§ 36.220 — South Pasadena Zoning Code

36.220.010 Purpose of Division. ¶

This division lists the uses of land that may be allowed within the residential zoning districts established by SPMC 36.200.020 (Zoning Map and Zoning Districts), determines the type of zoning approval/approval required for each use, and provides basic standards for site layout and building size.

(Ord. No. 2108 § 1; Ord. No. 2379 § 5 (Exh. A), 2023.)

36.220.020 Purposes of Residential Zoning Districts. ¶

Different residential zoning districts are intended to provide for a variety of housing opportunities through new construction, and the maintenance of existing homes and neighborhoods. The purposes of the individual residential zoning districts and the manner in which they are applied are as follows:

A. RE (Residential Estate) district. The RE zoning district applies to areas appropriate for detached, single-family residential homes on large estate parcels. The allowable residential density is a maximum of three dwelling units per acre. The RE zoning district is consistent with the Very Low Density Neighborhood land use designation of the General Plan.

B. RS (Residential Single-Family) district. The RS zoning district is intended for areas appropriate for the development of detached, single-family homes. The allowable residential density is a maximum of five dwelling units per acre. The RS zoning district is consistent with the Low Density Neighborhood land use designation of the General Plan.

C. RM (Residential Medium Density) district. The RM zoning district applies to areas appropriate for a variety of housing types. Typical residential land uses include single-family bungalow courts, courtyard housing, townhomes, duplexes, triplexes, multiplexes, and other attached dwellings on smaller lots. The allowable residential density ranges from 5.1 to 30 dwelling units per acre, except that any property in the RM district that is also included on the Housing Element Table VI-52 or VI-53 shall require a minimum density of 20 dwelling units per acre. Up to 70 dwelling units per acre are allowed for properties located within the Housing Opportunity (HO) Overlay District. The RM zoning district is consistent with the Medium Density Neighborhood land use designation of the General Plan.

D. RH (Residential High Density) district. The RH zoning district is intended for areas appropriate for high density attached dwelling units, including courtyard housing, townhouses, condominiums, and apartments. The allowable residential density ranges from 30.1 to 45 dwelling units per acre. Up to 70 dwelling units per acre are allowed for properties located within the Housing Opportunity (HO) Overlay District. The RH zoning district is consistent with the High Density Neighborhood land use designation of the General Plan.

(Ord. No. 2108 § 1; Ord. No. 2379 § 5 (Exh. A), 2023; Ord. No. 2386 § 5 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. No. 2387 § 5 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. No. 2388 § 6, 2024; Ord. No. 2403 § 4 (Exh. A), 2025.)

36.220.030 Residential Zoning District Land Uses and Permit Requirements. ¶

A. General requirements. Table 2-2 identifies the uses of land allowed by this Zoning Code in each residential zoning district, and the zonings approval required to establish each use, in compliance with SPMC 36.210.030 (Allowable Land Uses and Permit Requirements).

Note: where the last column in the tables (“Specific Use Regulations”) includes a section number, the regulations in the referenced section apply to the use; however, provisions in other sections of this Zoning Code may also apply.

B. Altos de Monterey (AM) overlay district. Allowable land uses and permit requirements for parcels within the AM overlay district are established by SPMC 36.250.030.

TABLE 2-2. ALLOWED USES AND PERMIT REQUIREMENTS	TABLE 2-2. ALLOWED USES AND PERMIT REQUIREMENTS	TABLE 2-2. ALLOWED USES AND PERMIT REQUIREMENTS	TABLE 2-2. ALLOWED USES AND PERMIT REQUIREMENTS	P						Permitted Use	Permitted Use	Permitted Use
				CUP				Conditional Use Permit required
				AUP			Administrative Use Permit required

				—					Use not allowed
FOR RESIDENTIAL ZONING DISTRICTS				PERMIT			REQUIRED BY DISTRICT				Specific Use
LAND	USE (1)			RE	RS		RM			RH	Regulations
RECREATION,EDUCATION,PUBLIC							ASSEMBLY & COMMUNITY FACILITY					USES
Clubs, lodges and fraternal organizations				—	—		—			CUP
Community center				—	—		—			CUP
Private sport courts				AUP	AUP	AUP				AUP
Community gardens				CUP	CUP	CUP				CUP	36.350.230
RESIDENTIAL			USES
Accessory residential uses and structures				P(2)	P(2)	P(2)				P(2)	36.350.170
Home occupation				P	P	P				P	36.410.030
Multifamily		dwellings		—	—	P				P	36.350.180, 190
Organizational house (sorority,convent,etc.)				—	—	CUP				CUP
Residential care facility, 6 persons or less				P	P	P				P
Residential care facility, 7 persons or more				—	—	CUP				CUP	36.350.050
Residential care facility for the elderly (RCFE)				—	—	CUP				CUP	36.350.050
Accessory dwelling units				P	P	P				P	36.350.200
Employee housing				P	P	P (but only if established in a legally existing single-family				P (but only if established in a legally existing single-family	36.350.265

