Overview
Code type
euclidean
Naming convention
mixed
Traditional Euclidean code with a strong overlay/special-district layer. Ch. 27 adopted 2012-11-01 as a major rewrite (Ord. 2012-126), amended by annual January/July cycles. FAR is NOT set in the zoning table — Footnote 17 defers FAR to the Comprehensive Plan future-land-use categories, which is atypical and a recurring source of confusion. | naming_convention_raw=mixed — residential districts (RS, RM) are density/lot-size encoded (RS-150=15,000 sf min, RM-24≈24 du/ac); office/commercial/industrial are letter-code (RO, OP, CN, CG, CI, IG, IH); special districts are named (CBD, CD, YC, SH, NMU). ; sub_flags_raw=[coastal-fl, chha-exposed, live-local-active, aicuz-macdill, historic-district-dense]
Worth knowing
- FAR is not stated in Table 4-2 — Footnote 17 defers FAR to the Tampa Comprehensive Plan future-land-use categories. Atypical across FL Euclidean codes.
- Rear yard split for RS-150/100/75: 20 ft interior vs 12 ft corner (Table 4-2). RS-60/50 use 20/20 (no split). Subtle but real asymmetry.
- CG/CI height escalation is compounding: +1 ft yard for every 4 ft above 30 ft AND +1 ft yard for every 3 ft above 50 ft — two simultaneous rules above 50 ft.
+ 8 more in Quirks & notes
Districts
res_mf 7res_sf 5off 4com 3ind 2spec 1
| Code | Name | Category | Min lot | Height | Coverage | FAR | Du/ac | Parking | Setbacks F/S/R |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RS-150 | Residential Single-Family 150 | res_sf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| RS-100 | Residential Single-Family 100 | res_sf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| RS-75 | Residential Single-Family 75 | res_sf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| RS-60 | Residential Single-Family 60 | res_sf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| RS-50 | Residential Single-Family 50 | res_sf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| RM-12 | Residential Multi-Family 12 | res_mf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| RM-16 | Residential Multi-Family 16 | res_mf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| RM-18 | Residential Multi-Family 18 | res_mf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| RM-24 | Residential Multi-Family 24 | res_mf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| RM-35 | Residential Multi-Family 35 | res_mf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| RM-50 | Residential Multi-Family 50 | res_mf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| RM-75 | Residential Multi-Family 75 | res_mf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| RO | Residential-Office | off | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| RO-1 | Residential-Office-1 | off | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| OP | Office Park | off | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| OP-1 | Office Park-1 (High-Rise) | off | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| CN | Commercial Neighborhood | com | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| CG | Commercial General | com | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| CI | Commercial Intensive | com | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| IG | Industrial General | ind | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| IH | Industrial Heavy | ind | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| U-C | Utility-Community | spec | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
Confidence: confirmed partial under review not found
Overlays
HD
Historic Conservation Overlay Districts
SPECLocally designated historic districts: Tampa Heights, Seminole Heights, Hyde Park, Ybor City (four confirmed locally designated districts); boundaries published on tampa.gov/planning-division.
WS
Westshore Overlay District
SPECWestshore commercial district south of Tampa International Airport along Westshore Blvd (defined by §27-238 boundary).
ETOD
East Tampa Overlay District
SPECEast Tampa corridor as mapped in §27-240.
WTOD
West Tampa Overlay District
SPECWest Tampa area as mapped in §27-241.
PEOD
Parkland Estates Overlay District
SPECParkland Estates neighborhood (defined in §27-242).
KBCD
Kennedy Boulevard Corridor District
SPECKennedy Blvd corridor as mapped in §27-243.
THOD
Tampa Heights Overlay District
SPECTampa Heights neighborhood boundary per §27-244 (distinct from the locally designated historic district).
FP
Floodplain Overlay (NFIP / FEMA SFHA)
SPECAll parcels within FEMA-mapped SFHA per current effective Hillsborough County FIRM — Zones VE (coastal high-hazard) on Tampa Bay / Hillsborough Bay frontage; AE (1% annual chance) on Hillsborough River corridor and coastal lowlands; X-shaded across much of the Interbay Peninsula.
CHHA
Coastal High Hazard Area Overlay
SPECParcels within the mapped CHHA (Cat-1 SLOSH) boundary — covers Davis Islands, Harbour Island, Channelside frontage, Bayshore waterfront, Port of Tampa southern parcels, Ballast Point, and parts of Westshore. Boundary on Tampa Comprehensive Plan Coastal Management Element maps.
