Tracy | Parking, setbacks and height

Tracy, California Parking, Setbacks and Height: Parking Chart, Reductions, Yards by Zone, Height, Lot Coverage and Fences

Tracy sets parking in Article 26 of its zoning chapter and puts yards, height and lot coverage in the article for each zone. The code calls a setback a "yard." The parking chart for homes dates from the older code, and the City has reduced it three times: no parking minimum downtown since December 2025, new reductions for affordable and transit projects in April 2026, and no parking for ADUs since July 2026. This page lists the numbers for each zone that allows homes. Lots in a planned unit development or a specific plan follow that plan. The Tracy overview has the summary.

The Parking Chart for Homes

Section 10.08.3480 says "the number of off-street parking spaces for the various uses shall be as set forth in the 'Permitted Parking Chart.'" The first row of the chart is "Single-family residential," with "Attached or detached" and "Duplex" under it, and the requirement beside all three lines is "Two, non-tandem, enclosed (in garage) spaces per unit." Tandem parking means one car parked behind another.

Sources: Tracy Municipal Code 10.08.1160, 10.08.1370, 10.08.1478, 10.08.2450, 10.08.3470 and 10.08.3480 (Supplement 69); Ordinance No. 1394.

• Apartments. A studio or one-bedroom unit needs "One and one-half (1½) spaces, one of which shall be covered, plus one additional space marked 'guest' per every five units." A unit with two or more bedrooms needs "Two (2) spaces with one covered per unit, plus one space marked 'Guest' for every five residential units." Ten two-bedroom units need 22 spaces (VanPlex arithmetic: 10 times 2, plus 10 divided by 5).
• Rounding. Section 10.08.3460: a result of "five-tenths (.5) or more fractional space" is "counted as one parking space."
• On the same lot. "For any type of dwelling, parking facilities shall be located on the same lot or building site as the buildings they are required to serve."
• Out of the yards. "Required residential off-street parking shall not be permitted in any required side yard, rear yard, or front yard area." Two exceptions: homes in a low or very low income housing program may use the side and rear yard, and "Those required for multiple family dwellings may be located in the rear yard," which may not drop below three feet.
• LDR. Section 10.08.1250 adds that "at least one space shall be provided at a location on the lot which meets all of the yard and coverage requirements for a garage."
• MDC. Section 10.08.1370: "At least one and one-half (1½) on-street parking space shall be provided per dwelling unit," on the same street as the home.
• Additions and changes of use. An enlarged or remodeled building adds parking "only for such alterations," and existing shortfalls need not be cured.

Stalls, Driveways and Bicycles

• Tandem. Section 10.08.3520: "Tandem parking shall not be utilized in meeting the minimum parking requirements."
• Driveway width. "Access drives serving not more than two dwelling units shall have a clear minimum width of ten (10') feet," and all others "twelve (12') feet for one way traffic and a minimum width of eighteen (18') feet for two-way traffic."
• Stall size. "The design of parking shall conform with the City Standards for parking spaces." Those standards are a separate City document that was not read.
• Compact stalls. A lot of 20 or more spaces "may include a maximum of thirty (30%) percent of the total number of spaces for compact cars," and a lot of 11 to 19 spaces 20 percent.
• Bicycles. The table in Section 10.08.3510 requires no bicycle spaces for 0 through 19 car spaces, two for 20 through 40, and "5% of number of auto spaces" above 40. Apartment projects also follow the bicycle rules of the objective design standards in Chapter 10.10.
• Front yard paving. Section 10.08.3225: "On residential property, no more than fifty (50) percent of the front yard may be paved," unless the paving is a landscape feature "that precludes parking."
• Garage placement in apartment projects. Under the objective design standards, "Parking areas shall not be located within any front or street side setback," and garage doors facing a street are recessed five feet.

Ways to Reduce Parking

Section 10.08.3470 holds the exceptions. Ordinance No. 1375 of December 16, 2025 and Ordinance No. 1386 of April 7, 2026 amended it.

• Parking study. "The number of off-street parking spaces required in section 10.08.3480 may be reduced by up to twenty (20%) percent if the owner of the property submits a parking study documenting that such off-street parking spaces will not be necessary." The Development Services Director decides, or the Planning Commission or City Council where one of them approves the project. They weigh "the availability of nearby on- or off-street parking; accessibility to nearby public transit; the City site planning design goals."
• Density bonus ratios. On the developer's request the City applies "Zero to one bedroom: One onsite parking space," "Two (2) to three (3) bedrooms: Two (2) onsite parking spaces," and "Four (4) and more bedrooms: Two (2) and one-half parking spaces." These spaces may be covered or uncovered, "but not through on-street parking."
• Projects with 20 percent lower-income homes. "For projects that include twenty (20%) percent of the units as housing affordable to lower income households parking standards may be reduced in accordance with (e) and (f)."
• Near major transit. "For a development project located within a one-half mile of a major transit stop per AB 2097, the minimum parking requirement for a new development will be removed." AB 2097 is the bill that added Government Code 65863.2. Whether a Tracy stop qualifies was not checked.
• Downtown. Section 10.08.2450: "There shall be no minimum parking standards" in the CBD zone.
• Shared lots in GHC and MU-1. Where "two (2) or more uses combine their parking into a single adjoining parking lot with common ingress and egress, they may receive a twenty-five (25%) percent reduction."
• ADUs. Ordinance No. 1394: "No parking shall be required for ADUs or JADUs." The chart on Municode still says "See section 10.08.3180 for accessory dwelling unit parking regulations," and that section now requires none.

