Calaveras County, CA Building Setbacks & Zoning: Structure Height Limits (2026)

The county's residential development standards table sets a flat 35-foot maximum building height in the Rural Residential (RR), Low Density Residential (R1), and Medium Density Residential (R2) zones, rising to 45 feet in the High Density Residential (R3) zone. 030, with no maximum at all for agricultural buildings. 090, Height Exceptions, allows specific features, antennae, chimneys, poles, silos, stair towers, rooftop mechanical equipment and its screening, and required safety devices, to rise above the district's maximum height, subject to any limits imposed by the airport overflight overlay zone.

The exception is not unlimited for every feature: stair towers and mechanical equipment specifically may not exceed the zone's maximum permitted height by more than 10 feet. Any building that wants to exceed these limits outside the listed exceptions needs a discretionary approval, such as a variance or a specific development approval, from the planning department; the standard itself does not describe an administrative path around the numeric cap for ordinary structures. Because Angels Camp is the county's only incorporated city, these height limits and exceptions apply directly to San Andreas, Murphys, Arnold, Copperopolis, Valley Springs, Mokelumne Hill, and the rest of the unincorporated county without a separate municipal height ordinance layered on top.