TABLE 2-2. ALLOWED USES AND PERMIT REQUIREMENTS FOR RESIDENTIAL ZONING DISTRICTS	TABLE 2-2. ALLOWED USES AND PERMIT REQUIREMENTS FOR RESIDENTIAL ZONING DISTRICTS	TABLE 2-2. ALLOWED USES AND PERMIT REQUIREMENTS FOR RESIDENTIAL ZONING DISTRICTS	P						Permitted Use	Permitted Use
			CUP				Conditional Use Permit required
			AUP			Administrative Use Permit required

			—					Use not allowed
			PERMIT			REQUIRED BY DISTRICT				Specific Use Regulations
LAND		USE (1)	RE	RS		RM			RH
					residential structure)				residential structure)
Existing single-family dwelling			P	P	P				P
New single-family dwelling			P	P	—				—
Transitional and supportive housing			P	P	P (multifamily types located in the RM district are subject to specific use regulations 36.350.180,190)				P (multifamily types located in the RH district are subject to specific use regulations 36.350.180,190)
SERVICE	USES
Bed & breakfast inn (B&B)			CUP	CUP	CUP				CUP	36.350.070
Child daycare center			—	—	CUP				CUP	36.350.080
Child day care—Small familydaycare home			P	P	P				P	36.350.080
Child day care—Large familydaycare home			P	P	P				P	36.350.080
Medical services— Extended care			—	—	—				CUP
Mortuaries and funeral homes			—	—	—				CUP
Notes: (1) See Article 7 for land use definitions. (2)Permit required determined bySPMC							36.350.170.

(Ord. No. 2108 § 1; Ord. No. 2197 § 2, 2009; Ord. No. 2246 § 3, 2013; Ord. No. 2251 § 5, 2013; Ord. No. 2253 § 3, 2013; Ord. No. 2372 § 2, 2023; Ord. No. 2379 § 5 (Exh. A), 2023; Ord. No. 2381 § 4, 2023; Ord. No. 2388 § 7, 2024.)

36.220.040 Residential Zoning District General Development Standards. ¶

A. General requirements. Subdivisions, new land uses and structures, and alterations to existing land uses and structures, shall be designed, constructed, and/or established in compliance with the requirements in Table 2-3, in addition to the applicable development standards (e.g., landscaping, parking and loading, etc.) in Article 3 (Site Planning and General Development Standards).

B. Altos de Monterey (AM) overlay district. Development standards for parcels within the AM overlay district are established by SPMC 36.250.030.

C. Design guidelines and standards. Land uses and structures proposed within the residential zoning districts shall comply with the City’s Design Guidelines to the extent required by the review authority and/or specific provisions of the Design Guidelines, objective design standards, and to the extent permitted by State law. Qualifying residential projects shall comply with the ministerial approval process established by SPMC 36.410.040(D)(4).

TABLE 2-3. RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT GENERAL DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS

process established by SPMC 36.410.040(D)(4).
TABLE 2-3. RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT GENERAL DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS
			Requirement by Zoning District(1)
Development Feature			RE	RS			RM		RH
Minimum lot size			Minimum area and width for			parcelsproposed in new			subdivisions.

Area			12,500 sf		10,000	sf	10,000 sf	10,000 sf
Width			75 ft; 85 ft for a corner lot		50 ft; 60 ft for a corner lot		60 ft; 80 ft for a corner lot	70 ft
Residential		density	Maximum number of dwelling units allowed in a project.The actual number of units allowed will be determined by the City through subdivision or land usepermit approval,as applicable.

