R1 Zoning NYC, Single Family Zoning

R1 Zoning is a single family residential zoning district in New York City. You can only build single family residences in R1 zoning. Two family and multi family is not allowed. You can, as in all residential zoning districts, build community facilities as an option, these have different regulations. In this post we will only be reviewing the basic R1 zoning requirements for building a single family house in an R1 Zone.

 

R1 Zoning NYC 

R1 zoning is broken into 3 categories:

• R1-1
• R1-2
• R1-2A

 

R1 Zoning NYC Districts

 

R1-1 Zoning NYC

R1-1 Zoning Example Area: 

Riverdale, Bronx Around Wave Hill parts of Independence Avenue, Palisades Avenue Etc..

Todt Hill, Staten Island

R1-1 zoning Regulations

Residential Use:

Residential use in R1-1 zoning is for Single Family Detached Houses. R1-1 Zoning must have yards on all sides of the property. You cannot build attached houses.

Lot Size:

Minimum Lot width =100 Feet

Minimum Lot Area = 9,500 Sq Ft

Floor Area Ratio (FAR):

FAR = .5

Floor Area Ratio means you take the area of the lot and multiply by .5 that is the allowable square footage of the house.

FAR example for R1-1

If the property lot area is 10,000 sq feet you can build a maximum of a 5,000 square foot house on that property.

Open Space Ratio (OSR):

OSR = 150

This means how much open space is required on the property. we will use the same example of the 10,000 sq ft property with a 5,000 sq foot house. You need 150% of the house area for open space. So you need to calculate 150% of 5,000 sq ft. Or 5,000 x 1.5 =7,500 sq ft. In this example the open space required on the lot would be 7,500 sq ft and you can build on 2,500 sq ft. This would work perfectly for a 2 story house of 2,500 sq ft per floor equaling a total of a 5,000 square foot house.

Yards:

Front Yard: 20 feet minimum

Rear Yard: 30 feet minimum

Side Yards: 15 feet minimum for each but 35 feet combined.

Height: 

At the front yard line you can build up to 25 feet and then there is a sky exposure plane. This is a vertically sloping plane that governs the actual height of the home.

Parking:

Every house must provide parking for at least 1 car.

 

R1-2 Zoning NYC

R1-2 Zoning Example Area:

Riverdale, Bronx the Fieldston Road area.

R1-2 zoning Regulations

Residential Use:

Single Family Detached/ all houses in R1-2 Zoning must have yards on all sides of the property. You cannot build attached houses.

Lot Size:

Minimum Lot width =60 Feet

Minimum Lot Area = 5,700 Sq Ft

Floor Area Ratio (FAR):

FAR = .5

This means you take the area of the lot and multiply by .5 that is the allowable square footage of the house.

FAR example for R1-2

If the property lot area is 6,000 sq feet you can build a maximum of a 3,000 square foot house on that property.

Open Space Ratio (OSR):

OSR = 150

This means how much open space is required on the property. we will use the same example of the 6,000 sq ft property with a 3,000 sq foot house. You need 150% of the house area for open space. So you need to calculate 150% of 3,000 sq ft. Or 3,000 x 1.5 =4,500 sq ft. In this example the open space required on the lot would be 4,500 sq ft and you can build on 1,500 sq ft. This would work perfectly for a 2 story house of 1,500 sq ft per floor equaling a total of a 3,000 square foot house.

Yards:

Front Yard: 20 feet minimum

Rear Yard: 30 feet minimum

Side Yards: 8 feet minimum for each but 20 feet combined.

Height: 

At the front yard line you can build up to 25 feet and then there is a sky exposure plane. This is a vertically sloping plane that governs the actual height of the home.

Parking:

Every house must provide parking for at least 1 car.

 

R1-2A Zoning NYC

R1-2A Zoning Example Area:

Forest Hills Queens

R1-2A zoning Regulations

Residential Use:

Single Family Detached/ all houses in R1-2A Zoning must have yards on all sides of the property. You cannot build attached houses.

Lot Size:

Minimum Lot width =60 Feet

Minimum Lot Area = 5,700 Sq Ft

Floor Area Ratio (FAR):

FAR = .5

This means you take the area of the lot and multiply by .5 that is the allowable square footage of the house.

FAR example for R1-2

If the property lot area is 6,000 sq feet you can build a maximum of a 3,000 square foot house on that property.

Lot Coverage:

Lot Coverage = 30%

There is no open space ratio in R1-2A zoning.

This means how much area you can cover with the house on the property. We will use the same example of the 6,000 sq ft property with a 3,000 sq foot house. You can only build on 30% of the property. You need to calculate 30% of 6,000 sq ft. Or 6,000 x .3 =1,800 sq ft. In this example the open space required on the lot would be 4,200 sq ft and you can build on a maximum 1,800 sq ft. This would result in a house with 1,500 sq ft per floor equaling a total of a 3,000 square foot house. As an alternate option you could build 1,800 sq feet on the first floor and 1,200 sq feet on the second floor. the 600 sq ft difference could be an open roof terrace for example.

Yards:

Front Yard: 20 feet minimum

Rear Yard: 30 feet minimum

Side Yards: 8 feet minimum for each but 20 feet combined.

Height: 

Perimeter Wall Height: 25 feet

This is measured to the top of the walls at the perimeter where the low point of the roof meets the walls.

Building height: 35 feet

This is measure to the high point of the roof.

Parking:

Every house must provide parking for at least 1 car.

 

R1 Zoning in NYC

As an architect I study Zoning Codes closely, but these are complicated and quite involved issues. In this article we reviewed some of the basic concepts with regards to the R1 Zoning in NYC. This post does not assume to cover every possible issue or condition, but provide a general overview of the topic.

 

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Thank You for reading our post on R1 Zoning in NYC.

I hope this was helpful and that you now have a better understanding of R1 Zoning. If you want to discuss your project with an architect please feel free to contact us directly. We wish you the best of luck with your upcoming projects.

 

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