Rancho Cordova, CA Building Setbacks & Zoning: Lot Coverage Limits (2026)

Table 23.310-2 under RCMC § 23.310.040 (Development Standards) lists a 'Lot Coverage (maximum)' figure for the city's residential zoning districts, running from a low of 25 percent of lot area in the least dense district up to 75 percent in the denser single-family and duplex districts, with the standard listed as not applicable in some higher-density multifamily zones where coverage is instead controlled through density and design review rather than a flat percentage. The same table pairs that coverage allowance with a 'Common Open Space Requirement': certain districts must set aside a minimum of 25 percent of the site as common open space, on top of, not instead of, the landscaped setback areas required elsewhere in the code.

A footnote to the table lets the designated approval authority reduce the open-space requirement down to a floor of 20 percent of the gross site area when a project's architectural design is exceptional enough to justify the reduction; that discretionary reduction runs through the city's design review process rather than a ministerial sign-off. Lot coverage and open-space figures in Table 23.310-2 work alongside the front-yard pervious-surface limits in RCMC § 23.716.060(A), which separately caps how much of a single-family or two-family front yard can be paved.