State preemptions
Qualifying condition
Population 414,547 (2024 Census estimate) — Live Local Act applies to all FL municipalities regardless of size. Per-parcel trigger: site must be zoned commercial (CN, CG, CI), industrial (IG, IH), or mixed-use (CBD, CD, NMU-16/24/35, SH-CN/CG/CI, YC-4/5) AND ≥40% of units affordable at or below 120% AMI. Tampa has large commercial/industrial land inventories along Dale Mabry, Hillsborough Ave, Kennedy, Adamo, and in the Port of Tampa / Channelside, giving the Act unusually wide reach. | citation_source=state-overlays/florida.json FL_LIVE_LOCAL_ACT_SB102_2023 + FL_LIVE_LOCAL_ACT_SB328_2024_AMENDMENTS ; local_integration_note=Tampa's Development Services has issued guidance applying Live Local to CG/CI/IG and the three mixed-use subdistrict families. Channel District (CD-1 now 175 ft after Amendment 23-18) and downtown (CBD) are high-leverage Live Local zones; Westshore is constrained by TPA Part 77 surfaces.
Effect
On qualifying parcels: (a) multifamily by right; (b) density floor = highest residential density allowed anywhere in the jurisdiction — Tampa's RM-75 has no stated unit cap and smallest lot/unit = 580 sf (implying >75 du/ac); (c) height floor = tallest residential zoning height within 1 mile — in central Tampa that reaches RM-50 (200 ft) and RM-35 (120 ft), making downtown/Westshore/Channelside quite exposed; (d) ≥20% mandatory parking reduction (SB 328); (e) 2024 adjacency-tempering caps height at 150% of tallest allowed residential within 1 mile where the parcel abuts single-family. MacDill AFB AICUZ and FAA Part 77 surfaces constrain the height floor in South Tampa via federal_overlay_refs — not via this preemption.
Qualifying condition
Statewide applicability. Tampa Housing Authority and THA-adjacent projects funded through SAIL or SHIP programs may be approved on any parcel zoned residential, commercial, or industrial regardless of base-zone unit-cap. Narrower than Live Local but still active as precursor framework. | citation_source=state-overlays/florida.json FL_AFFORDABLE_HOUSING_PREEMPTION_HB1339_2020
Effect
Local approval pathway for SAIL/SHIP-funded affordable housing on any parcel in a residential, commercial, or industrial base district; discretionary review waived.
FL Short-Term Rental Preemption — Fla. Stat. §509.032(7)applies
Qualifying condition
Statewide preemption. Tampa's STR ordinances adopted on or after June 1, 2011 cannot prohibit STRs or regulate their duration/frequency. Tampa's existing STR regulations (business tax receipt, noise, parking applied to all dwellings) remain enforceable. Any pre-6/1/2011 STR-specific ordinance would be grandfathered — Tampa has no known pre-2011 STR-specific ordinance of record that survives the preemption cutoff, so the Act applies in full. | citation_source=state-overlays/florida.json FL_SHORT_TERM_RENTAL_PREEMPTION_509_032
Effect
Tampa cannot ban STRs or cap duration/frequency in RS/RM residential districts. Registration, local business tax receipt, life-safety, noise, parking rules uniformly applied remain enforceable.
FL Coastal High Hazard Area — Fla. Stat. §163.3178(9)applies
Qualifying condition
Tampa is coastal-CHHA-exposed. Category-1 SLOSH surge zone covers most of Davis Islands, Hyde Park waterfront, Harbour Island, Channelside frontage, Westshore waterfront, and Port of Tampa parcels. Comprehensive plan amendments that increase residential density in the CHHA must demonstrate maintained hurricane evacuation clearance times or provide mitigation. | citation_source=state-overlays/florida.json FL_COASTAL_HIGH_HAZARD_AREA_163_3178
Effect
Density increases on Davis Islands / Harbour Island / Channelside frontage / Westshore waterfront require CHHA findings on hurricane evacuation clearance and shelter capacity, or funded mitigation. Does not block density — constrains comp-plan amendment path.
FL Comprehensive Plan Consistency — Fla. Stat. §163.3180applies
Qualifying condition
Statewide, applies to all Tampa development orders. All rezonings and site plans must be consistent with the Tampa Comprehensive Plan and Hillsborough County Concurrency requirements (transportation, schools, potable water, sewer, solid waste, drainage, parks). This is the mechanism by which FAR is effectively set city-wide — Table 4-2 footnote 17 defers FAR to the comp plan future-land-use category. | citation_source=state-overlays/florida.json FL_COMPREHENSIVE_PLAN_CONSISTENCY_163_3180
Effect
Every Tampa rezoning and site plan requires concurrency findings. The comprehensive plan — not the zoning table — sets FAR ceilings by future-land-use category.
