Long Beach | Parking, Setbacks, Height

Long Beach Parking, Setbacks and Height: Table 31-2A, Garage Rules and the Parking Exempt Area

A setback (the code also says "yard") is the open space a building must leave between itself and a property line. Together with height, lot coverage and parking, setbacks decide how big a building can be on a lot. In Long Beach most of these numbers sit in one table, Table 31-2A of the Municipal Code, with the parking rules in Chapter 21.41 and the Title 22 rules in Chapter 22.40. This page reads them in Supplement 52 of the code.

Setbacks, Height, Coverage and Floor Area by District

Lot coverage is the share of the lot that buildings may cover. Floor area ratio (FAR) is building floor area divided by lot area; an FAR of 0.6 on a 6,000 square foot lot allows 3,600 square feet of floor area. Both appear in Table 31-2A with the setbacks and heights.

Source: Long Beach Municipal Code Table 31-2A, Supplement 52. The rear yard is measured from the center of an abutting alley where one exists (note k). N/A means the table sets no limit.

Some districts list two heights. Note (d) explains: "The first number indicates the height of the midpoint of roof, and second number indicates height of building measured to peak of roof. A project shall conform to both standards." So an R-1-S house may reach 24 feet at the middle of its roof slope and 28 feet at the peak. In R-2-S and R-2-I, "An additional 2 feet may be permitted to accommodate access stairs to the roof."

Height is defined in Section 21.15.1330. For a sloped roof it runs from grade "to the midpoint height of the highest sloped roof." For a flat roof it runs "to the top of the railing, parapet or coping (whichever is higher)." A sloped roof with a roof deck counts as sloped only if the deck does not exceed ten percent of the footprint; above that, "the roof deck shall be considered a flat roof." Section 21.31.220 allows chimneys and vent pipes 2 extra feet, and in the R-4 zones stair and elevator enclosures, rooftop equipment and rooftop amenities "may extend up to ten feet (10′) above the building height."

Garages get a break. Under Section 21.31.225, "The actual garage area up to seven hundred (700) square feet for a single-family dwelling, and all garage area for multi-family dwellings, shall be exempt from lot coverage." Section 21.31.235 excludes the same garage area from floor area ratio, but "GFA above the garage is not excluded."

Special Yard Rules That Change the Numbers

Section 21.31.215 adjusts the table on many real lots:

• Front yard averaging. In R-1-S, R-2-S and R-2-I, "If one or both adjoining lots encroach in the front yard setback," the front yard becomes "the average setback of adjoining lots."
• Key lots. Next to a corner lot built to its side yard line, the front yard of a key lot is half that of the nearest interior lot.
• Shallow lots. On lots under 100 feet deep, the rear yard may drop to 10 percent of depth (not under 5 feet) in R-1-S, R-1-M, R-2-S and R-2-I; 30 percent (not under 15 feet) in R-1-L and R-2-L; 10 percent on the first story and 30 percent on the second in R-1-N; and 20 percent (not under 10 feet) elsewhere.
• Narrow lots. On lots under 27 feet wide in R-1-N, R-1-M, R-2-N and R-2-A, a new home or an addition over 450 square feet needs site plan review, the side yard is 3 feet, and "If the lot abuts an alley, garage access shall be taken from that alley."
• R-3 and R-4 side yards. Note (q) to Table 31-2A: "The side yard setback is 10 percent of lot width on each side, but in no case shall the interior side yard setback be required to exceed 10 feet." The street side yard is 15 percent, up to 15 feet, and "Neither setback shall ever be less than 3 feet."
• Zero side yards. One zero side yard is allowed in R-1-M, R-1-T and R-3-T if the opposite side yard is at least twice the normal width, and a double zero side yard in R-1-T and R-3-T with rear access.
• No parking in the front yard. "Parking in the front yard setback is prohibited," except as Sections 21.41.276 and 21.41.281 allow.

Larger buildings next to houses need buffers. In R-4-N, R-4-H, R-4-U and commercial zones that allow homes, a site next to R-1, R-2 or R-3 land must set the building back 20 feet for two stories (up to 25 feet tall), 30 feet for the third story and 40 feet for the fourth story or more, plant "a five foot (5') wide planter strip containing a solid screen of trees," and break any wall longer than 84 feet with a recess.

Table 31-3 then lists what may sit inside a required yard. Eaves and chimneys may project 2 feet 6 inches into a front yard; porches and patio covers may project 5 feet or half the setback, whichever is less; balconies the same. A roof deck may not sit in a front or side yard and must stay 3 feet from the rear line.

Garages and Accessory Buildings

Section 21.31.245 sets garage rules for one or two homes on a lot. "If the garage takes direct access from a street, the garage shall be set back twenty feet (20′) from the street property line," and 50 feet in R-1-L. In the rear half of a lot a garage may sit on the rear line and one side line if the other side yard is at least 3 feet wide. Garages "for single-family residences shall not exceed seven hundred (700) square feet in size and for two-family residences, shall not exceed one thousand one hundred (1,100) square feet," and "No garage shall exceed one-story and thirteen feet (13') in height."