Allowable	density		Maximum of 3 du/acre	Maximum of 5du/acre			5.1 to 30 du/acre(2)	30.1 to 45 du/acre(3)
Setbacks			Minimum and, where noted, maximum setbacks required. See SPMC 36.300.030 for setback measurement, allowed projections into setbacks,and specific exceptions to setbacks.
Front			25% of lot depth, with a minimum of 25 ft, and a maximum requirement of35ft				10 ft	7.5 ft
Front exception			If 60 percent or more of the lots on the same block face have structures with front setbacks different from the above, the required front setback shall be the average of the existing front setbacks,provided that no more than 45 feet shall be required in the RE district,and 35 ft shall be required elsewhere.
Sides, each			10% of lot width	10% of lot width, 4 ft minimum			4 ft An additional minimum 1 ft setback from the property line shall be provided for each story above the second story.	4 ft; An additional 1 ft minimum setback from the property line shall be provided for each story above the second story.

TABLE 2-3. RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT GENERAL DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS

TABLE 2-3. RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT GENERAL DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS
		Requirement by Zoning District(1)
Development Feature		RE	RS	RM	RH
				(i.e., 3-story building = 5 ft, 4-story building = 6 ft, etc.)
Side,	street side	20% of lot width, to a maximum requirement of 15ft		10 ft minimum
Rear		25 ft		15 ft minimum; or 5 ft minimum abutting an alley	15 ft minimum; or 5 ft minimum abutting an alley
Garage		An attached garage shall be set back a minimum of 10 ft from the front of the main structure		N/A
Accessory structures		As required for primary structures,except that: • A structure of 120 sf or less may be placed within a required side or rear setback,but not a front setback or in front of the frontmost dwelling unit on the lot; • A detached garage or carport or other accessory residential structure shall be located at least 5 ft from a side and/or rear property line,except if the required side yard setback for the dwelling/s is less than 5 ft, in which case the lesser side yard setback may be used for a detached garage or carport only. Such structures cannot be located in the front setback or in front of the frontmost dwelling unit on the lot; • Accessory structures shall be located at or beyond the required street-facing side yard setback for the dwelling/s, except if the Director determines that a lesser setback can be approved using the		See SPMC 36.350.170 (Residential Uses—Accessory Residential Structures)

TABLE 2-3. RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT GENERAL DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS

TABLE 2-3. RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT GENERAL DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS
	Requirement by Zoning District(1)
Development Feature	RE		RS		RM	RH
	Administrative Use Permit process detailed in SPMC 36.350.170(C) (3)(e);
	• Private residential recreational facilities shall be located at least 5 ft from a side and/or rear property line and cannot be located in the front setback,or in front of the frontmost dwelling unit on the lot or in the street-facing side setback of a corner lot. See also SPMC 36.350.170 (Residential Uses—Accessory Residential Structures).

Building separation	10 ft between same site.	structures on the			Minimum distances shall comply with Fire Code requirements but in no case shall be less than 10 ft.
Lot coverage	Maximum percentage of total structures.			lot area that may be covered by

	40%				N/A
Floor area ratio requirement	0.35				N/A	N/A
Height limit	Maximum allowable height of structures in other than hillside areas (see SPMC 36.340 (Hillside Protection) for height limits in hillside areas). See SPMC 36.300.040 (Height Limits and Exceptions) for height measurement requirements. See also SPMC 36.350.170 (Residential Uses—Accessory Residential Structures).

Maximum height	35 ft				45 ft For properties located in the HO Overlay District,the maximum height is 55 feet (see SPCMC36.300.040(A).
Multiple story exception	No portion of a structure shall encroach through a 45 degree angle projected perpendicularly from the front property line toward the rear property line.See Figure 2-1 in this division.				N/A

TABLE 2-3. RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT GENERAL DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS

TABLE 2-3. RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT GENERAL DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS
	Requirement by Zoning District(1)
Development Feature	RE	RS	RM	RH
	Building height in addition to the above limits may be authorized by design review (SPMC 36.410.040) to accommodate dormer windows and/or uninhabitable roof structures where appropriate to the architectural style of the dwelling.
Open Space(4)
Minimum total combined usable open space per residential unit (common and private combined)	N/A		200 sf per unit,	minimum
Common open space required	N/A		50% minimum of the total required open space; 1,000 sf minimum Up to 25% of the required common open space may be indoor common open space such as fitness rooms, resident lounges and similar or typical facilities. Mail rooms and leasing offices and associated areas do not count toward the required open space.
Dimensions of private open space	N/A		If individual balconies, ground floor patios, porches, or similar private open space are provided to meet the area requirements, such areas shall have minimum dimensions of 8 ft width and 6 ft depth.
Dimensions of common open space	N/A		Common open space areas shall have a minimum dimension of 20 feet on any side.
Dimensions of outdoor common			Outdoor common open space shall have a minimum

