3 rules for unincorporated Alpine County, California.
Verified from official government sources
Setbacks (front, side, and rear yards) in unincorporated Alpine County are set by the zone in Title 18. In the RN Residential Neighborhood zone (Ch. 18.36), the front yard is thirty feet and the rear yard is twenty feet, with minimum lot width eighty feet and depth one hundred feet. The RE Residential Estate zone (Ch. 18.32) sets its own yards. Confirm your zone before building.
Maximum building height in Alpine County's residential zones varies by slope and by which side of the county (East Slope vs. West Slope) the parcel is on. On the East Slope, a main building may reach 34 to 36 feet depending on slope; on the West Slope, 36 to 40 feet. Exceeding the limit requires a variance, and yard setbacks increase one foot per foot of extra height.
Alpine County does not publish a single countywide lot-coverage percentage; buildable area is controlled mainly through minimum lot size, yard setbacks, and slope-based height limits in Title 18. Building plans must show existing and proposed coverage (structures, driveways), and minimum parcel size in the RN zone is set case-by-case based on services and the General Plan designation.
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