Pasadena, Texas | Lot Size and Subdividing

Pasadena, Texas Lot Size and Subdividing: Appendix A Lots, Patio Homes, Townhouses and SB 15

Pasadena, Texas has no zoning districts, so lot size is set by the subdivision ordinance, Appendix A of the Code of Ordinances, adopted as Ordinance No. 67-1966 on July 5, 1967 and amended since. Two other appendices allow smaller lots for patio homes (Appendix C) and townhouses (Appendix B), and Chapter 21 sets a lot size for manufactured homes. This page gives each number with its section, and explains how SB 15, the 2025 state small lot law, reaches a city without zones. The Pasadena overview gives the short version.

The Basic Lot Rule in Appendix A

Appendix A, Sec. 24 opens with a general test: "The size, width, depth, shape and orientation of lots shall be appropriate for the neighborhood in which the subdivision is located, and for the type of development and use contemplated, to assure provision of proper open space and prevent overcrowding." It then sets the numbers: "Residential lots where served by public sewage system shall be at least sixty (60) feet wide, at least one hundred (100) feet deep and shall have an area of at least six thousand (6,000) square feet, unless specifically excepted by the planning commission."

The same paragraph adds a parking rule for every residential lot: "Each residential lot shall provide a driveway of such design to accommodate two (2) vehicular off-street parking spaces exclusive of any garage." So a garage does not count toward those two spaces on a new lot. A lot, in Appendix A, is a tract "having frontage on a public street" and identified in "a duly approved subdivision plat which has been properly filed of record." Sec. 24 also says "Every lot shall be provided with adequate access to a public street by direct frontage on such street."

Source: Pasadena Code of Ordinances on municode, Supplement 33 Update 1 (Appendix A, Sec. 24, Appendix B, Sec. 2, Appendix C, Sec. 21-26). Appendix B sets lot widths and density for townhouses and no lot area.

Sec. 24 has more rules on shape and placement:

• Corner lots must be wide enough for the building line and for orientation to both streets. A lot next to a crosswalk is treated as a corner lot.
• Radial lots, the wedge-shaped lots on a curved street, must be at least 60 feet wide at the building line.
• Busy streets. "No single-family residential lot shall face a major thoroughfare or a collector street," and rear or side driveway access to those streets is prohibited.
• Railroads, gas lines and industry. Where a lot backs up to a railroad, a high pressure gas line or an industrial area with no street behind it, the Planning Commission must require extra depth; where a lot sides to one, extra width and a no-access easement of at least 10 feet, planted with trees.
• Side lines should be "as nearly perpendicular as practicable" to the street, and lots set at right angles to each other should be avoided.

A variance is permission to depart from a rule. Under Appendix A, Sec. 6, the Planning Commission may grant one "when, in its opinion, undue hardship will result from requiring strict compliance." It must find four things: special conditions on the land, that the variance is needed to keep a substantial property right, no harm to public health or nearby property, and no effect that prevents the orderly subdivision of other land. The section adds: "Pecuniary hardship to the subdivider, standing alone, shall not be deemed to constitute undue hardship." Pecuniary means money.

What Counts as a Subdivision

Appendix A, Sec. 4 defines a subdivision as "A division of any tract of land situated within the corporate limits or within the subdivision jurisdiction of the city in two (2) or more parts" for laying out lots or streets, and says "Subdivision includes resubdivision." Four kinds of division are left out: tracts of five acres or more with no new street, alley or access easement; land in a designated industrial district; land in a recorded commercial reserve; and a split into no more than two parts for nonresidential use with no new street.

Sec. 7 enforces the plat rule through permits and utilities. No building, repair, plumbing or electrical permit may be issued "for any structure on a lot in a subdivision for which a final plat has not been approved and filed for record," and the City may not sell or supply water or sewer service there. Sec. 7(G) keeps permits available for a lot on which a residence stood before the ordinance passed in 1967.

If you are unsure whether your land needs a plat, Sec. 10-1 lets an owner ask the Planning Commission in writing for a certificate of determination. The Commission decides "within twenty (20) days after the date it receives the written request and necessary information," and issues the certificate within 10 days after that. The Planning Department FAQ adds that "you cannot build across a property line, and the City will require a replat to remove lot lines prior to issuing a building permit to build across lots."

Streets, Blocks and Easements

A new subdivision also has to fit Appendix A's street and block rules, which set how much of a tract goes to streets and easements before lots are drawn:

• Street right-of-way, the strip of land owned for the street, may not be less than 50 feet for a minor street, 80 feet for a collector and 120 feet for a major thoroughfare (Sec. 19). A minor street has 28 feet of paving and a 4-foot sidewalk on one side (Sec. 28).
• Blocks along minor or collector streets should run no more than 1,400 feet and no less than 500 feet (Sec. 23).
• Cul-de-sacs, dead-end streets with a turnaround, should not exceed 500 feet and need a turnaround of at least 100 feet across in single-family areas and 120 feet in multifamily areas (Sec. 19).
• Utility easements are underground, and "In general, the rear easement shall be sixteen (16) feet wide, centered on the rear lot lines" (Sec. 21). Residential alleys, where provided, are at least 16 feet wide with 10 feet of paving (Sec. 20).
• Private streets. Lots may take access from a permanent access easement, a private street the owners maintain, when the owners are bound together in a homeowners association and the plat carries a printed notice that the City has no duty to maintain it (Secs. 15 and 19).

