Lafayette, LA Home Business: Zoning & Home Occupation Permits (2026)

Sec. 89-83(a) draws the zoning line for home occupations: they're allowed only in the "A" Agricultural, "RS" Single-Family Residential, and "RM" Mixed Residential districts inside the city, or, in the unincorporated parish, wherever Table 89-83-1 marks a use "P" for permitted. That table is the actual menu, it does not let residents run any business from home, only the categories it lists. Offices for professions such as accountants, architects, attorneys, doctors, engineers, and similar work are permitted [P] in every listed district, as are courier/delivery services, personal services, nonstore retail sales, personal instructional services, and residential child care facilities.

Some uses are far more restricted: an indoor animal hospital or light manufacturing is permitted only in the "A" Agricultural district, and "Medical office or clinic" is conditional [C], not permitted by right, in "RS" and in the "MN"/Commercial-Mixed Use column, while it's permitted [P] in "A," "RM," and the unincorporated parish. Subsection (b)(2) clarifies that any use already allowed as a principal or accessory use under the general Use Table (§ 89-21) for that district, other than residential child-care facilities, isn't restricted by this section at all.

Beyond the use list, subsection (c) requires the home occupation to be "conducted solely within the dwelling unit," with "no exterior storage of equipment, materials, or supplies," and subsection (d) caps the business at ten percent of the dwelling's gross floor area, excluding garages and accessory buildings. Together these provisions keep a home-based business zoned as an accessory use to the residence, not a freestanding commercial operation.