Decatur, GA Building Setbacks & Zoning: Structure Height Limits (2026)
Key Facts
- District covered
- R-60 Single-Family Residential
- Standard-lot height cap
- 2 stories / 35 feet
- Narrow-lot reduction
- 0.5 ft per ft under 60 ft width
- Accessory structure cap
- 16 ft (1-story) / 25 ft (2-story)
- Denser RS-17 district cap
- 3 stories / 40 feet
- Penalty
- up to $1,000 fine or 6 months jail
Summary
In the City of Decatur, DeKalb County, Georgia, the Unified Development Ordinance caps residential height by district and lot size. In the R-60 Single-Family Residential District, a house on a standard lot of 9,000 square feet or more is capped at two stories and 35 feet, and narrower legacy lots lose height allowance under a width-based reduction formula.
2.1.6. - Height A.No building shall be erected, converted, enlarged, reconstructed, moved or structurally altered to exceed the height limit established for the district in which the building is located. Height is measured as the vertical distance from the mean finished ground level at the front of the building to the highest point of a roof. ... 4.Where a lot of record in an R-60 zoning district at the time of the effective date of this UDO had less than the required minimum lot width, the maximum building height shall be reduced by ½ foot for each foot that the lot width is less than 60 feet. ... Building Height Principal building: ... Lot less than 9,000 SF see Sec. 2.1.6.B.4 Lot 9,000 SF or more 2 stories/35' max 1 story accessory structure 16' max 2 story accessory structure 25' max
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 28).
Full Breakdown
A bars any building from exceeding the height limit set for its district, measuring height as the vertical distance from the mean finished ground level at the front of the building to the highest point of the roof. 5 caps a principal building on a standard lot of 9,000 square feet or more at two stories and 35 feet. 4 cuts that maximum height by half a foot for every foot the lot falls short of 60 feet, mirroring the same width-based reduction the UDO applies to side setbacks.
Accessory structures in R-60 are capped separately at 16 feet for one story and 25 feet for two stories. B exempts spires, belfries, cupolas, domes, monuments, water towers, observation and transmission towers, chimneys, smokestacks, elevator and stair towers, parapets under 4 feet, flagpoles, and radio, television, and antenna masts from the district height cap entirely, and lets a storage-only building ignore a story-count limit as long as it stays within the district's foot limit. 3. 5) allows three stories and 40 feet.
Violations & Fines
UDO Section 11.4.2 makes exceeding a district's height limit a misdemeanor, and Section 11.4.5 punishes it under the citywide general penalty, Code Section 1-12: a fine up to $1,000, imprisonment up to six months, or both, with each day of a continuing violation a separate offense. Section 11.4.3 also lets the UDO Administrator, city attorney, or an affected neighboring property owner seek an injunction or other court order against an overheight structure.
Frequently Asked Questions
How tall can a house be in Decatur, Georgia's R-60 district?
Does a narrow lot get a lower height limit in Decatur?
Are chimneys and antennas exempt from Decatur's height limit?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Decatur
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