Pomona | Lot Size and Subdivisions

Pomona Lot Size and Subdivisions: Lot Widths, Maps, Alleys, Fees and State Lot Splits

Pomona sets lot size through the form module in each zoning name, and divides land under Part 10 of the Pomona Zoning and Development Code, "Division of Land." This page gives the minimum lot widths, the map types, the street and alley rules for new lots, who decides, the fees for Fiscal Year 2026-27, and how the state's SB 9 and SB 684 lot rules meet the local code. The Pomona overview gives the short version.

Lot Width Comes From the Form Module

Each Pomona zoning name begins with a form module, explained on the zoning districts page. Section 360 makes that module the source of the lot rules: "A lot must not have an area less than the minimum specified in the applied Form Module," and "A lot must not have a width less than the minimum specified by the applied Form Module." Both rules state the same intent, "To ensure that newly established lots are consistent in size with surrounding lots."

Width depends on where the car enters. Section 360.B says lot width is measured along the primary street lot lines. "Lots that take vehicular access from a primary street must meet the minimum width requirement for lots with front access." A lot that takes its driveway from a side street, a side or rear lot line, or an alley "can meet the minimum width requirement for lots with side/alley access," which is narrower. Where a lot faces two primary streets, both frontages must meet the minimum.

Source: Pomona Zoning and Development Code, Sec. 200, 320, 330 and 340, "Lot Area (min)" and "Lot Width" rows of each module. The module tables are unchanged in the 2026 marked copy.

The house and low-rise modules print "n/a" for minimum lot area, so a lot in the RND, NED and UND districts has a width floor and no area floor. Two lots can also be counted as one: Section 360 says "multiple lots may be grouped together as a lot when a lot tie or lot merger affidavit is filed and approved." A lot tie is a recorded promise to treat two lots as one. A smaller lot area or width can be asked for as a variance, a discretionary approval from the Planning Commission after a public hearing.

The 2024 text of Section 360 sent variance requests to "Sec. 1170.E. (Variance)," while the review authority table of the same code listed Section 1170.E as Director Determination and placed the variance in Section 1160.F. The 2026 marked copy corrects the reference to Section 1160.E, the variance section as renumbered. The Planning Commission decides a variance.

Parcel Maps and Tract Maps

A subdivision map is the survey drawing that creates new legal lots. Section 1000.B sets two kinds:

• Parcel map (minor subdivision). Required "for all subdivisions creating 4 or less parcels," unless the Planning Commission approves a parcel map waiver after finding the division meets City rules on area, improvements, drainage, roads, sewer, water and environmental protection.
• Tract map (major subdivision). Required "for all subdivisions creating 5 or more parcels, 5 or more condominiums," or a community apartment project of 5 or more, with a few exceptions such as large rural parcels.

Section 1000.B adds that land "must not be separated in ownership or otherwise divided into 2, 3, or 4 parcels or condominiums" unless the division matches a parcel map approved by the City Council and recorded by the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk. Condominiums count: a fourplex sold as four condominium homes needs a parcel map, and a fiveplex needs a tract map.

Most subdivisions run in two steps. The tentative map shows the proposed lots and is decided at a public hearing; the final map (for a tract) or parcel map is then checked against the conditions and recorded. Since the 2026 amendments took effect, the review authority table in Section 1100.A gives the Planning Commission the final decision on a tentative map, with appeal to the City Council, and gives the City Council the decision on final maps and parcel maps. Section 1180.D lists the findings the decision maker must make, taken from Government Code 66474, including that "The site is physically suitable for the proposed density of development."

Section 1180.D has a drafting error. Under the heading "Tentative Map," its first rule says "A Certificate of Compliance application must be filed, processed, and heard pursuant to Sec. 1110." The words were copied from the section above. Read it as the filing rule for a tentative map.

Design Rules for New Lots

Section 1010 sets the design standards a map must meet. The ones that most affect a small project:

• Frontage. "All lots must front a public or private street or publicly accessible pedestrian walk."
• Alleys. "Alleys are required at the rear or side of all new lots within Residential Use Modules," unless the Planning Commission conditionally approves otherwise because physical constraints prohibit them. A new or improved alley must be at least 20 feet wide, and existing alleys next to a subdivision must be improved along the whole block.
• Blocks and streets. Blocks may not exceed 550 feet between street lines, cul-de-sacs and dead-end streets are not permitted without Planning Commission approval, and street grades may not be steeper than 5 percent unless the City Engineer finds a steeper grade necessary.
• Pedestrian walks. A walk dedication must be at least 12 feet wide, and never narrower than 6 feet.
• Lot shape. Side lot lines must be close to right angles to the street. The Planning Commission may approve lot averaging, where some lots in a tract fall below the module requirement and the tract as a whole meets it on average; it must find less grading, a better lot design or an environmental benefit.