Smaller Lots: Patio Homes, Townhouses and Manufactured Homes

Patio homes. Appendix C (Ordinance No. 91-36 of February 26, 1991) defines a patio home subdivision as one "in which it is proposed to partition land into individual lots of a size smaller than required elsewhere in the subdivision ordinance," and says it "shall include a minimum of eight (8) contiguous lots." The minimum lot is 5,000 square feet, 50 feet wide at the building line, with at least 800 square feet of living space per home and lot coverage of no more than 50 percent. Lot coverage here counts buildings, carports, garages and the driveway needed for parking. A patio home sits on or within 24 inches of one side line, with a private patio of at least 1,000 square feet on the other side.

Townhouses. Appendix B covers subdivisions "where the minimum lot sizes are to be less than those required under the subdivision ordinance." Lots are at least 16 feet wide for homes of more than one story and 24 feet for one story, density is capped at 16 homes per gross acre, and the site "shall generally not be less than three (3) acres of contiguous land" unless the Planning Commission finds a smaller site suitable. The townhomes, patio homes and apartments page has the full rules for both.

Manufactured homes. Outside a manufactured home park, Sec. 21-26 requires "a minimum lot area of five thousand (5,000) square feet for each manufactured home/dwelling located on the lot and a minimum width of fifty (50) feet at the front property line for each." The Planning FAQ gives the result for two homes: they "would require a minimum 100 ft. wide lot."

Parkland in Larger Subdivisions

Appendix A, Sec. 25 requires "Each plat containing forty (40) acres or more" to show a park preserve, sized at four persons per house on this scale: 4.0 acres for 600 persons, 5.3 acres for 800 and 6.6 acres for 1,000. The public agency then has 120 days after final plat approval to order payment of 10 percent of the preserve's fair market value, and pays the rest within three years. If it does not, the subdivider may plat the land for development. Appendix C sets its own rule for patio homes: a subdivision of 25 acres or more provides "a park reserve equivalent to eight (8) per cent of the then total gross site area."

Replats and Plat Restrictions

Splitting or combining platted lots takes a replat, which Appendix A treats as a subdivision. The 2026 Platting Procedures Guide says a replat "is required when a property is already platted and the intent is to alter or create new lot lines." A replat of two lots or fewer on an existing street with no public improvements can be approved by staff as an administrative plat; other replats need preliminary and final approval from the Planning Commission.

Since October 5, 2021, Appendix A, Sec. 34 limits what a partial replat can change. Where the plat has lots restricted to single-family residential use, a residential or single-family restriction may be amended "only for landscape, park, recreation, drainage, or open space." A replat cannot lift a single-family plat restriction to allow more homes. The no zoning and deed restrictions page covers plat and deed restrictions together.

SB 15 and Pasadena Lots

SB 15 added Sections 211.051 to 211.058 to the Local Government Code, in force since September 1, 2025. Under Section 211.052 it applies to a city of more than 150,000 in a county of more than 300,000, which Pasadena meets on its 2020 Census count of 151,950 by VanPlex count, and only to a tract that "will be platted and located in an area zoned for single-family homes," "is five acres or more," and "has no recorded plat." It leaves out land within 3,000 feet of an airport or military base.

On land it covers, Section 211.054 bars a rule that requires a residential lot to be "larger than 3,000 square feet," "wider than 30 feet," or "deeper than 75 feet." For a "small lot," one of 4,000 square feet or less, Section 211.055 bars setbacks over 15 feet in front, 10 feet in back and 5 feet on the sides, more than one parking space per unit, more than 30 percent open space, and a limit of fewer than three stories. Section 211.055 still lets a city require a shared driveway and setbacks "related to environmental features, erosion, or waterways," and Section 211.056 lets it require all small lots "to fully mitigate stormwater runoff." Section 211.053 leaves flooding rules on an individual lot in place.

Pasadena's Appendix A asks for 6,000 square feet, 60 feet of width and 100 feet of depth, twice the area SB 15 allows a city to require. But Pasadena has no area "zoned for single-family homes," and the City has adopted no rule on SB 15. Read together, the statute and the code leave open whether and how SB 15 reaches a large unplatted tract in Pasadena. Ask the Planning Department for its reading in writing before you buy or design. The SB 15 page explains the law.

Where the Lot Rules Disagree

Appendix A, Sec. 24 lets an interior side yard be "three (3) feet or less" if the neighbor grants "an easement of five (5) feet onto the adjacent lot" for maintenance, and requires 10 feet between the foundations of two houses. Sec. 9-76 of Chapter 9 says no permit may be issued for "a single or duplex residential building or structure" within "a minimum five (5) feet of any property line." Appendix A, Sec. 3 says that where another City rule is "higher or more restrictive, the latter shall control." Ask the Planning Department which side yard it applies before you draw lots narrower than 60 feet.

Where to Go Next

Related on VanPlex: the Pasadena overview, the SB 15 small lots page, and lot size in Houston.

Frequently Asked Questions

Official sources (checked October 2026)