Greene County
Town of Lexington, NY: zoning for new construction
Residential lots in the Town of Lexington run from a 0.69-acre minimum in Hamlet District up to 3 acres in Rural Residential District, across 3 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) 989-6476 before you rely on a figure.
Looking specifically at an accessory dwelling unit? See ADU rules for Lexington →
Zoning districts
| District | Min lot | Setbacks F / S / R | Max height | ADU |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hamlet District | 0.69 ac | 45 / 25 / 25 ft | 35 ft | Special permit |
| Rural Residential District | 3 ac | 75 / 30 / 30 ft | 35 ft | Special permit |
| Conservation District | 10 ac | 75 / 45 / 100 ft | 35 ft | No |
Hamlet District - The 45 foot front yard is measured from the center line of the road, not from the front lot line. A building here may not exceed a footprint of 4,000 square feet, whatever the 20% coverage figure would allow on a larger lot.
- Minimum lot size is 30,000 square feet (0.6887 acre).
- Minimum road frontage is 35 feet, or 25 feet on a flag or rear lot, which is a separate requirement from the 100 foot minimum lot width.
- Height is measured from the sill of the first floor, and a basement does not count as a story.
- The floodplain and stream corridor overlays do not change these figures unless the zoning law says so.
Rural Residential District - The 75 foot front yard is measured from the center line of the road, not from the front lot line. A building here may not exceed a footprint of 4,000 square feet, whatever the 10% coverage figure would allow on a larger lot.
- Minimum road frontage is 35 feet, or 25 feet on a flag or rear lot, which is a separate requirement from the 300 foot minimum lot width.
- This district is all land below 2,400 feet above mean sea level that is not in the Hamlet District, so elevation decides which district a parcel falls in.
- Height is measured from the sill of the first floor, and a basement does not count as a story.
- The floodplain and stream corridor overlays do not change these figures unless the zoning law says so.
Conservation District - The 75 foot front yard is measured from the center line of the road, not from the front lot line. A building here may not exceed a footprint of 3,000 square feet, whatever the 5% coverage figure would allow on a 10 acre lot.
- Minimum road frontage is 35 feet, or 25 feet on a flag or rear lot, which is a separate requirement from the 500 foot minimum lot width.
- This district is all land above 2,400 feet above mean sea level, and may also take conservation land below that line.
- Most of this land is owned by the Department of Environmental Conservation as part of Catskill Park, or by the New York City Department of Environmental Protection as watershed.
- Height is measured from the sill of the first floor, and a basement does not count as a story.
- The floodplain and stream corridor overlays do not change these figures unless the zoning law says so.
Short-term rentals
Short-term rentals allowed with local rules. Short term rentals need a town permit. All 62 non-resident owner permits are issued, with 0 available and about 5 applicants on the waiting list, so an owner who does not live in the town cannot get a permit now. There is no cap on resident owner permits.
Conditions the code attaches:
- Permits are not transferable. If the property is sold, the new owner must apply for a permit of their own, so a purchase cannot inherit a non-resident slot.
- Under § 4.F, only ten further permits may be issued to new non-resident owners, on a first come, first serve basis, with the code enforcement officer keeping the interest list.
- Occupancy is set by the code enforcement officer from the bedroom count and is capped at fifteen sleeping persons. Above that, the property is treated as a hotel or motel.
- All guest parking must be on the parcel. Guests parking on the road revokes the permit until the problem is remedied.
- A potable water test meeting Subpart 5-1 of the state sanitary code is required, with retesting every three years. A failed test means quarterly testing for a year and bottled water for guests.
- Violations allow 30 days to cure, then a warning, then fines of $500, $1,000 and $1,500. Three violations in a calendar year revoke the permit.
Good to know
- UtilityCentral Hudson territory.
- Zoning codeTown of Lexington Zoning Law, § 4.06 Bulk Regulations
- Building dept(518) 989-6476
- Last reviewed2026-10-05
Working out a budget? A standard-finish build here runs $197–$259/sq ft , and a conforming lot adds about $8,291 on top - see the full cost to build a house in Lexington, or what an ADU costs here.
Sizing up a specific parcel in Lexington?
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Other Greene County towns
All Greene County zoning: Athens · Cairo · Catskill · Coxsackie · Greenville · Halcott · Jewett · New Baltimore · Athens (Village) · Catskill (Village) · Coxsackie (Village) · Hunter (Village) · Tannersville (Village)
Zoning figures for Town of Lexington are compiled from the municipal code (last reviewed 2026-10-05) 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) 989-6476 before relying on any number. Source: the Offsite / Aldo zoning dataset.