Arlington | Zoning Districts

Arlington Zoning Districts: What Each District Allows and How to Rezone

Arlington zones every lot inside its city limits. The rules sit in one document, the Unified Development Code (UDC), which the City publishes as a single PDF. A zoning district is the label on the City's zoning map that decides what may be built on a lot. In Arlington that label decides whether a lot can hold one house, a duplex, a row of townhouses or an apartment building. This page lists the districts, the homes each one allows, and how an owner asks to change the district. The Arlington overview gives the short version.

The Code and the Copy VanPlex Read

Section 1.2 says the code took effect "from and after July 10, 2014." The ordinance history at the front of the PDF shows that Ordinance No. 14-039 replaced the old "Zoning" chapter and "Subdivision Regulations" chapter with the new Unified Development Code. The code has twelve articles: districts in Article 2, uses in Article 3, measurements in Article 4, design rules in Article 5, subdivision rules in Article 6 and review procedures in Article 10.

The PDF that VanPlex read is the City Secretary's copy, and its cover says "Amended by Ordinance No. 25-059 (August 26, 2025)." That ordinance wrote the two 2025 state laws into the code: SB 15 (small lots on new tracts) and SB 840 (apartments on commercial land). It took effect on September 1, 2025. Its own preamble explains the change it made: "previously the City of Arlington required a multi-family development or a mixed-use development proposed on commercially-zoned property to seek a zone change."

Two later ordinances are posted on the City's UDC page but are not yet in the PDF. Ordinance No. 26-019 amends Articles 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 10 and 12 and adds Article 13, Form-Based Zoning. Ordinance No. 26-020 rezones 681.63 acres of downtown. Both are scanned images, so VanPlex read them by machine text recognition. The text of Ordinance No. 26-019 says it "shall become effective on the 1st day of June, 2026," while the file names on the City page end in "eff.-04-26-26." The ordinance text is the adopted law, so this guide uses June 1, 2026 for that ordinance.

The Residential Districts

Table 2.1-1 lists nine residential districts. Each one has a page in Section 2.2 with a maximum density, which is the number of homes allowed on each acre of land, and a box of lot and building rules. The density figures below come from those pages. The homes column comes from Table 3.1-1, the residential use table, and Table 3.3-1, the table of accessory uses.

Source: Arlington UDC, Table 2.1-1, Sections 2.2.2 to 2.2.10, Table 3.1-1 and Table 3.3-1, PDF amended by Ordinance No. 25-059.

The purpose statements show how the City sees each district. RE is for "large-lot (minimum one acre) single-family detached residential uses." RS-7.2 and RS-5 are for single-family homes on lots of 7,200 and 5,000 square feet. RM-12 is meant "to encourage a wide range of low- to medium-density housing types, especially single-family attached, duplexes, and townhouse projects," and the code describes it as a step "from areas of lower-density single-family neighborhoods to higher-density multi-family districts." RMF-22 provides "high-density multi-family residential uses with a maximum density of 22 units per acre."

Two rows need a note. A detached house is not on the RMF-22 list in Table 3.1-1, so a new single house there does not fit the use table. And MH, Manufactured Housing, is closed: Section 2.2.10 says it "is obsolete and may not be requested as a district for a zoning amendment." Existing MH land stays on the map under the older code's rules.

Every single-family page in Section 2.2, from RE to VG, ends with the same sentence: "Pursuant to Senate Bill 15, enacted by the 89th Regular Session of the Texas Legislature, certain properties within this zoning district may be subject to alternative standards and requirements." The RMF-22 page does not carry it. The lot size page explains which properties those are.

How to Read the Use Tables

Section 3.1.2 explains the letters in Tables 3.1-1 and 3.1-2. A "P" means "the use is permitted by right," which means an owner who meets the written rules needs no hearing. An "S" means the use is "allowed only if issued a Specific Use Permit," a City Council approval described below. "A blank cell indicates that the use is prohibited." An asterisk means extra standards apply, listed in the last column. "PD" means "permitted only through the PD process," a planned development rezoning.