TABLE 2-3. RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT GENERAL DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS

TABLE 2-3. RESIDENTIAL DISTRICT GENERAL DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS
	Requirement by Zoning District(1)
Development Feature	RE	RS	RM	RH
open space and landscaping requirement			dimension of 20 feet in two directions. In addition, a minimum 20% of outdoor common open space shall be landscaped that may count toward the minimum site landscapingrequirement.
Landscaping	As required bySPMC	36.330(LandscapingStandards)
Parking	As required by SPMC 36.310 (Parking and Loading), unless such development qualifies for an exception to providing parking under provisions of State law
Signs	As required bySPMC	36.320(Signs)
Notes: (1) Altos de Monterey exceptions. The standards and requirements for development within the Altos de Monterey (AM) overlay zoning district are different from those in this table; see SPMC 36.250.030. (2) Up to 70 dwelling units per acre allowed for properties located within the HO Overlay District. See SPMC 36.220.050. (3) Up to 70 dwelling units per acre allowed for properties located within the HO Overlay District. See SPMC 36.220.050. (4) As it pertains to the RM and RH Zoning District, the development standards related to open space as set forth in SPMC 36.350.190(C) (Multifamily Project Standards) shall apply in the RM and RH Zoning District, except to the extent the standard has been modified bythe specificprovisions in this table.

==> picture [256 x 163] intentionally omitted <==

Figure 2-1. Height Limit Adjacent to Street

(Ord. No. 2108 § 1; Ord. No. 2183 § 3, 2009; Ord. No. 2190 § 3, 2009; Ord. No. 2372 § 3, 2023; Ord. No. 2379 § 5 (Exh. A), 2023; Ord. No. 2386 § 5 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. No. 2387 § 5 (Exh. A), 2024; Ord. No. 2394 § 4 (Exh. A), 2025; Ord. No. 2403 § 4 (Exh. A), 2025.)

36.220.050 Development of Small Nonconforming Residential Parcels. ¶

The following standards apply to new and remodeled single-family dwellings on legal nonconforming parcels with an area of less than 10,000 square feet, except that all standards, except subsection F of this section (Lot Coverage), do not apply to hillside parcels (as defined by SPMC 36.340 (Hillside Protection)). These standards are intended to minimize the impacts of single-family dwelling alteration, construction, expansion, and replacement by maintaining the existing residential neighborhood character that might otherwise result in overbuilding on a small single-family parcel.

A. Design compatibility. Proposed construction shall have exterior colors, forms, and materials that are consistent throughout and visually compatible with adjacent structures and the surrounding neighborhood. The size, mass, and scale of new dwellings shall also be visually compatible with adjacent structures and the surrounding neighborhood. New dwellings shall also comply with the City’s Residential Design Guidelines.

B. Setbacks.

The front and rear setback shall be 20 feet, or 15 feet for houses with a front porch.
A second story shall be set back an additional five feet from the front of the house and three feet on both sides (which may be accommodated within a sloping roof), unless the architectural style requires a zero front or side second story setback, as determined by the Review Authority. In the latter case, the ground floor front setback shall be 25 feet.

C. Driveway width. Driveways shall be limited to a maximum paved width of 10 feet with two feet clear of obstructions on either side, or 40 percent of the parcel frontage, whichever is less. Driveway width at property lines shall be limited to 10 feet.

D. Front yard paving. No more than 45 percent of the total area of the front setback shall be paved for walkways, driveways, and/or other hardcover pavement.

E. Reserved.

F. Lot coverage. The maximum lot coverage shall be 50 percent.

G. Parking. For dwellings with detached garages located behind the primary unit, the minimum parking requirement shall be two covered spaces. Attached garages shall be set back a minimum of 10 feet from the front of the building, and shall include two enclosed spaces.

(Ord. No. 2108 § 1; Ord. No. 2166, § 3, 2007; Ord. No. 2183 § 4, 2009; Ord. No. 2190 § 5, 2009; Ord. No. 2379 § 5 (Exh. A), 2023.)

Division 36.230. Commercial Zoning Districts

Sections:

36.230.010 Purpose of Division.

36.230.020 Purposes of Commercial Zoning Districts.

36.230.030 Commercial District Land Uses and Permit Requirements.

36.230.040 Commercial District General Development Standards.

36.230.050 Mixed Use Overlay Development Standards.