FL Bert J. Harris Act — Fla. Stat. §70.001applies
Qualifying condition
Statewide. Tampa's large inventory of pre-2012 entitled parcels (grandfathered under the 2012 rewrite) and the density concentration in CBD/CD/NMU make new downzonings or overlay-tightening particularly exposed to Bert Harris claims. Historic district designation expansions have previously triggered Bert Harris exposure analysis. | citation_source=state-overlays/florida.json FL_BERT_HARRIS_ACT_70_001
Effect
Any new overlay tightening, downzoning, or Historic Conservation expansion should undergo Bert Harris exposure review before adoption.
FL Building Code Preemption — Fla. Stat. §553.73applies
Qualifying condition
Statewide preemption of local technical amendments to the Florida Building Code. Relevant to Tampa's coastal construction standards — wind-borne debris region (ASCE 7 wind exposure C/D), flood-construction (FEMA FIRM AE/VE), and elevation standards are FBC-driven, not locally amendable. | citation_source=state-overlays/florida.json FL_BUILDING_CODE_PREEMPTION_553_73
Effect
Tampa's coastal building standards must track FBC HVHZ-adjacent and ASCE 7 wind exposure; local technical amendments are limited to those authorized under §553.73(4).
Adopted building codes
Statewide — FL Building Code 7th ed
Click a code label to open its state-by-state adoption atlas.
Amendment history
| Date | Kind | Citation |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-01-01 | amendment effective | Amendment 24-1 / 24-2 (ADU expansion + criteria) |
| 2023-01-10 | supplement effective | Supp. No. 81 (Ch. 27 as §289.56supp_81) |
| 2023-01-01 | amendment effective | Amendment 23-8 (Westshore Overlay) |
| 2023-01-01 | amendment effective | Amendment 23-18 (Channel District CD-1 height 60→175 ft) |
| 2023-01-01 | amendment effective | Amendment 23-12 (historic district precedence) |
| 2012-11-01 | amendment effective | Ord. 2012-126 | kind_raw=major_rewrite_adoption |
Quirks & notes
- FAR is not stated in Table 4-2 — Footnote 17 defers FAR to the Tampa Comprehensive Plan future-land-use categories. Atypical across FL Euclidean codes.
- Rear yard split for RS-150/100/75: 20 ft interior vs 12 ft corner (Table 4-2). RS-60/50 use 20/20 (no split). Subtle but real asymmetry.
- CG/CI height escalation is compounding: +1 ft yard for every 4 ft above 30 ft AND +1 ft yard for every 3 ft above 50 ft — two simultaneous rules above 50 ft.
- RM-75 has no stated maximum height (Note 5) — instead a locational siting requirement: close proximity to regional shopping/employment/transit.
- IH has no stated maximum height (Note 4) — Port of Tampa / intensive manufacturing district.
- Ybor City has a dual commission structure: Barrio Latino Commission (BLC) for Ybor historic review; Architectural Review Commission (ARC) for Tampa Heights/Seminole Heights/Hyde Park. Unusual.
- Site-plan-controlled districts (PD, SH-PD, YC-9) require full City Council adoption; >5% DU or floor-area increase or >2-story nonres height increase triggers a new rezoning process (§27-138(7)).
- Channel District CD-1 max height jumped from 60 ft to 175 ft in 2023 (Amendment 23-18) to match CD-2 — material upzoning for waterfront infill.
- Live Local Act has wide reach in Tampa: RM-75 (implied >75 du/ac) sets the city-wide density floor; RM-50 (200 ft) sets a large portion of the height floor within 1 mile in central Tampa. AICUZ MacDill and FAA Part 77 (TPA) are the binding federal caps.
- Tampa's overlay list includes both a Tampa Heights Overlay District (§27-244) AND a Tampa Heights Historic Conservation District (§27-272) — two distinct layers that may overlap on the same parcel.
- M-AP districts are treated as special zoning districts (§27-171), not overlays — they fully replace the base district for airport parcels rather than layering.
Formulas
Definitions
- height
- Grade (or base flood elevation in mapped flood zones) to highest point of structure. Places of assembly in CG/CI may exceed 45 ft with setback escalation (§27-156 Note 6).
- lot_coverage
- Building footprint / lot area. Not stated in Table 4-2 for most districts — governed by yard/setback geometry plus separate impervious-coverage standards in the Comprehensive Plan.
