Bloomington, IN Accessory Structures: Tiny Homes (2026)

010 defines 'Dwelling, cottage development' as a cluster of at least five attached or detached single-family dwellings sharing access, parking and common space, a category that can include communities of five or more factory-built small single-family detached dwellings under five hundred square feet, 'commonly referred to as tiny homes,' provided each home meets either the Indiana Building Code or the federal Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Law of 1974, has any wheels removed, sits on a permanent foundation, and connects to City water, sewer and electric service.

030(b)(7) sets the use-specific standards: individual cottage lots cannot be subdivided for sale, and Table 03-2 caps density at three units per acre in the R1 district, rising to five in R2, six in R3, eleven in R4, fifteen in RM and MN, and twenty in RH and RMH, with a minimum project size of one acre in every eligible district and a maximum of two acres in R1 or five acres in RM and RH. Parking lots must sit at least thirty feet from the right-of-way, dwelling units need at least ten feet of separation, and R3 projects must place at least one unit at the build-to line.

Each project needs a centrally located open space of at least four hundred square feet per dwelling unit, a bufferyard type 1 along rear and side lot lines, and architecture matching surrounding single-family homes; no individual cottage unit may exceed one thousand two hundred square feet, with a maximum one-to-three width-to-depth ratio on the first floor. Bicycle parking rules require at least one Class II space per dwelling unit, with a minimum of four spaces regardless of unit count, and the Planning and Transportation Department reviews the site plan before any certificate of zoning compliance issues.