The residential table gives this result for homes. The detached house is a P in RE, RS-20, RS-15, RS-7.2, RS-5, RM-12 and VG. The duplex and the townhouse are a P in RM-12 and RMF-22 only. The multi-family dwelling, which Section 12.3.1 defines as "a dwelling or group of dwellings on one lot containing separate living units for three or more families," is a P with an asterisk in RMF-22 only. Cottage Communities carry "PD" in RM-12 and nothing anywhere else.

The accessory table, Table 3.3-1, covers homes that sit beside a main house. The secondary living unit is a P in RE, RS-20, RS-15 and VG, an S in RS-7.2, RS-5 and RM-12, and blank in RMF-22. The garage apartment is a P in RM-12 and RMF-22. The secondary units and duplexes page covers both, including the rule that a secondary living unit "shall not be rented or leased."

Homes on Commercial Land

Table 3.1-2 covers the thirteen non-residential and mixed-use districts, from LO (Limited Office) to RMU (Regional Mixed-Use). Since Ordinance No. 25-059, "Dwelling, multi-family" carries a P with an asterisk in LO, OC, NC, CC, GC, HC, DB, BP, FH, LI, NMU and RMU. The only blank is IM, Industrial Manufacturing. The townhouse is an S in DB and a P in NMU and RMU.

The asterisk points to Section 3.2.1, which sets two distance limits. Apartments "shall not be permitted within a non-residential zoning district" if they are within "1,000 feet of an existing High Impact Use with a Specific Use Permit" or "3,000 feet of the Arlington Municipal Airport." The state law has matching limits: Local Government Code 218.101 excludes land within 1,000 feet of a heavy industrial use and within 3,000 feet of an airport. The three or more homes page covers the design rules in Section 5.12.

Downtown Form-Based Districts (2026)

Form-based zoning regulates the shape of buildings and how they meet the street more than the use inside them. Ordinance No. 26-019 added this type of zoning as Article 13 and created four base sub-districts: Traditional Neighborhood (TN), Urban Neighborhood (UN), Corridor Mixed-Use (CMU) and Core. It deleted Section 2.3.8, Downtown Business, and marked DB and DNO "(Obsolete)" in the district list. Ordinance No. 26-020, passed on April 21, 2026, then changed "approximately 681.63-acres of land located in Downtown Arlington" to the Downtown Form-Based Zoning District (DT-FBZD). That ordinance takes effect "upon second publication." It prints its case number two ways, "DN-FBZD26-01" in the preamble and "DT-FBZ26-01" in Section 1.

The use table of Article 13, Table 13.1.4-1, allows more home types than the older districts. TN allows a house, a townhouse, a duplex, a triplex and an accessory dwelling unit. UN adds the fourplex, the mansion apartment of five to eight units in a building shaped like a large house, apartments of more than eight units, and the cottage court. CMU and Core allow townhouses, fourplexes, mansion apartments and apartments. Article 13 applies only to land rezoned into a form-based district, which in October 2026 means the downtown area that Ordinance No. 26-020 mapped.

Changing a Lot's District

A zone change is a "zoning map amendment" under Section 10.4.2. The City Council, "on its own motion, or on petition of an interested property owner," the Planning and Zoning Commission, or the Zoning Administrator may start one. Under Section 10.3.3 an application comes from the owner or an agent the owner names in writing, and the City's FAQ page adds that "the owner's notarized signature must be on the application."

• Notice. Section 10.3.6 requires notice "at least 11 days before the date of the hearing," mailed to owners within 200 feet and posted on signs on the property: one sign for less than 15 acres, up to three for more than 25.
• Commission. The Planning and Zoning Commission holds a public hearing and forwards its recommendation to the City Council.
• Council. "The City Council has final authority to adopt or deny any proposed zoning map amendment." It may grant a district "less intensive than the zoning district advertised."
• After a denial by the commission. The Council decides whether to hold a hearing at all. The applicant must ask "no later than 10 business days after" the denial, and the Council's "decision not to conduct a public hearing constitutes final denial."
• Waiting period. A denied case, or one withdrawn after notice, cannot come back for 12 months with the same or a more intense district. Table 10.4-1 ranks the districts from RE, the least intense, to PD.

