Littleton, CO Accessory Structures: Shed & Carport Rules (2026)

Subsec. B of the Unified Land Use Code governs accessory buildings, expressly listing storage sheds among the permitted uses for such structures, along with home offices, studios, gardens, greenhouses and pool houses. Any accessory building 120 square feet or greater in floor area, or exceeding eight feet in height measured from grade to peak, needs a full building permit; anything smaller than both thresholds needs only a Zoning Certificate, though height and setbacks still have to meet the applicable zoning district's requirements either way. A permit for an accessory building cannot be issued before the permit for the principal building, though the two may be issued concurrently.

Placement rules require the shed to sit on the same lot as, and behind the front facade of, the principal building it serves. Setback depends on proximity to the house: a structure within five feet of the principal building must meet that building's full zoning setbacks, while one placed five feet or more from the principal building may be sited as close as five feet from an interior side or rear lot line (or farther if an easement requires it). On a corner lot, a shed cannot sit within five feet of the rear property line if that lot backs up to a residential lot.

Height for accessory buildings generally caps at the lesser of 24 feet or the height of the principal building, unless approved as a conditional use or through a Site Plan/Master Development Plan. Total accessory building floor area on ACR, LLR, MLR, SLR and MFR-zoned lots cannot exceed the district's maximum building coverage; in the Open Space (OS) district it is capped at five percent of the property unless the Director approves more; everywhere else the cap is 10 percent of the lot unless a Conditional Use Permit is obtained.

Manufactured homes, freight trailers, boxcars, shipping containers and similar structures not originally built as accessory buildings are prohibited as sheds absent conditional-use or site-plan approval, and no accessory building may be erected for habitation before the principal building exists.