Iowa City, IA Building Setbacks & Zoning: Lot Coverage Limits (2026)

Title 14 of the Iowa City Code sets maximum building coverage and (where applicable) impervious coverage as part of the bulk schedule for each zoning district. The RS-5 and RS-8 districts - Iowa City's lower-density single-family detached zones - have stricter coverage limits, while the RM-12, RM-20 and RM-44 Multi-Family districts and the CB-2, CB-5 and CB-10 Central Business districts allow much higher building coverage consistent with the City's traditional downtown street wall near the University of Iowa and the Iowa River. The Riverfront Crossings District Form-Based Code addresses coverage through build-to lines and frontage requirements rather than traditional coverage maxima. Stormwater controls for earth-disturbance projects are reviewed by the City under its locally adopted stormwater management ordinance and the statewide Iowa DNR NPDES general permit (NPDES Permit No. 2 for construction stormwater) under the federal Clean Water Act. Projects over one acre of earth disturbance require a separate NPDES construction stormwater general permit from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The City's Floodplain Overlay - significant along the Iowa River - adds further limits on impervious coverage and building footprint in mapped Special Flood Hazard Areas under Title 14, Article 14-5I (Floodplain Management Standards). Lot-coverage compliance is verified at building-permit application via plot plan and again at field inspection by Neighborhood and Development Services.