Columbia County

Town of Stuyvesant, NY: zoning for new construction

6 districts Min residential lot 0.41–5 ac Central Hudson

Residential lots in the Town of Stuyvesant run from a 0.41-acre minimum in Hamlet 1 up to 5 acres in Agricultural, across 6 zoning districts in all. Short-term rentals allowed with local rules. Power here is Central Hudson territory. The district table below has the setbacks, height limits and coverage - confirm the specifics with the building department at (518) 758-6248 before you rely on a figure.

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

Zoning districts

District	Min lot	Setbacks F / S / R	Max height	ADU
Hamlet 1	0.41 ac	40 / 25 / 50 ft	35 ft	Occupancy restricted
Hamlet 2	0.41 ac	40 / 25 / 50 ft	35 ft	Occupancy restricted
Agricultural	5 ac	40 / 25 / 50 ft	35 ft	Occupancy restricted
Hamlet Extension	1 ac	40 / 25 / 50 ft	35 ft	Occupancy restricted
Shoreline (follows Hamlet Extension standards)	1 ac	40 / 25 / 50 ft	35 ft	Occupancy restricted
Commercial/Light Industrial	—	—	35 ft	No

Hamlet 1, Hamlet 2 - The 0.41 acres shown is the code's worked example, not a fixed minimum. The minimum lot size is set by applying Columbia County Health Department standards for an on-lot well and septic system to the parcel, then adding the required setbacks.

Lot frontage must be at least 60 ft, a separate requirement from the lot width, which is measured at the required front-yard setback.
An accessory building takes the same 40 ft front yard, but 10 ft side and rear yards for a residential accessory use and 25 ft for an agricultural one.

Agricultural - A density average applies separately from the minimum lot size: a parcel's total developable area divided by the 5 acres required per use in this district.

A clustered subdivision halves the required lot width from 300 ft to 150 ft, approved by the Planning Board under Section 16 rather than available by right.
Section 8 attaches a density bonus: one additional lot for every 10 acres of buildable area, provided a single contiguous parcel of at least 50% of the total lot area is kept as open space.
A Prime Agricultural Land Set Aside bonus adds another lot per 10 acres of non-prime soil voluntarily excluded from development, and the two bonuses may be combined.
An accessory building takes the same 40 ft front yard but 10 ft side and rear for a residential accessory use and 25 ft for an agricultural one, against 25 ft and 50 ft for a principal building.
Minimum lot frontage is 60 ft, a separate requirement from the lot width, which is measured at the required front-yard setback.

Hamlet Extension - A density average applies separately from the minimum lot size: a parcel's total developable area divided by the 1 acre required per use in this district.

Lot frontage must be at least 60 ft, a separate requirement from the lot width, which is measured at the required front-yard setback.
An accessory building takes the same 40 ft front yard, but 10 ft side and rear yards for a residential accessory use and 25 ft for an agricultural one.
Conventional and clustered subdivisions take the same 150 ft lot width.

Shoreline (follows Hamlet Extension standards) - SL follows the Hamlet Extension standards, including a density average separate from the minimum lot size: a parcel's total developable area divided by the acres required per use.

Lot frontage must be at least 60 ft, a separate requirement from the lot width, which is measured at the required front-yard setback.
An accessory building takes the same 40 ft front yard, but 10 ft side and rear yards for a residential accessory use and 25 ft for an agricultural one.

Commercial/Light Industrial - Minimum lot size, setbacks and lot width are not fixed in this district; they are determined case by case through the site plan review process.

Lot frontage must be at least 60 ft.

Short-term rentals

Short-term rentals allowed with local rules. Stuyvesant allows short-term rentals, including unhosted, investor-owned ones, with a one-year Town permit under Local Law No. 2 of 2024. Each permit attaches to a single tax parcel and is issued only to the property owner.

Conditions the code attaches:

An unhosted rental needs a local property manager who lives in the Town or within 30 road miles, whose name, address and phone are filed with the permit application.
Occupancy is set from the bedroom count under the NYS Building Code and capped at fifteen sleeping persons; a rental sleeping more than fifteen falls under the hotel and motel rules.
All parking must be on the parcel, with no guest, renter or visitor parking on any road; failing to comply revokes the permit until remedied.
Violations have 30 days to cure; the first brings a warning, then $500, $1,000 and $1,500, and three violations in a calendar year revoke the permit.
A short-term rental is one of not more than 31 consecutive days.
Confirm current fees with the Code Enforcement Officer at (518) 758-6248.

Municipal source

Good to know

UtilityCentral Hudson territory.
Zoning codeTown of Stuyvesant Zoning Law, Section 5: Density Control Schedule (adopted 9-6-2018, modified 4-14-2022)
Building dept(518) 758-6248
Last reviewed2026-06-02

Working out a budget? A standard-finish build here runs $202–$265/sq ft , and a conforming lot adds about $5,123 on top - see the full cost to build a house in Stuyvesant, or what an ADU costs here.

Sizing up a specific parcel in Stuyvesant?

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