2Community Commercialcom—55 ft[55]0.75[56]2[57]——5[54] / — / —
C-3Regional Commercialcom—65 ft[59]0.8[60]2.5[61]——10[58] / — / —
C-4Highway Commercialcom—50 ft[63]0.7[64]1.8[65]——20[62] / — / —
C-5Central Commercial / Downtowncbd—70 ft[67]0.85[68]3[69]——0[66] / — / —
C-7Commercial / Parks Recreationcom——————— / — / —
MXUMixed-Use Urbanmu—75 ft[71]0.8[72]2.5[73]——0[70] / — / —
UGCUrban General Commercialcom—60 ft[75]0.75[76]2[77]——5[74] / — / —
M-1Light Industrialind10,000 sf[78]55 ft[79]0.6[80]———— / — / —
M-2General Industrialind20,000 sf[81]75 ft[82]0.7[83]———— / — / —
M-3Industrial Parkind5,000 sf[84]55 ft[85]0.5[86]———— / — / —
M-4Megasite Industrialind—75 ft[87]0.6[88]———— / — / —

Confidence: confirmed partial under review not found

Overlays

HD-1
Historic District Overlay — St. Elmo
HP
§38-49

Mapped St. Elmo historic district boundaries

design_reviewCertificate of Appropriateness required for exterior alterations, new construction, demolition
roof_materialSlate, standing seam metal, clay/concrete tile (guidelines specify exact profiles per contributing structure era)
height_cap_ft45[89]
setback_modificationsMay be modified per historic street patterns
HD-2
Historic District Overlay — Fort Wood
HP
§38-49

Mapped Fort Wood historic district boundaries

design_reviewCertificate of Appropriateness required
height_cap_ft50[90]
HD-3
Historic District Overlay — Battery Place
HP
§38-49

Mapped Battery Place historic district boundaries

design_reviewCertificate of Appropriateness required
HD-4
Historic District Overlay — Ferger Place
HP
§38-49

Mapped Ferger Place historic district boundaries

design_reviewCertificate of Appropriateness required
FBC
Form-Based Code Overlay
DT
Adopted June 21, 2016

Designated form-based code corridors and districts

building_formRegulates building type, frontage, and massing per form standards
street_frontageControls setbacks and facade requirements
parking_locationMay restrict rear/surface parking in favor of structured or underground
FPO
Floodplain Overlay — Tennessee River
FP
§38-37

FEMA-mapped 100-year flood zone (A and AE zones); Tennessee River floodplain

elevation_requirementStructures in A zones must have lowest floor elevated to or above base flood elevation + 1 ft freeboard
use_restrictionsProhibits storage of hazardous materials; manufactured homes and RVs restricted
substantial_improvement_thresholdTriggers when cost exceeds 50% of structure value
STVR
Short-Term Vacation Rental (STVR) Overlay
SPD
§38-38 (or Chapter 47, STVRs)

Geographic restriction: not permitted in downtown core or historic districts; allowed in single-family and select commercial zones outside restricted areas

geographic_restrictionProhibited in HD and downtown; permitted in R-1, R-2, R-3 outside restricted zones per map
owner_occupancyPrimary residence required [inferred]; nightly cap and registration required
ENV
Environmental/Scenic Protection Overlay — Lookout Mountain
ENV
§38-36 (Environmental Overlay District)

Mapped Lookout Mountain ridgeline and scenic vista areas

height_restrictionNo structures visible above ridgeline when viewed from scenic corridors
vegetation_removalProtected tree/vegetation preservation; clear-cutting prohibited
site_plan_reviewEnhanced design review for all development

Adopted building codes

Major cities adopt newer locally

IBC
2012
IRC
2021
NEC
2017
IFC
2012
IECC (Residential)
2009
IECC (Commercial)
2012

Click a code label to open its state-by-state adoption atlas.

