Montgomery, AL Zoning Overlays & Bonuses: Density Bonus Law (2026)
Key Facts
- Bonus size
- 1 or 2 stories above height allowance
- Two-story bonus requires
- Maximum green certification rating
- One-story bonus requires
- Less than maximum certification
- Applies within
- SmartCode overlay, not conventional districts
- Other incentives
- Administrative processing; waived traffic report
Summary
Under Montgomery's SmartCode, a developer who certifies a building as green (energy saving) can add one or two extra stories above the normal height allowance. Two bonus stories require the maximum certification rating; a lesser certification earns only one extra story, on top of expedited, administrative processing and a waived traffic study.
1.6.1 To encourage the use of this Code, the Montgomery City Council shall grant the following incentives, to the extent authorized by state law: a. Applications in full compliance will be processed administratively. b. The application process will be expedited. c. The traffic report shall be waived. d. A one - two story density bonus will allow developer building a certified green (energy saving) building to add one or two stories above the height allowance. Two stories may be built if developer attains points for maximum rating; one story allowed for points to attain a less than maximum certification.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 27).
Full Breakdown
The SmartCode is printed in Article VI, Sec. 2 of the zoning ordinance (City Code App. C) as a form-based overlay alternative to the conventional district rules, adopted under the same state zoning authority, Code of Ala. 1975, §§ 11-52-70 through 84, that underlies the rest of Appendix C. Article 1, Sec. 1 lists the incentives the city council grants to encourage its use: full-compliance applications are processed administratively rather than through the standard hearing track, the review process is expedited, and the traffic report requirement is waived.
Subsection (d) adds the density bonus itself: a certified green, energy-saving building may add one or two stories above the height otherwise allowed, with the size of the bonus tied directly to the certification level achieved, two stories for a maximum rating and one story for a lesser certification. This bonus applies only where a project is built under the SmartCode's own transect-based framework rather than under the conventional Appendix C districts (R-125, B-2, and the like), and it is a height incentive, not a bonus to residential unit count or floor-area ratio.
The SmartCode's Sec. 7 hazard-mitigation standards separately require SmartCode projects to address floodway, stormwater and low-impact-development practices, which a developer pursuing the green-building bonus would need to satisfy alongside the certification itself.
Violations & Fines
Claiming the one- or two-story SmartCode density bonus without the certified green building rating required by Art. 1, Sec. 1.6.1(d) is treated as noncompliant construction under the zoning ordinance and is punishable under Article II, Sec. 5 as provided in City Code § 1-6, with each day of the violation a separate offense. Because SmartCode compliance is verified through the administrative permit review the incentive itself provides, the administrative official can withhold the certificate of occupancy under Article II, Sec. 4 for a building that added height without meeting the certification standard.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many extra stories can a green building get under Montgomery's SmartCode?
Does the SmartCode density bonus apply to a normal R-125 house in Montgomery?
What else does Montgomery offer besides the extra stories for using the SmartCode?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Montgomery
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