Columbia, SC Accessory Structures: Shed & Carport Rules (2026)

Columbia's Unified Development Ordinance regulates sheds and other accessory structures under Sec. 3, Accessory Uses and Structures. The Accessory Use/Structure Table in Sec. 3(b) sets which zoning districts allow a given accessory structure and whether it is permitted outright or requires a Special Exception Permit under Sec. 5(e); a blank cell in that table means the structure type is prohibited in that district. Every accessory structure, shed included, must then meet the General Standards for All Accessory Uses and Structures in Sec. 3(c): it must directly serve the principal dwelling, remain clearly incidental and subordinate in area and purpose to the house, be owned by the same person and sited on the same lot, and cannot be built before the principal structure exists.

The setback rules are the operative dimensional limits: a shed cannot be erected closer than three feet to any side or rear property line, cannot sit within five feet of the main building unless it is open on all sides, and cannot be placed within a required front yard at all. Sec. 3(d) layers on additional standards for specific accessory uses, such as accessory dwelling units, which face their own 1,000-square-foot (or 50-percent-of-principal-floor-area) cap, though that size limit governs habitable accessory dwellings rather than a plain storage shed.

Where an accessory structure is not separately listed in the yard-encroachment table, it may still occupy a required side or rear yard only if Sec. 3 allows it there. The Zoning Administrator reviews every accessory structure permit application against this section, regardless of which base zoning district the lot sits in.