Sedona, AZ Building Setbacks & Zoning: Setback Rules (2026)

Setback minimums are set individually for each of Sedona's zoning districts in the lot and building standards table found in SLDC Sections 2.2 through 2.19. The RS-70 Large Lot Single-Family Residential district, the city's lowest-density zone, requires a 50-foot front setback, a 50-foot rear setback, and a 25-foot side setback, on a minimum lot width of 200 feet and minimum lot area of 70,000 square feet. Denser residential and mixed-use districts carry smaller minimums, but every district's table cross-references the same measurement rules in Section 2.24.D.

Under Section 2.24.D(1), a setback is measured as the distance from the established lot line, or the edge of a street or access easement, to any building on the lot; front, side, and rear setback lines each run parallel to the corresponding lot or street line. Section 2.24.D(2) layers on an additional buffer for land next to public land: any residential lot abutting a National Forest or Open Space zoning district must keep a 20-foot setback from that boundary, dropping to 10 feet for nonresidential districts. Section 2.24.D(4) lists narrow encroachments the City allows anyway: uncovered patios, walks, fences, and hedges are exempt outright, while porches and stoops may project up to 8 feet into a front setback if they stay 5 feet off the property line, and pool or HVAC equipment may sit within 5 feet of a side or rear line. On corner lots, Section 2.24.D(7) requires the front setback to run along the shorter street frontage unless the Director approves an exception.