ADU · Erie County

Can you build an ADU in Depew, NY?

Village of Depew has 8 districts. 6 districts prohibit ADUs, 1 allows them with occupancy restrictions, 1 requires a special-use permit. Check your address to confirm the district that applies to your parcel:

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What the Depew code says

Depew allows an auxiliary housing unit inside a single-family house in R-1 and R-2 by special permit, but only for elderly or disabled members of the family living there, so it cannot be rented. C-1, C-2, MS, M-1 and M-2 have no such unit.

Conditions the code attaches:

In R-1 the permit comes from the Code Enforcement Officer, in R-2 from the Zoning Board of Appeals
The unit must be rooms within a detached single-family house
R-2 permits a two-family house by right
C-1 and C-2 allow apartments only on the upper stories of commercial buildings
MS, M-1 and M-2 allow no residential uses

What the Depew code indicates by district

The table below shows how each district treats ADUs, alongside the lot and setback standards that govern a second unit. District boundaries and conditions vary, so treat this as a starting point and confirm the district that applies to your parcel.

District	Min lot	Setbacks F / S / R	Max height	ADU
Single-Family Residential District	0.15 ac	25 / 6 / 25 ft	30 ft	Occupancy restricted
Two-Family and Multifamily Residential District	0.15 ac	25 / 6 / 25 ft	30 ft	Special permit
General Commercial District	0.14 ac	30 / 0 / 10 ft	30 ft	No
Shopping Center District	0.23 ac	30 / 10 / 10 ft	30 ft	No
Motor Services District	0.5 ac	30 / 10 / 10 ft	30 ft	No
Light Industry District	0.23 ac	30 / 10 / 10 ft	30 ft	No
Heavy Industry District	0.23 ac	30 / 10 / 10 ft	30 ft	No
Land Conservation District	—	—	—	No

Single-Family Residential District - A corner lot is priced higher than an interior one: 8,400 sq ft on a 75 ft width rather than 6,600 sq ft on 60 ft. A house of more than one storey needs 1,200 sq ft rather than 900.

Six feet is the least either side yard may be, and the two together must add to 12 ft
The lot area is stated per dwelling
A patio home and a zero lot line home carry their own standards under § 260-31 and override these figures, both on 5,000 sq ft and a 40 ft width with no side yard and a 40% coverage cap
A patio home takes a 12 ft front yard, a 1,000 sq ft walled patio and a 28 ft height cap; a zero lot line home takes a 15 ft front yard and sits against one side line
Under either form buildings stand 12 ft apart and a garage must sit 20 ft back from the street line
Confirm with the village which districts permit a patio home or a zero lot line home before relying on the smaller lot

Two-Family and Multifamily Residential District - The figures shown are the single-family standard. A duplex needs 7,500 sq ft, or 10,000 sq ft on a corner, on a 75 ft width with 30 ft front and rear yards and a looser 40% coverage cap.

Multifamily needs a full acre on a 100 ft width and 150 ft of depth with 30 ft yards all round
The multifamily corner-lot figure reads 3,500 sq ft minimum per unit, a per-unit density where a corner-lot area should be; confirm it with the village before relying on it
The multifamily standard also states a 30 ft each-side yard against a 15 ft combined total, which cannot both be minimums; confirm with the village
A corner lot is priced higher than an interior one: 8,400 sq ft on a 75 ft width rather than 6,600 sq ft on 60 ft
A house of more than one storey needs 1,200 sq ft rather than 900
A patio home or a zero lot line home carries its own standards under § 260-31, on 5,000 sq ft and a 40 ft width with a 40% coverage cap; confirm with the village which districts permit them

General Commercial District - The side and rear yards shown apply against another non-residential lot. Against a residential district the side yard is 50 ft and the rear yard is 25 ft or the height of the building, whichever is greater.

