Plainfield, NJ Building Setbacks & Zoning: Setback Rules (2026)

Section 17:9-19 of the Plainfield Municipal Code governs accessory uses and structures in every district and requires a development permit before any is installed. Under subsection A no accessory use or structure can go in a front yard unless the chapter specifically permits it, it must sit on the same lot as the principal use or structure, and it cannot be physically connected to the principal structure. Subsection B then sets the default setback: accessory structures sit at least three feet from the rear yard property line and three feet from the side yard property line, unless another section of the chapter regulates them differently. Subsection E limits a lot to three accessory structures, not counting fences.

Other sections of Chapter 17 set their own yard distances. Porches (§ 17:9-44) stay out of the required side yard setback, project no more than eight feet into the front yard setback area, and cannot be closer than seventeen feet to the front property line or twenty-two feet to the rear property line; decks stay out of the front yard, extend no more than fifteen feet into the rear yard setback area and stay at least six feet from the side lot line. Projections (§ 17:9-45) allow cornices, eaves, gutters, bay windows and chimneys up to eighteen inches into a required yard setback, provided they stay two feet from all yard lines. Pools (§ 17:9-47) sit at least ten feet from side and rear lot lines. On a corner lot, § 17:9-36 treats each street line as a front yard, and every corner lot has two front yards.

Principal building setbacks by zone are not printed in the code text. Each Part I zone district entry says "Bulk Requirements. See Schedule B," and Schedule B, Bulk Zoning Requirements, is an attachment to Chapter 17 listed beside the zoning map. This page therefore covers the accessory structure rule that the text does print; confirm the zone's front, side and rear minimums with the Zoning Officer, who enforces the chapter under § 17:1-20.