Yuma, AZ Building Setbacks & Zoning: Structure Height Limits (2026)

The City of Yuma measures building height under Zoning Code Chapter 154, Article 15, § 154-15.03, which defines how stories are counted: an attic counts as a full story, and a mezzanine counts as a full story if it covers more than half the ground floor area or if the combined story height exceeds 24 feet. Basements used for residential occupancy by anyone other than a janitor or caretaker are treated as a first story rather than exempt below-grade space.

The numeric limits differ by district. Low Density Residential (R-1-40, R-1-20, R-1-12, R-1-8 and R-1-6) tops out at 40 feet under § 154-05.04(F)(5), the same ceiling that applies to the four Suburban Ranch districts (§ 154-05.02) and to Medium Density Residential (R-2) under § 154-07.01(F)(5). Residential Estate districts (RE-12, RE-18, RE-35) are held to 30 feet under § 154-05.03(F)(4)(c)(5) because of their larger, more open lots. In R-2, multi-family buildings within 40 feet of an Agriculture, Suburban Ranch, Residential Estate or Low Density Residential parcel drop to a 20-foot, one-story cap; single-family homes in R-2 are exempt from that step-down.

Section 154-15.03(B) exempts specific features from every district's height cap outright: church spires, domes, belfries, cupolas, monuments, water tank towers, fire towers, flagpoles, chimneys, smokestacks, silos, derricks, conveyors and windmills, plus parapet walls that extend no more than four feet above the limit. On corner lots, § 154-15.03(C) additionally bars any wall, sign, vehicle or dense planting over 30 inches inside the visibility triangle, with trees allowed only if trimmed to at least eight feet of clearance.