El Paso, TX Building Setbacks & Zoning: Setback Rules (2026)

Section 20.12.020 adopts the Table of Density and Dimensional Standards in Appendix B and incorporates it into the zoning code. Row D of that table governs a single-family dwelling in the R-1 district. The lot must be at least 20,000 square feet, with a minimum average width of 125 feet and a minimum depth of 150 feet, and the table sets no minimum district area. The required yards are 30 feet in front, 30 feet in the rear, a 15-foot side yard and a 20-foot side street yard. Maximum building height is 35 feet.

The table also sets cumulative totals: 100 feet for the front and rear yards combined and 40 feet for the side and side street yards combined. Section 20.12.020 says that where cumulative calculation is permitted, every individual minimum and the cumulative minimum must both be met. A house set 30 feet back therefore needs at least 70 feet of rear yard, and a corner lot with a 15-foot side yard and a 20-foot side street yard, which add up to only 35, has to find 5 more feet somewhere. Required yards cannot be counted as the yard or open space of any other building, no lot area or dimension can be reduced below the table, and where Chapter 20.10 conflicts with it, the more restrictive standard applies.

Section 20.12.040 allows limited projections. An unenclosed porch, carport or entranceway patio of no more than 150 square feet can extend up to 10 feet into a required front yard, and the eaves and cornices of the main building can reach 4 feet into it. Sills, eaves and bay windows can project 24 inches into a side yard and 30 inches into a rear yard, and an open, unenclosed porch of up to 180 square feet can extend 12 feet into a required rear yard. Accessory structures can extend up to 5 feet into a required side street yard.

Detached garages and sheds fall under Section 20.10.030: one story or 15 feet high, at least 60 feet from the front lot line and 5 feet from the house, complying with the side and side street yards, with no rear yard setback required. Corner lots also carry a 20-foot vision triangle in which fences, walls and structures cannot rise more than 3 feet above the centerline of the nearest abutting street (Section 20.12.060).