Part 10 calls itself by another name. Section 1000.A begins "Part 12 (Division of Land) regulates the division of land," and Section 1010.B refers to "Part X (Streets)" several times. Part 12 of the code is General Rules and the streets part is Part 9. The rules still apply; only the labels are wrong.

Map Fees and Park Fees

Source: City of Pomona, FY 2026-27 Master Fee Schedule, "Suggested Fee" column of the Planning and Public Works tables, adopted by Resolution No. 2026-55 on May 26, 2026 and effective July 1, 2026.

A subdivision also changes the park fee. Under Section 70-80 of the City Code, each person building a new dwelling unit must dedicate land or pay fees in lieu of it for parks. Resolution 2021-89, reprinted in the City's FY 2024-25 impact fee report, sets two columns. A home in a subdivision pays $10,119 for 0 to 500 square feet, $15,204 for 501 to 1,499 square feet and $18,080 for 1,500 square feet or more; an infill home pays $6,422, $9,649 or $11,475. The resolution calls the subdivision column "Fees in lieu of land dedication charged under the Quimby Act for subdivisions." The Quimby Act is the state law that lets a city require park land or fees from subdividers.

SB 9 Urban Lot Splits in Pomona

The Pomona Zoning and Development Code has no section on SB 9. The state law, Government Code 66411.7, applies on its own terms. An urban lot split divides one parcel into two "of approximately equal lot area," with neither smaller than 40 percent of the original and both at least 1,200 square feet, approved "ministerially without discretionary review" within 60 days. The owner signs an affidavit to live in one of the homes "for a minimum of three years." See the SB 9 page for the full state rules.

Three Pomona facts shape what is possible:

• Zone. The statute requires a parcel "located within a single-family residential zone." No Pomona district is named a single-family zone; the RND districts allow homes up to fourplexes. Ask the Planning Division in writing whether it treats your RND lot as eligible.
• Tenants and rent control. A split may not require demolishing or altering "Housing that is subject to any form of rent or price control" or housing "occupied by a tenant in the last three years." Any home rented in the last three years fails the second test. Pomona's 2025 rent stabilization ordinance also applies to "all rental units within the city" unless an exemption is filed.
• Alleys and streets. The statute says a city "shall not impose regulations that require dedications of rights-of-way or the construction of offsite improvements" for a lot split. Pomona's rule that new residential lots have an alley at the rear or side cannot be applied to an SB 9 split for that reason.

Historic land is also excluded. The statute bars a split of a site "designated or listed as a city or county landmark," and any split that requires demolishing or altering "A contributing structure" in a historic district designated under a city ordinance. Pomona has six historic districts; see the historic districts page. Two homes are the most the City must allow on each new parcel, counting ADUs.

SB 684 and SB 1123 Small-Lot Maps

Government Code 66499.41 lets a qualifying housing project use a parcel map or tentative and final map with "10 or fewer parcels" and "10 or fewer residential units," approved without a hearing and decided "within 60 days." It covers "A lot zoned to allow multifamily residential dwelling use" of up to five acres, and a vacant lot zoned for single-family homes. The Pomona code has no section that carries out this statute, so the statute governs directly. Because Pomona's RND districts allow dwelling units without a cap, ask the City how it classes an RND lot under this test. The SB 684 and SB 1123 page explains the state rules, including changes that start in 2027.

A local small-lot route also exists. Since 2026, a Development Plan for 4 to 29 homes is decided by the Zoning Administrator, but "Any Tier 1 Development Plan with a proposed map action is considered a Tier 2 Development Plan," which goes to the Planning Commission. A project that pairs new homes with a subdivision map therefore lands at the Commission. See the three or more homes page.

Deadlines and Appeals

Section 1110.F says a tentative tract or parcel map "must become invalid if not exercised within the time limits specified by the California Government Code (Sec. 66452.6)," and its extensions follow the same statute. A map is "exercised" when the final map is recorded at the County Recorder. Other discretionary approvals expire after 12 months and may be extended "in up to one-year increments, not to exceed a total of two." A request filed before expiry gets "an automatic 90-day time extension" while it is processed.

An appeal must be filed with the City Clerk "within 20 calendar days following the action or decision being appealed." For a tentative map the hearing is set within 30 days of filing, instead of 45 for other appeals, and the decision follows within 10 days of the hearing, instead of 30. A denied application may not be filed again in the same or a substantially similar form for 12 months, unless it was denied without prejudice.

Where to Go Next

Related on VanPlex: the Pomona overview, the SB 9 page and the SB 684 and SB 1123 page.

Frequently Asked Questions

Official sources (checked October 2026)