Accessory Structures in Kenosha County, WI (2026)
3 rules for unincorporated Kenosha County, Wisconsin.
Verified from official government sources
ADU Rules
Kenosha County permits one Accessory Living Unit per single-family home, capped at 600 square feet and two occupants, with no separate address, driveway or utility meters, only in the A-1, A-2, C-2 and R-1 through R-6 zoning districts and only with a zoning permit.
Kenosha County Accessory Living Unit Rules
Some RestrictionsKenosha County Code Section 12.22.040(a)-(g)
The following rules apply to an Accessory Living Unit. (a) Only one Accessory Living Unit is permitted per single-family dwelling. (b) The Accessory Living Unit shall not exceed 600 square feet in area. (c) No more than two people may reside in the Accessory Living Unit. (d) The entire structure must appear or continue to appear as a single-family dwelling. A separate garage or driveway is not ...
ADU Rental Restrictions
Kenosha County limits who can live in an Accessory Living Unit: the occupant must be a resident related by blood, marriage or adoption to the resident of the main single-family dwelling, which bars renting the unit to an unrelated tenant.
Kenosha County ADU Family-Only Occupancy
Significant RestrictionsKenosha County Code Section 12.22.040(k)
(k) The Accessory Living Unit shall be occupied by a resident related through blood, marriage or adoption to the resident occupant of the single-family dwelling.
Shed & Carport Rules
In unincorporated Kenosha County towns, any accessory building bigger than 150 square feet or taller than 15 feet needs a zoning permit under Section 12.17.010; side and rear setbacks run 5 to 10 feet depending on lot size, and height climbs from 15 to 24 feet as building footprint grows, per Sections 12.17.070 and 12.17.080.
Kenosha County Shed Size, Setback and Permit Rules
Some RestrictionsKenosha County Municipal Code §§ 12.17.010, 12.17.070(b)-(c), 12.17.080(a)
No accessory building shall hereinafter be located, directed, moved, reconstructed, extended, enlarged, converted or structurally altered without a zoning permit from the Division of Planning Operations and without being in conformity with the provisions of this Ordinance, and State Statutes and the Wisconsin Administrative Code. The accessory building shall also meet all the structural require...
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