No side yard at all is required against another non-residential lot
Vehicle use areas take their own setbacks: 15 ft at the front, 20 ft from a residential side or rear line and 10 ft otherwise
No separation is required between buildings on the same site

Shopping Center District - The side and rear yards shown apply against another non-residential lot. Against a residential district the side yard is 50 ft and the rear yard is 25 ft or the height of the building, whichever is greater.

Vehicle use areas stand 10 ft back at the front, 20 ft from a residential side or rear line and 10 ft otherwise
No separation is required between buildings on the same site

Motor Services District - Against a residential district both the side and the rear yard rise to 50 ft, against the 10 ft shown.

Vehicle use areas stand 15 ft back at the front, 25 ft from a residential side or rear line and 10 ft otherwise

Light Industry District, Heavy Industry District - The side and rear yards shown apply against another non-residential lot. Against a residential district the side yard is 50 ft and the rear yard is 25 ft or the height of the building, whichever is greater.

Vehicle use areas take their own setbacks: 10 ft at the front, 20 ft from a residential side or rear line and 10 ft otherwise
No separation is required between buildings on the same site

Land Conservation District - The district exists to prohibit substantial development in the form of buildings or structures, given special or unusual conditions of topography, drainage, floodplain or other natural conditions.

The code calls L-C both an overlay district and one of the eight districts the Zoning Map establishes, so confirm with the Village whether a parcel carries L-C alone or L-C over a base district
The general standards for off-street parking, loading and stacking, landscaping, buffers and screening, site lighting, and fences and walls still apply

ADUs vs. short-term rentals in Depew

No local short-term-rental law on record - which is not the same as permission for Village of Depew. The village has no local short-term rental law. That is not the same as permission, so confirm with the village before counting on renting a home short term. These are separate questions from whether you can build an ADU — a unit you're allowed to add isn't automatically one you're allowed to rent nightly, so check both.

Good to know

Residential lot minimum0.15 ac — an ADU still has to fit the district's lot and setback envelope.
UtilityNational Grid territory.
Zoning codeecode360.com/13280870
Building dept(716) 683-1400

ADU FAQ — Depew, NY

Are ADUs allowed in Depew, NY?

Village of Depew has 8 districts. 6 districts prohibit ADUs, 1 allows them with occupancy restrictions, 1 requires a special-use permit. Check your address with the free ADU checker, or confirm with the building department at (716) 683-1400.

Do I need a special permit for an ADU in Depew?

It depends on the district: 1 of 8 require a special-use permit, the rest do not. Check the district that applies to your parcel before you design.

Can I use an ADU as a short-term rental in Depew?

No local short-term-rental law on record - which is not the same as permission for Village of Depew. ADU occupancy and short-term-rental rules are separate: an ADU you can build isn't automatically one you can rent nightly. Confirm both before you count on STR income.

Run the free ADU check for your parcel →

What an ADU costs to build in Depew

Permission is one question and budget is another. An 800 sq ft accessory unit here runs roughly $200k–260k at a standard finish, and the per-square-foot rate comes in above a full house because the kitchen, bath, panel and heating plant cost the same either way. See the full cost to build an ADU in Depew, priced by size.

How we know this

Sections analyzed: § 260-13 · §§ 260-23B, 260-24B · § 260-22 · §§ 260-25 to 260-29
Districts confirmed: 8 of 8 — every mapped district.
Last reviewed: 2026-09-10
Not covered here: Overlay districts, the zoning map, and any conditions attached to an individual parcel. Size limits and owner-occupancy terms sit in the code section above, not in this summary.

More on Depew: Full zoning for new construction · ADU build cost · House build cost · ADU rules across Erie County · All Erie County towns

ADU information for Village of Depew is compiled from the municipal code (last reviewed 2026-09-10) and provided for decision-support only — not legal or architectural advice. ADU eligibility, size, owner-occupancy and permit conditions vary by district and often carry exceptions; verify with the building department at (716) 683-1400 before relying on any answer. Source: the Offsite / Aldo zoning dataset.