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Albany County

City of Watervliet, NY: zoning for new construction

10 districts Min residential lot 0.092–0.23 ac National Grid

Residential lots in the City of Watervliet run from a 0.092-acre minimum in Residential 1 up to 0.23 acres in Residential 1A, across 10 zoning districts in all. Short-term rentals allowed with local rules. Power here is National Grid territory. The district table below has the setbacks, height limits and coverage - confirm the specifics with the building department at (518) 270-3800 before you rely on a figure.

Looking specifically at an accessory dwelling unit? See ADU rules for Watervliet →

Zoning districts

District Min lot Setbacks F / S / R Max height ADU
Business — 0 / 0 / 20 ft 40 ft —
Light Industrial — 25 / 10 / 25 ft 50 ft —
Mixed Use 1 0.092 ac 10 / 3 / 15 ft 40 ft As of right
Mixed Use 2 0.092 ac 10 / 3 / 15 ft 40 ft As of right
Planned Mixed Use District — — — —
Residential 1 0.092 ac 10 / 3 / 15 ft 35 ft As of right
Residential 1A 0.23 ac 25 / 10 / 30 ft 35 ft As of right
Residential 2 0.092 ac 10 / 3 / 15 ft 35 ft As of right
Residential 3 0.12 ac 10 / 5 / 15 ft 45 ft As of right
Waterfront Conservation 0.46 ac 25 / 10 / 30 ft 35 ft —

Business - No dwelling of any type is permitted in B under Schedule A, so the district is for nonresidential building. The front setback is also a ceiling: a building stands between 0 ft and 20 ft from the front lot line.

  • There is no minimum lot area in B: Schedule B publishes none.
  • The coverage figure is maximum impervious surface, so driveways and parking count against it, not the building footprint alone.

Light Industrial - No dwelling of any type is permitted in LI under Schedule A. Where a side lot line adjoins a residential district, the yard on that side is 20 ft rather than 10 ft.

  • Schedule B publishes no minimum lot area for LI.
  • The coverage figure is maximum impervious surface, so driveways and parking count against it, not the building footprint alone.

Mixed Use 1, Mixed Use 2 - Residential lot area is the greater of 4,000 sq ft or 1,500 sq ft per dwelling unit, and both bind, so the unit count sets the land needed. A building must also reach two storeys, a minimum sitting alongside the 40 ft and 3.5 storey maximum.

  • The front setback is 10 ft or the average of prevailing setbacks, whichever is lesser, and a building stands no more than 20 ft from the front lot line.
  • Schedule A permits single-family, two-family and multifamily dwellings here, and Schedule B gives them one shared set of figures.
  • The coverage figure is maximum impervious surface, so driveways and parking count against it, not the building footprint alone.

Planned Mixed Use District - Schedule B publishes no dimensional figure for PMUD. Its row points to Article VI, Planned Development Districts, and the standards are set in each approved development plan.

Residential 1 - The 10 ft front setback is a floor, not a fixed figure: a building sits back 10 ft or the average of prevailing setbacks on the block, whichever is greater. Schedule A permits only single-family dwellings in R-1.

  • The coverage figure is maximum impervious surface, so driveways and parking count against it, not the building footprint alone.

Residential 1A - The 25 ft front setback is a floor an established streetscape can raise: a building sits back 25 ft or the average of prevailing setbacks, whichever is greater. Schedule A permits only single-family dwellings in R-1A, no two-family and no multifamily.

  • Prevailing is defined as the average of improved lots whose setbacks differ by no more than 10 ft, which drops outliers.
  • The coverage figure is maximum impervious surface, so driveways and parking count against it, not the building footprint alone.

Residential 2 - The 10 ft front setback is a floor: a building sits back 10 ft or the average of prevailing setbacks, whichever is greater. Schedule A permits single-family and two-family dwellings in R-2, and both take the same set of figures.

  • Multifamily dwellings are not permitted in R-2.
  • The coverage figure is maximum impervious surface, so driveways and parking count against it, not the building footprint alone.

Residential 3 - The lot must clear the greater of 5,000 sq ft or 2,000 sq ft per dwelling unit, so both bind. The 80% is a cap on impervious surface rather than on the building footprint, so driveways and parking count against it.

  • Floor area ratio is capped by lot size: 2.0 below 5,999 sq ft, 3.0 from 6,000 to 7,499 sq ft, and 4.0 above 7,500 sq ft.
  • A multifamily building needs 1,500 sq ft of land per dwelling unit, with 10 ft side yards and 30 ft for the two combined.
  • The front setback is 10 ft or the prevailing average, whichever is less, and a 20 ft front maximum also applies.
  • A minimum of two storeys applies as well as the 45 ft and 3.5 storey maximum.
  • A nonresidential lot is a flat 5,000 sq ft, without the per-unit step a home takes.

Waterfront Conservation - Schedule A permits no residential use in WC. Single-family, two-family and multifamily dwellings are all left blank for this district.

  • The coverage figure is maximum impervious surface, so driveways and parking count against it, not the building footprint alone.

Short-term rentals

Short-term rentals allowed with local rules. Every short-term rental must be entered on the city registry with Code Enforcement before it operates, under Chapter 176, Article V, added by Local Law No. 3-2025 and effective September 4, 2025.

Conditions the code attaches:

Good to know

Working out a budget? A standard-finish build here runs $202–$265/sq ft - see the full cost to build a house in Watervliet, or what an ADU costs here.

Sizing up a specific parcel in Watervliet?

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Other Albany County towns

Zoning figures for City of Watervliet are compiled from the municipal code (last reviewed 2026-09-19) and provided for decision-support only - not legal, engineering, or architectural advice. Setback and dimensional standards often carry conditions and exceptions; verify with the building department at (518) 270-3800 before relying on any number. Source: the Offsite / Aldo zoning dataset.

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