Jefferson Parish, LA Noise from Specific Sources: HVAC & Mechanical Noise (2026)

2 of the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance governs where generators, pool equipment, air conditioning units and similar mechanical equipment may sit on residential lots. The front yard is off-limits entirely: no mechanical equipment of any kind may be located there. In the side yard, a generator must sit at least five feet from the side property line, and on a corner lot at least five feet from the line abutting the side street, without blocking the clear vision area drivers need at the corner. Other mechanical equipment, including AC condensers, needs only a two-foot side setback, but at least one side yard on the lot must keep five feet of unobstructed access along the property line, again without obstructing the corner's clear vision triangle.

In the rear yard, equipment may sit as close as three feet to the property line, provided it still does not block the clear vision area. 1. Anyone who cannot meet these setbacks must seek a variance from the Board of Zoning Adjustments or, in some cases, the parish council; the code specifically bars granting a zoning variance for a generator that does not otherwise meet applicable technical codes unless the Board of Standards and Appeals has separately approved a variance from those codes. The rule reaches every type of noise-generating mechanical equipment homeowners install close to a shared lot line, not just central air condensers, and applies parish-wide in the unincorporated areas Jefferson Parish zones directly.