Ordinance No. 1401, adopted August 18, 2026, is the latest change to Article 26. It sets shopping center parking at "one space per 350 square feet of gross floor area." The chart printed in its exhibit keeps the residential rows as they are on Municode.

Yards, Height and Coverage by Zone

Sources: Tracy Municipal Code, Chapter 10.08, Article 6, 10.08.1220, 10.08.1310, 10.08.1420, 10.08.1475, 10.08.1610, Article 18 and Article 19 (Supplement 69); Ordinance No. 1391. The table gives the main number for newer interior lots; the notes below give the variations.

Yard Details for House Zones

• How the front yard is measured. Section 10.08.3220: "Front yard requirements shall be measured from the front property line or the indicated edge of a street for which a precise plan exists."
• LDR front. Section 10.08.1220: "At least fifteen (15') feet to at least twenty (20') feet, including garage structure from the existing or planned sidewalk with at least a two (2) foot differential between neighboring main buildings." A garage set 15 to 18 feet back "shall have roll-up doors."
• LDR sides. For lots created after the section took effect and lots in the 84-1 Residential Areas Specific Plan: "Ten (10') feet on one side: four (4') feet on the other side. A minimum distance of fourteen (14') feet shall be provided between neighboring main buildings." Older lots outside that plan use ten feet and three feet. A corner lot has ten feet on the street side, and "fifteen (15') feet shall be required on reverse corner lots."
• LDR rear. "An average of fifteen (15') feet and a minimum of ten (10') feet," with "at least eight hundred forty (840') square feet of open space in the rear yard."
• LDR third story. "Any residence exceeding two (2) stories in height shall have all windows above the second story facing the street frontage."
• RE. A 50-foot front yard, 20-foot side yards that increase "by five (5') feet for each story above one story," a 30-foot street side yard on a corner, and a 30-foot rear yard. "One clear ten (10') foot wide side yard shall be maintained for the full length of the lot."
• Blocks that are already built. Section 10.08.3270: "In blocks with fifty (50%) percent or more of the buildable lots already developed, the minimum front yard requirement for new construction shall be equal to the average of the front yard existing on such developed lots," up to 30 feet.
• Accessory buildings. In LDR and MDR a detached accessory building "on the rear one-third (⅓) of the lot or seventy (70') feet from the front property line may be located in a required side yard other than a street side yard." Buildings on one lot stay six feet apart.
• ADUs. Ordinance No. 1394 sets four-foot side and rear setbacks for a new ADU, whatever the zone. See the ADUs and SB 9 page.

Yard Details for Multi-Family Zones

• MDC, by lot age. Section 10.08.1310: "For lots created on or after July 7, 2016, the minimum front yard shall be ten (10') feet, except for the garage door, which shall be setback a minimum of twenty (20') feet." Their rear yard is ten feet "with at least 450 square feet of open space in the rear yard." Lots created earlier keep a 15 to 20 foot front yard and a rear yard that averages 15 feet with 675 square feet of open space.
• MDC sides. "Seven (7') feet on one side and four (4') feet on the other with a minimum distance of eleven (11') feet between neighboring main buildings," or ten feet on one side and zero on the other. No garage may exceed half the lot width unless the driveway enters from an alley.
• MDR. Section 10.08.1420: front "Fifteen (15') feet, except garage structures which shall be twenty (20') feet," sides of ten and three feet, rear ten feet. Between main buildings the distance "shall be the average height of the two (2) main buildings."
• HDR. Section 10.08.1610: side yards of "Five (5') feet on each side; provided, however, this requirement shall be increased by four (4') feet for every story above the second story," and a rear yard of ten feet with the same increase. A four-story building therefore needs 13-foot side yards and an 18-foot rear yard (VanPlex arithmetic: 5 plus 8, and 10 plus 8). Main buildings stay six feet apart.
• SLR. Section 10.08.1475: front "Three (3') feet, including setback to garage," side three feet "except that the minimum side yard shall be zero for attached dwellings," five feet on the street side of a corner lot, rear three feet, and six feet between buildings.
• Open space. MDR and HDR projects provide usable open space of "100 square feet for each of the first ten (10) dwelling units, fifty (50) square feet for each of the second ten (10) units, and twenty-five (25) square feet for each unit in excess of twenty (20)," at ground level and "not less than twenty (20') feet in width."
• CBD, GHC and MU-1. The CBD has no yards "except adjacent to residential zones, in which case a fifteen-foot front yard shall be provided." GHC and MU-1 yards are 15 and ten feet, and no yards are required beside commercial or industrial zones.

