Georgia's Zoning Procedures Law (O.C.G.A. 36-66) requires local governments to adopt zoning, including setbacks, through specific notice and hearing procedures. The state itself does not impose universal residential setback distances.
Under O.C.G.A. 36-66-1 et seq., Georgia delegates setback authority to cities and counties, but mandates uniform procedural requirements: 15-30 days advance notice, public hearings, and written zoning maps. State law preempts setback regulation only near specific features such as state highway rights-of-way (O.C.G.A. 32-6-75) where structures must be set back from the right-of-way edge. Setbacks from streams are governed by the Erosion and Sedimentation Act (O.C.G.A. 12-7-6) which requires a 25-foot undisturbed buffer along most state waters.
Failure to follow O.C.G.A. 36-66 procedures voids local zoning amendments. Stream buffer violations trigger EPD enforcement up to $50,000 per day under O.C.G.A. 12-7-15.
Chatham County, GA
Unincorporated Chatham County does not set numeric quiet hours. Code §11-101(h) bans amplified sound audible beyond the premises, and §11-109 caps vehicle tr...
Chatham County, GA
Chatham County Zoning Ordinance Sec. 5-1.3 limits residential fences to 6 feet in front and side yards and 8 feet in rear yards. Business district fences may...
Chatham County, GA
Code §22-103(b) makes it unlawful to permit a dog to run at large in unincorporated Chatham County. Dogs must be under manual control off the owner's propert...
Chatham County, GA
Consumer fireworks have been legal in Georgia since 2015 (HB 110, codified at O.C.G.A. § 25-10-1 et seq.). Under O.C.G.A. § 25-10-2, consumer fireworks may b...
Tybee Island, GA
Georgia state law (O.C.G.A. §6-1-4) preempts local governments from regulating private drone operations, so Tybee Island cannot pass its own drone ordinance....
Chatham County, GA
Chatham County Code § 16-1304(1)(g) requires every STVR application to outline the parking rules of the rental and how occupants will comply. Parking rules m...
Side-by-side rule comparisons with other cities in Chatham County.
See how Tybee Island's setback rules rules stack up against other locations.
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