Quirks & notes

  • R-3MD (missing middle housing) is new 2025 district; reflects state preemption risk awareness
  • Historic district design guidelines specify roof material down to exact profile (slate, standing seam, clay tile); unusual level of specificity
  • Zero-lot-line workaround (RZ-1) permits one side zero setback with shared wall; addresses mid-century lot constraints
  • Form-Based Code overlay (2016) coexists with traditional Euclidean zoning; creates two parallel regulatory systems
  • Volkswagen megasite (M-4, 1,400 acres) has enterprise-specific flexible standards; largest industrial exception in code
  • STVR overlay has geographic restriction (prohibited downtown/historic); policy-driven rather than zoning-driven
  • Lookout Mountain scenic overlay height restriction ties to ridgeline visibility; unusual visual-performance standard
  • No explicit impervious surface cap in base zoning; stormwater managed separately
  • Accessory apartments not clearly enumerated in base zoning; may require conditional use approval

Formulas

Definitions

height
Measured from grade to peak/roof deck per §38-16
lot_coverage
Percentage of lot area occupied by building footprint; includes all structures
du_ac
Gross density per acre of developable land (calculated from min lot or min du/acre requirement)

Massing explorer

Interactive 3D comparison across every district. Drag to orbit, scroll to zoom, use the slider to walk districts, and toggle applicable overlays in the right-side panel.

—
—
Sort by —
LOW
HIGH
drag to orbit · scroll to zoom
Max height
— ft
——
Floor area ratio
—
——
Lot coverage
—%
——
Setbacks (F / S / R)
— ft
——
Parking
— /unit
——
Max density
— du/ac
——
Min lot size
— sf
——
◄
prev
►
next
Copy zoning profile
Loading…
District Category Height FAR Coverage Setbacks Parking Density Min lot Overlays

Sources & references

Citations
  1. [1] i
  2. [2] i
  3. [3] i
  4. [4] i
  5. [5] i
  6. [6] i
  7. [7] i
  8. [8] i
  9. [9] i
  10. [10] i
  11. [11] i
  12. [12] i
  13. [13] i
  14. [14] i
  15. [15] i
  16. [16] i
  17. [17] i
  18. [18] i
  19. [19] i
  20. [20] i
  21. [21] i
  22. [22] i
  23. [23] i
  24. [24] i
  25. [25] i
  26. [26] i
  27. [27] i
  28. [28] i
  29. [29] i
  30. [30] i
  31. [31] i
  32. [32] i
  33. [33] i
  34. [34] i
  35. [35] i
  36. [36] i
  37. [37] i
  38. [38] i
  39. [39] i
  40. [40] i
  41. [41] i
  42. [42] i
  43. [43] i
  44. [44] i
  45. [45] i
  46. [46] i
  47. [47] i
  48. [48] i
  49. [49] i
  50. [50] u
  51. [51] u
  52. [52] u
  53. [53] u
  54. [54] u
  55. [55] u
  56. [56] u
  57. [57] u
  58. [58] u
  59. [59] u
  60. [60] u
  61. [61] u
  62. [62] u
  63. [63] u
  64. [64] u
  65. [65] u
  66. [66] u
  67. [67] u
  68. [68] u
  69. [69] u
  70. [70] i
  71. [71] i
  72. [72] i
  73. [73] i
  74. [74] i
  75. [75] i
  76. [76] i
  77. [77] i
  78. [78] u
  79. [79] u
  80. [80] u
  81. [81] u
  82. [82] u
  83. [83] u
  84. [84] u
  85. [85] u
  86. [86] u
  87. [87] i
  88. [88] i
  89. [89] i
  90. [90] i

Research status

Data quality

65%completeness12 confirmed18 partial35 inferred
Documented gaps
  • Commercial and industrial dimensional standards (height, setback, parking) largely unresolved
  • Historic district design guideline specifics available in external document, not in code
  • R-3MD new district details require verification from recent amendments
  • Volkswagen megasite master plan terms not in public zoning ordinance

Known issues

schema:v1-legacypriority:lowdata:gaps-present

Other cities in this state

Nearest-alphabetical profiles. Click through to compare zoning patterns side-by-side.

BartlettClarksvilleColliervilleGallatinHendersonvilleKnoxvilleMemphisMurfreesboro