- far
- Gross floor area / lot area. Table 4-2 shows '—' for every district. FAR is set by Comprehensive Plan future-land-use category, not the zoning table (§27-156 Footnote 17).
- du_ac
- Dwelling units per acre — implicit in RM district names (RM-12 ≈ 12 du/ac, RM-24 ≈ 24 du/ac) via lot-area-per-unit values.
- setback_front
- Front property line to nearest building face.
- setback_side
- Side property line to nearest building face; zero permitted in CI and IG/IH absent residential abutment.
- setback_rear
- Rear property line to nearest building face. RS-150/100/75 split 20/12 (interior/corner); RS-60/50 split 20/20; RM all 20 or 15.
- parking
- Spaces per dwelling unit unless noted. YC special parking in Ybor City (§27-178).
Capacity calculations
- max_footprint_sf
lot_area_sf × lot_coverage (if explicitly set; otherwise derived from yard geometry)- max_gfa_sf
lot_area_sf × FAR (from Comp Plan future-land-use category, NOT Table 4-2)- buildable_width_ft
lot_width_ft - setback_side_ft × 2- buildable_depth_ft
lot_depth_ft - setback_front_ft - setback_rear_ft- max_stories_approx
max_height_ft / 10- cg_ci_height_setback_escalation
for every 3 ft above 50 ft, required yards increase by 1 ft; for every 4 ft above 30 ft, required yards increase by 1 ft — compounding (§27-156 notes)- rm_tall_height_setback_escalation
for every 3 ft above 50 ft, required yards increase by 1 ft (RM-24/35/50)
Massing explorer
Interactive 3D comparison across every district. Drag to orbit, scroll to zoom, use the slider to walk districts, and toggle applicable overlays in the right-side panel.
Sort by
Max height
— ft
——
Floor area ratio
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Lot coverage
—%
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Setbacks (F / S / R)
— ft
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Parking
— /unit
——
Max density
— du/ac
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Min lot size
— sf
——
Copy zoning profile
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| District | Category | Height | FAR | Coverage | Setbacks | Parking | Density | Min lot | Overlays |
|---|
Sources & references
Primary source
Municode is a JS-rendered SPA; scripted retrieval returns shell only. Base-district Table 4-2 values corroborated by (a) city-published 'ABCs of Zoning' January 2023 PDF and (b) Tampa International Airport Noise Exposure Map Appendix E which reproduces §27-156 notes verbatim. Additional per-section extraction would require Chrome MCP browser retrieval.
Retrieval failure: municode.com SPA shell blocks scripted section-level retrieval for §§27-231 through 27-244 overlay text and §§27-181 through 27-212 special district full parameter sets.
Research status
Publication gates
| primary url present | passed | source.primary_url=https://library.municode.com/fl/tampa/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=COOR_CH27ZOLADE — HTTP 200 verified 2026-05-18 |
|---|---|---|
| no aggregator cited | passed | scan clean — no zoneomics/steadily/siteplanguide/siteplancreator/propwire/zonara/unzoned references |
| confidence tags full form | passed | 148 confirmed fields carry §-citations (§27-156 Table 4-2 dominant; §27-91-119, §27-171, §27-176-178, §27-181-199, §27-211, §27-212, §27-238-244, §27-272-275 covered) |
| overlays have parameters trigger confidence | passed | all 9 overlays + 6 special-district overlays have parameters[], geographic_trigger, status, and citation populated |
| preempt section city specific | passed | 7 FL preemption laws (Live Local SB102/SB328, HB1339, §509.032 STR, §163.3178 CHHA, §163.3180 comp plan, §70.001 Bert Harris, §553.73 FBC) each carry Tampa-specific qualifying_condition_checked with population/CHHA/parcel-class inputs |
Data quality
72%completeness148 confirmed42 partial
Documented gaps
- Overlay-level parameter extraction (yard/height values) for §§27-238 through 27-244 blocked by Municode SPA — partial status with retrieval_failure_reason.
- §27-282 parking schedule not extracted — parking ratios for office/commercial/industrial districts under_review.
- CBD character-district boundaries and FAR bonus schedule (§27-141) not extracted.
- NMU-16/24/35 full parameter set (§27-212) not extracted.
- SH form-based district dimensional standards (§27-211.2) not extracted.
- Tampa Comprehensive Plan future-land-use FAR schedule not extracted — required to resolve FAR values.
Known issues
priority:lowcohort:needs-dom-retrievalfreshness:volatileblocker:municodedata:gaps-present
Other cities in this state
Nearest-alphabetical profiles. Click through to compare zoning patterns side-by-side.