Sahuarita, AZ Building Setbacks & Zoning: Setback Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- RH front/street-side setback
- 50 ft
- R-5 front setback
- 20 ft
- R-4/R-5 interior side (detached/attached)
- 5 ft / 0 ft
- Town-wide street side setback
- 20 ft
- Narrow-lot side yard floor
- 5 ft under §18.07.020(B)(3)
- Max civil penalty
- $750 individual, $10,000 entity
Summary
Sahuarita's zoning code sets minimum yard setbacks for single-family homes by district in Table 18.12-2. The RH zone needs 50-foot front, street-side and rear yards with a 20-foot interior side; the compact R-5 zone drops to a 20-foot front yard, as little as 0 feet on an attached interior side, and only a 10-foot rear yard. Substandard lots of record get separate reductions.
Table 18.12-2 Development Standards – Main Buildings – Single-Family Attached and Detached
RH GR-1 SR R-1 R-2 R-3 R-4 R-5 MH ... Minimum ... Setbacks Front and Street-Facing Side 50 30 50 30 30 20 20 20 20 Interior Side 20 10 10 10 10 8 5 foot detached/0 attached 5 foot detached/0 attached 8 Street Side 20 Rear 50 40 50 40 40 25 15 10 25
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4745395; v0 updated 2025-12-08; through 12-08-2025).
Full Breakdown
040 sets minimum building setbacks for main buildings across all nine rural and residential zones: RH, GR-1, SR, R-1, R-2, R-3, R-4, R-5 and MH. Front and street-facing side yards run from 50 feet in the largest-lot RH, SR and MH zones down to 20 feet in R-2 through MH. Interior side yards range from 20 feet in RH to as little as 5 feet for a detached structure and 0 feet for an attached wall in R-4 and R-5. Street-side yards are set at 20 feet town-wide, and rear yards range from 50 feet in RH and SR down to 10 feet in R-5.
020 let a lot of record built on before July 19, 1995 shrink these numbers: each minimum side yard may be reduced two inches for every foot the lot is narrower than 55 feet, but never below five feet, and the minimum rear yard may be reduced three inches for every foot the lot is shallower than 125 feet, but never below 20 feet. The same section averages a front yard with an existing shorter front yard on an adjoining lot, never less than 10 feet, and halves the required front yard on a lot fronting a cul-de-sac turnaround.
A rear yard adjoining an alley can be measured to the alley centerline and reduced by up to 10 feet, and on an R-3, R-4, R-5 or B-1 corner lot the rear yard can drop to 10 feet if the side-street yard grows by 10 feet instead.
Violations & Fines
Setback violations are civil infractions under STC § 18.95.030, enforced by the zoning administrator through site inspection, written notice to correct, and citation. STC § 18.95.040 caps penalties at $750 per offense for an individual and $10,000 for a corporation, association or labor union, with each day a setback violation continues counted as a separate offense. The town attorney can also seek an injunction or abatement order to force removal of a structure built in violation of the required yard.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the smallest front yard allowed in Sahuarita?
Can an older, narrow lot get a smaller side yard?
What happens if I build closer than the required setback?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Sahuarita
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