For three or more homes on an R-3 or R-4 lot, Table 31-7 applies: an on-grade garage sits 30 feet from the street and must be "screened by residential use from all street frontages," and "For 3 or more units, no vehicle shall be permitted to back into the street." Other accessory buildings, such as a workshop, must stay in the rear half of the lot, may not exceed "three hundred (300) square feet or five percent (5%) of the lot area in size, whichever is smaller," and may not have a kitchen or bath. Detached accessory buildings are barred in R-1-S, R-1-M, R-2-S and R-2-I. ADUs follow state law instead, as the ADU and SB 9 page explains.

Parking: How Many Spaces

Table 41-1A in Chapter 21.41 sets parking by bedroom count, with a separate column for the Coastal Zone.

Source: Long Beach Municipal Code Table 41-1A, Required Number of Parking Spaces for Residential Uses.

Several rules sit under the table. "In calculating required parking spaces, all rooms other than 1 living room, 1 dining room, 1 kitchen, and bathrooms shall be calculated as bedrooms," so a den counts as a bedroom. Guest parking "shall be required when 4 or more detached or attached dwelling units (including existing units on the site) are proposed as one development." Street spaces next to the lot may count as guest parking when all parking is reached from an alley and "the site is outside of the parking-impacted area." Under Section 21.41.216, "fractional numbers shall be rounded up to the closest whole number."

Where the spaces go matters as much as how many. Section 21.41.213 says "In all residential districts, all required parking spaces shall be provided within an enclosed garage," and Section 21.41.221 requires them "on the project site." Section 21.41.233 bars tandem spaces for required parking, except for valet parking approved through site plan review, projects with at least 10 percent on-site low income units, and ADU parking, where "up to three (3) spaces may be in tandem." Table 41-2 sets a standard space at 8 feet 6 inches by 18 feet and a compact space at 8 by 15 feet, with compact spaces capped at 50 percent in residential projects.

A worked example by VanPlex: a fourplex of two-bedroom units outside the Parking Exempt Area needs 8 unit spaces plus 1 guest space, 9 in all, inside garages. The same fourplex in the Parking Exempt Area needs none.

The Parking Exempt Area

Section 21.41.175, added by ORD-24-0033, says "No minimum number of vehicular parking spaces shall be required by the Zoning Regulations or any Planned Development District or Specific Plan for any lot or parcel that is within, or partially within, the Parking Exempt Area." Section 21.41.180 has the Zoning Administrator keep the map "in accordance with Cal. Gov't Code Section 65863.2 (aka AB 2097)." That statute, Government Code 65863.2, bars minimum parking on a development "located within one-half mile of public transit."

The exemption has limits. It covers car parking only, so space sizes, driveway widths, electric vehicle charging and disabled access rules still apply. It does not apply to "hotel, motel, inn, bed and breakfast inn, and other transient lodging." The City may still require parking if it makes written findings "within 30 days of receipt of a completed application" of a substantially negative impact, but that exception cannot be used for a housing project with "fewer than 20 dwelling units," one that sets aside 20 percent of its units for very low, low or moderate income households, students, the elderly or persons with disabilities, or one that already gets a parking cut under another law. Any parking a project builds voluntarily "shall not be required to be provided to residents free of charge."

The City's Parking Exempt Area page says the map "was adopted on January 30, 2025, pursuant to Section 21.25.180 of the Zoning Regulations, which was adopted by the City Council on December 17, 2024," and was later updated with California Department of Transportation data. The code places the map section at 21.41.180, so the page's reference to 21.25.180 points to the wrong section; the code numbering controls. The SB 9 and ADU walkshed map is a separate map, explained on the ADU and SB 9 page.

Title 22 MFR Zones: Setbacks, Height and Parking

The rezoned multi-family areas use their own tables in Chapter 22.40. Table 40-2 sets street setbacks of 8 feet in MFR-L and 5 feet in MFR-M, interior side setbacks of 4 feet in both, and interior rear setbacks of 7 and 5 feet. Height is "Consistent with the General Plan; see Citywide District Height Map," and "Individual stories cannot exceed 15 feet in height." Height is measured from "the adjacent sidewalk grade," and rooftop equipment up to 12 feet and some roof deck features are left out.

Table 40-4 cuts parking: 0.75 spaces per unit for 0 to 1 bedroom, 1.25 for 2 bedrooms, 1.5 for 3 or more, and 1 guest space "Per every 6 units," plus 1 bicycle space per 5 units. Uncovered spaces "may comprise up to 50% of the required parking," stacked, lift and tandem stalls all count, and "Street curb cuts to access parking or circulation shall be limited to one (1) per lot." A garage door on grade sits 18 feet from the property line. Projects of 11 or more units provide common open space of 5 percent of the lot area, and every unit gets at least 36 square feet of private open space at least 6 feet wide.

One rounding rule reads oddly. Section 22.40.060.B says "fractional numbers of parking spaces, 0.5 or greater, shall be rounded down to the nearest whole number," while Title 21 rounds every fraction up. As printed, a Title 22 project rounds 0.5 or more down; the text says nothing about fractions below 0.5. Ask the Planning Bureau how it rounds a fraction such as 0.25 before you count spaces.

Where to Go Next

Related on VanPlex: the Long Beach overview, the duplex to fourplex guide and the lot eligibility checks.

Frequently Asked Questions

Official sources (checked October 2026)