Hillsborough County, FL Right to Farm: Agricultural Zoning Protection (2026)
Key Facts
- A district minimum lot
- 10 acres
- AR district minimum lot
- 5 acres
- AM district minimum lot
- 20 acres
- AS-0.4 district minimum lot
- 2.5 acres
- AI district
- no new residential allowed
Summary
Unincorporated Hillsborough County splits farmland into seven agricultural zoning districts, A, AR, AM, AI, AS-1, AS-0.4, and ASC-1, each setting its own minimum lot size, from one acre up to twenty acres for mining-zoned land.
Agricultural districts provide for agricultural uses and residential development on lots in accordance with the Comprehensive Plan... A - Agriculture: The purpose of this district is to protect viable long term agricultural lands so classified in the Comprehensive Plan from urban and suburban encroachment by encouraging commercial agricultural use of the land, residential development, and related uses on parcels of at least ten (10) acres.
Full Breakdown
The Land Development Code's Article II divides unincorporated farmland into distinct agricultural zoning districts instead of one blanket 'agricultural' label. The A district protects commercially farmed land on parcels of at least ten acres; AR requires five acres; AM (Agricultural Mining) requires twenty acres and allows phosphate extraction; AS-0.4 and AS-1 permit single-family or mobile-home development on smaller estate-style parcels down to one acre. Each district's purpose statement ties the minimum acreage to protecting Comprehensive Plan-designated agricultural land from urban and suburban encroachment.
Violations & Fines
Using agricultural-zoned land below its district's required minimum lot size, or adding a residential use the district doesn't permit, is a zoning code violation Hillsborough County Code Enforcement can cite, with an order to stop the noncomplying use or pursue rezoning.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the minimum lot size to farm in unincorporated Hillsborough County?
Can I build a house on agricultural-zoned land in the county?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Hillsborough County
Florida rules heatmap·Compare Hillsborough County to another location·View the Florida right to farm overview
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