Austin, TX Right to Farm: Agricultural Zoning Protection (2026)

Sec. 25-2-7 defines Austin's agricultural use classifications: ANIMAL PRODUCTION (raising animals or animal products on an agricultural or commercial basis, including grazing, ranching, dairy and poultry farming), CROP PRODUCTION and INDOOR CROP PRODUCTION (raising and harvesting tree, row, or field crops, including packing and processing), COMMUNITY GARDEN, HORTICULTURE, AQUAPONIC SYSTEM, SUPPORT HOUSING for agricultural employees, and two size-tiered farm uses added for urban agriculture: URBAN FARM, for a site of at least one acre cultivated for agricultural products sold for profit, and MARKET GARDEN, for the same activity on a site under one acre.

Both farm uses may also include agricultural education activities such as volunteer programs, farm tours, youth programs, and farming classes. Where land carries the Agricultural (AG) base zoning designation, Sec. 25-2-621 layers on specific numeric standards. A permitted use must sit back at least 100 feet from the front, side, and rear property lines. 5 acres, minimum lot width of 100 feet, no more than one dwelling unit per lot, no more than one conditional-use lot per 10 acres of site area, a maximum 400-foot distance from the rear lot line to the centerline of the nearest public road, and a minimum 100-foot separation between driveways serving conditional uses on the same side of the road.

Height for a conditional use tops out at the lesser of three stories or 35 feet, with 40-foot front, 25-foot street-side, 10-foot interior-side, and 20-foot rear setbacks. Building coverage is capped at the lesser of 10,000 square feet or 20 percent of the lot, and impervious cover at the lesser of 12,500 square feet or 25 percent, both well below the coverage allowed in Austin's standard residential and commercial districts.