Grays Harbor County, WA Building Setbacks & Zoning: Setback Rules (2026)

Section 17.28.040 sets the R-1 building site standards: a minimum lot size of 15,000 square feet (or the larger area required by health regulations for the sewage and water system used), a 25-foot minimum front yard, a 15-foot minimum side yard, a 25-foot minimum rear yard, a maximum lot coverage of 33 percent impervious surface, and a maximum density of one dwelling unit per 15,000 square feet. The R-2 General Residential District under § 17.32.040 uses a different formula: single- and two-family homes need a 10-foot side yard, or 10 percent of the lot width at the front setback line, whichever is greater, but never less than 5 feet, and a rear yard of 25 feet or 10 percent of lot depth, not less than 10 feet; multi-family buildings must set back a side yard equal to the height of the building and a rear yard equal to the building height plus 10 feet.

Section 17.64.020 governs how every yard is measured: front yards run along lines adjacent to a public right-of-way or private access easement, with alleys excluded from the calculation; side yards follow lot lines meeting the front line at between 1 and 179 degrees; rear yards cover the remaining lines; and all yards are measured horizontally from the property line to a parallel line set at the district minimum. Section 17.64.010 allows limited encroachment: cornices, canopies, eaves and chimneys may project up to 2 feet into a required yard, and unenclosed fire escapes or outside stairways up to 6 feet into a front yard or 3 feet into a side yard, while fences and retaining walls are exempt from every yard requirement.

For older, already nonconforming construction, § 17.72.030 lets a residential front yard be reset to the average setback of existing structures on the same block face, but never closer than 10 feet from the street right-of-way line.