The fee schedule effective October 1, 2026 sets the general zone change fee by size: $1,200 for less than one acre, $1,500 for 1 to under 5 acres, $2,000 for 5 to under 10 acres and $3,000 for 10 acres or more. A planned development, development plan or specific use permit costs $2,400 for less than one acre. A "City Council call for public hearing after P&Z denial" costs $250.

Protests: the Code, the State and the City's FAQ

Section 10.4.2.I points to state law for protests: "the rules governing amendment over protest are contained in Chapter 211 of the Texas Local Government Code." Since September 1, 2025, Local Government Code 211.0061 sets two protest levels. For an ordinary change, owners of 20 percent of the land within 200 feet can force a vote of three-fourths of the Council. For a change that has "the effect of allowing more residential development," the protest needs owners of "at least 60 percent" of that land, and the Council can still approve with "a majority of all members."

The City's zoning FAQ page, read October 8, 2026, still describes only the older rule: a protest signed by owners of "at least 20 percent" of the land "will invoke a required three-fourths vote of approval." The same page says mailed notice goes out "at least 10 days before" the commission hearing, while Table 10.3-2 of the code sets 11 days. Where the FAQ and the code differ, the code and the state statute it points to control. For a rezoning that adds homes, plan for the 60 percent rule.

Specific Use Permits, Planned Developments and Variances

A specific use permit (SUP) adds one use to a lot without changing its district. Under Section 10.4.6, "SUP approval occurs by ordinance, and is a type of zoning amendment," so it follows the same hearings as a zone change. The ordinance "may impose development standards and safeguards over and above" the code. An SUP for a use other than gas well drilling is "cancelled and revoked" two years after approval "unless a building permit or a Certificate of Occupancy" has been issued, unless the ordinance sets another period. A homeowner in RS-7.2, RS-5 or RM-12 who wants a secondary living unit needs one.

A planned development (PD) is a district drawn for one project. Section 10.4.3 calls it "a type of zoning amendment" that "includes maps, plans, and regulations," and Section 2.4.7 says it exists "to permit greater flexibility" in exchange for "greater public benefits." Under Section 3.1.2.F, a PD that references a base district takes that district's uses unless the PD lists its own. A variance is relief from one rule, such as a setback, for a lot with an unusual shape or slope. The Zoning Board of Adjustment decides variances after a public hearing (Section 10.4.7); the fee for an owner-occupied homestead is $400.

Overlays and Gaps in the Map

An overlay is a second map layer that adds rules on top of the base district. Table 2.1-1 lists seven: the Airport Overlay (APO), Conservation District Overlay (CDO), Downtown Neighborhood Overlay (DNO), Entertainment District Overlay (EDO), Lamar Collins Mixed-Use Overlay (LCMUO), Landmark Preservation Overlay (LPO) and Planned Development. Section 2.1.5 says overlay rules apply "in addition to" the base district, and "in the event of an express conflict" the overlay standards "shall control." The trees, airport and historic page covers the overlays that limit homes.

Two rules cover land with no clear district. Section 2.1.4.E says land left off the zoning map "because of error or omission" is classed as RE "until change by amendment." Section 2.1.6 puts annexed land in RE "unless the City Council designates another zoning district at the time of annexation." Both default to one home per acre.

One count differs between City documents. The FAQ page says "Arlington has 28 zoning districts." Table 2.1-1 in the PDF lists 29 rows: nine residential, thirteen non-residential and mixed-use, and seven overlays. Ordinance No. 26-019 then added the four form-based districts. The code table is the adopted text, so use it, and ask the Zoning Administrator to confirm the district on the map for any lot.

Where to Go Next

Related on VanPlex: the Arlington overview, how Texas zoning works, and the HB 24 protest rules.

Frequently Asked Questions

Official sources (checked October 2026)