Redding, CA Building Setbacks & Zoning: Setback Rules (2026)

Redding's zoning code assigns different minimum yard setbacks to each residential district under Schedule 18.31.030-C of Section 18.31.030. Front-yard setbacks run 25 feet in the low-density "RE-1" and "RE-2" estate districts and drop to 15 feet in every "RS" single-family district and every "RM" multifamily district. Rear yards and corner-side yards are set at a flat 15 feet across all four district groupings.

Side yards vary the most by density. In "RE" districts the aggregate of both side yards must total at least 30 feet, with neither side narrower than 10 feet. In "RS" districts the aggregate drops to 15 feet total, with no side yard under 5 feet, except where a small-lot subdivision under Section 18.31.050 applies. In the "RM-6" through "RM-18" districts a single-story building needs only 5 feet of side yard, but any building of two or more stories needs 10 feet; "RM-20" through "RM-30" districts require a flat 10 feet regardless of height, and multifamily side yards increase 2 feet per story beyond the second unless the upper story steps back 10 feet from the building face.

Front-yard setbacks can shrink through averaging: where four or more parcels on a block already carry structures, the required front yard becomes the average of the existing improved setbacks if that average is less than the code minimum. Every setback measurement in Redding is taken from the building's foundation line, per Section 18.62.100, and distances are measured on a horizontal plane rather than along sloped ground, per Section 18.62.060. A project that cannot meet these minimums needs a zoning exception approved under Chapter 18.15.