Height, Coverage, Floor Area and Fences

• How height is measured. Section 10.08.3200: "the height limitations shall be measured from the sidewalk level of the street on which the lot fronts." The limits do not apply to "church spires, belfries, cupolas, or domes not used for human occupancy, nor to chimneys, ventilators, skylights."
• The 35-foot zones. RE, LDR, MDC and MDR each allow "two and one-half (2½) stories or thirty-five (35') feet, whichever is less."
• HDR, GHC and MU-1. "There shall be no height limit in the HDR Zone." GHC has "no height requirements," and Ordinance No. 1391 says "There shall be no height limit in the MU-1 Zone." Section 10.08.3200 bars any structure that would be "a hazard or obstruction to the safe navigation, landing, and takeoff of aircraft at a publicly used airport."
• Downtown. Section 10.08.2420: "a maximum height of fifty (50) feet, or four (4) floors, whichever is less."
• Coverage. LDR: "shall not exceed forty-five (45%) percent of the lot." MDR: "sixty-five (65%) percent of the lot." HDR: "seventy (70%) percent of the lot." SLR: "seventy-five (75%) percent of the lot." Section 10.08.3245 leaves shade structures out of the count.
• Minimum house size. In RE a house needs 1,500 square feet. In the CBD "the minimum floor area for a single-family dwelling shall be 500 square feet." The other residential zones read for this page state no minimum.
• Fences. Section 10.08.3250: "the maximum height shall be no greater than eight (8') feet" on most of the lot, three feet in a required front yard, "up to four (4') feet if the fence has at least fifty (50%) percent visibility," and six feet in a public easement. Pool fences "shall have a minimum height of five (5') feet."
• Corner visibility. Nothing over three feet may stand in the triangle measured 25 feet along each street line from the corner, under Section 10.08.3230.
• Pools. Swimming pools stay "no closer than five (5') feet from any side or rear property lines."

Variances and Other Relief

A variance is permission to depart from a standard because of a hardship that comes from the land itself. Section 10.08.3630 gives the Community Development Director "the authority as an administrative act" to grant one. Section 10.08.3660 requires a showing "That there are exceptional or extraordinary circumstances or conditions applicable to the property involved, including size, shape, topography, location, or surroundings," that the applicant did not cause them, and that the variance "will not adversely affect the comprehensive General Plan." A variance may not allow a use the zone does not permit. The decision "shall become final and effective fifteen (15) days after the date of such action" unless appealed to the Planning Commission, and a variance is void "if not exercised within the time specified" or, with no date, "within six (6) months."

• Density bonus. Section 10.08.4680 counts a cut in front and rear yards as one incentive if five feet remain in each, a cut in side yards as one incentive if one five-foot side yard remains, and each ten percent of added lot coverage as one. See the three or more homes page.
• Planned residential development. Section 10.08.3190 lets a use permit for "zero lot line, attached, cluster, and similar nontypical residential designs" include "modifications of the lot area and width, yard, height, lot coverage, and open space requirements."
• State law. For an SB 9 project and for an ADU, state law caps side and rear setbacks at four feet and protects a home of 800 square feet from local standards that would block it.

Where the Code Text Does Not Line Up

• Wrong section numbers for landscaping. Section 10.08.3460(f) says landscaping follows "section 10.08.3650 of this article," and Section 10.08.3470 cites "Sections 10.08.3640 and 10.08.3650." Those numbers belong to the variance article. Parking lot landscaping is in Section 10.08.3560.
• ADU parking. The chart refers to Section 10.08.3180 for ADU parking. The Municode copy of that section asks for one space, and Ordinance No. 1394 replaced it with none.
• Open space, two versions. The MDR and HDR articles require usable open space at ground level. The objective design standards use the same numbers and add that "Rooftops may be used to satisfy up to seventy-five (75%) percent." Chapter 10.10 says the more restrictive objective standard applies in a conflict.
• A zone name typed wrong. The GHC yard section says "Every lot within the GHG Zone."
• MU-1 coverage. Ordinance No. 1391 gives the MU-1 zone no lot coverage number. It requires ten percent of the total area as open space.

Limits of This Page

The code comes from Municode's Supplement 69, which lists ordinances through No. 1390 as included. Ordinance Nos. 1391, 1394 and 1401 were read from the Municode ordinance bank. The City's website answered a script with an access denied page, so the City Standards for stall sizes, the Design Goals and Standards, and the standards of each specific plan and planned unit development were not read. The City's Draft EIR of January 2026 lists a Housing Element program to "reduce the number of off-street parking spaces required for new multi-family housing development projects"; whether Ordinance No. 1386 completes that program or more changes are planned is not known. Ask the Planning Division at 333 Civic Center Plaza which standards apply to your lot and whether a newer ordinance is in force.

Where to Go Next

Related on VanPlex: the Tracy overview, the lot size and subdivisions page and the California ADU law page.

Frequently Asked Questions

Official sources (checked October 2026)