Can you build an ADU in Clarence, NY?

Agricultural Flood Zone District - The setbacks shown apply only where there are no principal buildings within 500 ft on the same side of the street. Otherwise a building must sit at the average setback of those buildings, with its facade parallel to the front line. The front yard also has a 200 ft maximum.

• A lot platted before 9 March 2005 needs 32,670 sq ft, or one acre for a two-family house; a lot platted after that date takes 1.33 acres, or 2.66 acres for a two-family
• Every figure is subject to increase by the Erie County Health Department
• A lot inside the Black Creek Density Floodway must also satisfy Ch. 107, the Flood Damage Prevention Law
• The 10% cap counts the principal structure and any attached garage but not detached accessory buildings
• A side yard facing a street takes the front-yard figure, and a side-load garage must stay 28 ft off the side line

Agricultural Rural Residential District - The setbacks shown apply only where there are no principal buildings within 500 ft on the same side of the street. Otherwise a building must sit at the average setback of those buildings, with its facade parallel to the front line. The front yard also has a 200 ft maximum.

• A lot platted before 9 March 2005 needs 32,670 sq ft on a 100 ft width; a lot platted after that date takes 1.33 acres on a 150 ft width
• Every figure is subject to increase by the Erie County Health Department
• A lot must front on at least 150 ft of dedicated right-of-way, and a corner lot on 200 ft of each street
• The 10% cap counts the principal structure and any attached garage but not detached accessory buildings
• A side yard facing a street takes the front-yard figure, and a side-load garage must stay 28 ft off the side line
• A driveway needs three feet of clearance from any lot line for drainage

Residential Single-Family District - The acre is the minimum without public sewer; with sewer the lot falls to 20,000 sq ft. Either can be cut to 32,670 sq ft unsewered or 15,000 sq ft sewered on a 100 ft width, but only by Town Board resolution on a major subdivision or Planning Board resolution on a minor one.

• The smaller incentive lot also requires a quarter of the parent parcel preserved as open space in perpetuity by a conservation easement recorded in the deed
• The parent parcel must be at least five acres
• Coverage falls as the house rises: 18% for a single-storey building and 13% for a two-storey
• The front yard is a range, 45 ft to 100 ft, and in a developed area a building line set off the structures within 500 ft may never be closer than 35 ft
• A lot must front on 125 ft of dedicated road, or 60 ft where the road curves more than 30 degrees; a corner lot needs 200 ft on each street, or 125 ft where there is public sewer
• A house of more than one storey needs 900 sq ft on the first floor and 1,500 sq ft in all

Traditional Neighborhood District - The 10 ft front figure is a build-to line, not a minimum yard: a building may vary up to 35 ft from it where structures within 300 ft already set a line, and in no case may a principal structure sit more than 45 ft back.

• Without public sewer the lot grows to 150 ft of width and 220 ft of depth rather than 70 by 120
• A corner lot needs 120 ft on each street
• Multiple-family housing is sized at 5,000 sq ft of land per unit
• A non-residential building is capped by floor area: 10,000 sq ft gross as a permitted use and 30,000 sq ft as a special exception use, with 800 sq ft the floor
• Impervious surface is capped at 60% across the whole project site, parking and drives included
• A house needs 900 sq ft on one storey, or 600 sq ft on the first floor and 1,000 sq ft in all if it is taller

Community Facilities District - There is no minimum lot size here. The 80 ft front setback is measured to the building's main entrance rather than to a wall or a property line, which will change where a building can sit.

• Steeples, spires and bell towers are exempt from the 35 ft height limit, as is rooftop equipment not meant for human occupancy
• Parking must be provided on site, may not encroach into any required setback, and must interconnect within the property

Restricted Business District - The acre is the minimum without public sewer; with public sewer access the lot falls to 20,000 sq ft, and a multiple dwelling needs 5,000 sq ft of land per family unit on top of that.

• The 80 ft front setback drops to a 45 ft minimum where an established front setback line already runs between the adjoining properties
• A corner lot needs 300 ft of frontage on each street
• A commercial use may not sit next to a residential one unless a 45 ft greenbelt separates them, and any structure must stand 45 ft off an adjoining residential use
• Anything over 10,000 sq ft in one structure, or 30,000 sq ft cumulatively on a property, needs a special exception permit
• Multiple-family dwellings need a special exception permit outright
• An accessory building used for business may come no closer than 25 ft to a residential lot line or district boundary and 10 ft to any other

Commercial District - The 10 ft front setback is the bottom of a range: the town settles it case by case anywhere from 10 ft to 80 ft, weighing the comprehensive plan, the character of the surrounding area and whether the principal building rather than its parking faces the street.

• The acre is the minimum without public sewer; with public sewer the lot falls to 20,000 sq ft
• An existing lot of record is held to 70 ft of frontage, 120 ft of depth and 15,000 sq ft where it carries a dwelling
• A corner lot needs 300 ft of frontage on each street
• Buildings along main interior roads take a unified 10 ft front setback, with side and rear setbacks settled by parking, loading and circulation needs
• A commercial use may not sit next to a residential one unless a 45 ft greenbelt separates them
• Arcades, awnings and open porches may project up to 12 ft into a front or side setback

Major Arterial District - The front setback is not measured from the lot line: § 229-93 sets it at 135 ft from the centre line of every public road right-of-way, so how much land it takes depends on how wide the road is.

• The 20,000 sq ft lot applies whether or not there is public sewer, with 5,000 sq ft of land for each dwelling unit on top where the lot carries housing
• A corner lot needs 300 ft of frontage on each street
• The 25 ft side yard is stated as being to a matching district, and any structure must stand 45 ft off an adjoining residential use
• Buildings along main interior roads take a unified 10 ft front setback
• A commercial use may not sit next to a residential one unless a 45 ft greenbelt separates them
• Arcades, awnings and open porches may project up to 12 ft into a front or side setback

Industrial Business Park District - Where this district abuts a residential district every setback becomes 100 ft, which is more than the 80 ft front yard it otherwise takes and five times its side yard.

• Parking is held 45 ft back from a residential property line by a required greenbelt, and may otherwise sit in the side or rear setbacks if it stays five feet off a property line
• A corner lot needs 200 ft of frontage on both streets
• A principal building needs at least 2,000 sq ft of ground floor area
• Accessory structures take the full front, side and rear setbacks rather than a reduced one
• Metal panelling may not exceed 40% of any facade visible from a right-of-way

Lifestyle Center District - The 25 acres is the minimum size of the district, not of a lot inside it, and the Town Board may reduce it. Setbacks are measured at the perimeter of the whole development rather than lot by lot, and inside it zero lot lines and zero setbacks are expressly allowed.

• Instead of a height limit, a building must stand back one foot for every foot of its own height measured to the peak, from a public right-of-way or from a parcel next to land zoned for this district
• The 80 ft figure runs from the property line along any existing public street or adjoining residential district, and 25 ft next to a commercial district
• Parking stands 35 ft back from a perimeter street and 45 ft from any off-site residential use
• Lot area, lot width and yards for residential buildings are proposed by the applicant and set by the Planning Board against site-planning criteria
• At least a tenth of the site must be greenspace, water features, lawns and landscaping included