Overview
Code type
euclidean
Naming convention
letter-code
9-district borough code: 2 residential (BR-1, BR-2), 1 residential/office (R-O), 1 commercial (BC), 4 specially planned (SP-1 through SP-4 — riverfront / business corridors), and 1 additional district whose code is not retrieved (possible borough industrial / institutional / BR-3). Conshohocken's economic narrative is dominated by the SPDs along the Schuylkill — corporate and multifamily redevelopment that has made the borough one of suburban Philadelphia's hottest TOD markets — but the April 2022 amendment removing residential uses from all four SPDs is a striking anti-residential policy reversal worth flagging.
Worth knowing
- April 2022 SPD anti-residential amendment — Borough Council voted to REMOVE residential uses from SP-1, SP-2, SP-3, SP-4 (all four Specially Planned Districts). This is a striking policy reversal: the SPDs were the borough's primary mid-rise mixed-use entitlement and had been the engine of post-2010 multifamily redevelopment along the Schuylkill. Underwriting any SP-zoned site for residential now requires either non-conforming-use-grandfather analysis OR a curative amendment / variance. Pro forma pencils completely changed for new SP-zoned acquisitions. [severity: high; citation: MoreThanTheCurve coverage (April 2022); §27 Parts 15-17 amended ordinances]
- February 2024 Fayette Street Corridor Overlay (FSCOD) — three-zone overlay adopted 5-2 to EXPAND allowable uses along Fayette Street as a counterweight to the SPD anti-residential move. Where SPD amendment closed the riverfront to new residential, FSCOD opened the central spine. Net policy posture: residential growth is being steered onto Fayette Street rather than the riverfront. [severity: high; citation: MoreThanTheCurve coverage (Feb 2024); §27 FSCOD ordinance]
- Mandatory riverfront access dedication — SPDs require riverfront access deeded to the Borough in perpetuity providing unrestricted public access. SP-3 specifies a 25-ft Riverfront Access Area easement + 25-ft setback from top of bank to any building, structure, or parking area. Underwriting must subtract this 50-ft riverfront strip from net buildable area. [severity: high; citation: §27 Part 15 SP-1/SP-2; §27 Part 16 SP-3 (ecode360.com/14318542)]
+ 5 more in Quirks & notes
Districts
mu 5res_sf 1res_mf 1com 1spec 1
| Code | Name | Category | Min lot | Height | Coverage | FAR | Du/ac | Parking | Setbacks F/S/R |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BR-1 | Borough Residential District One | res_sf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| BR-2 | Borough Residential District Two | res_mf | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| R-O | Residential/Office District | mu | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| BC | Borough Commercial District | com | — | — | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
| SP-1 | Specially Planned District One | mu | — | — | — | 2.5[1] | — | — | — / — / — |
| SP-2 | Specially Planned District Two | mu | — | — | — | 2.5[2] | — | — | — / — / — |
| SP-3 | Specially Planned District Three | mu | — | — | — | 2.5[4] | — | — | 25[3] / — / — |
| SP-4 | Specially Planned District Four | mu | — | — | — | 2.5[5] | — | — | — / — / — |
| ?-9 | Ninth Zoning District (code not retrieved) | spec | —[6] | —[7] | — | — | — | — | — / — / — |
Confidence: confirmed partial under review not found
Overlays
FP
Floodplain Conservation Overlay
FPFEMA-mapped 100-year floodplain along Schuylkill River; entire borough sits along Schuylkill so FP coverage is substantial
| items | Restricts development in mapped floodplain; Applies additively within SP-3 (riverfront SPD); SP-4 explicitly excludes 100-year floodplain land from developable area calculation |
|---|
SS
Steep Slope Conservation
HSLots / portions of lots with natural slopes greater than 15% — excluded from developable area in SP-4
| items | ≥15% slope = excluded from developable area in SP-4; Applicability outside SP-4 not retrieved |
|---|
HRC
Historic Residential Conservation Overlay District
HPExisting historic single-family detached dwellings within BR-1, BR-2, and R-O Districts (residential zones)
| items | Limits demolition of historic single-family detached dwellings; Limits conversion of historic single-family dwellings to other uses; Applies within BR-1, BR-2, R-O base districts |
|---|
FSCOD
Fayette Street Corridor Overlay District
CORThree zones along Fayette Street: Zone 1 (Elm Street to 1st Avenue, excluding SORA West), Zone 2 (4th to 9th avenues), Zone 3 (9th to 12th avenues)
| items | Expands allowable uses of buildings along Fayette Street to spur new development; Three zones with distinct use mixes |
|---|
State preemptions
PA Municipalities Planning Code (53 P.S. §10101 et seq.)applies
Qualifying condition
Conshohocken is a borough under PA state statutes; not 1st-class city / 2nd-class city / 2nd-class A city. Boroughs are MPC-governed. MPC procedural framework applies in full.
Effect
MPC procedural framework binds zoning amendments, hearing-board procedure, curative-amendment / validity-challenge rights
PA MPC §503(1.1) — manufactured housing parityapplies
Qualifying condition
Conshohocken is MPC-governed (see above); has residential districts permitting site-built single-family (BR-1, BR-2, R-O). §503(1.1) therefore binds: zoning ordinance shall not prohibit manufactured / mobile housing in residential districts where site-built single-family is permitted, nor impose more-restrictive standards. Note: April 2022 SPD amendment removed residential from SPDs but BR-1/BR-2/R-O still permit SFR, so §503(1.1) parity is engaged in those districts.
Effect
Manufactured / mobile housing must be permitted in any district that permits site-built SFR.
PA Surface Mining Conservation and Reclamation Act (SMCRA, 52 P.S. §1396.4e)applies
Qualifying condition
Statewide preemption binds all PA municipalities. Conshohocken is a 1-sq-mi urban borough with no surface-mining operations of record; applicability is latent.
Effect
Local ordinances regulating surface mining are preempted as to operational / reclamation / environmental standards.
Non-applicable laws (1)
PA Act 13 of 2012 §3303 — oil & gas operational preemptiondoes_not_apply
Qualifying condition
Montgomery County is outside the Marcellus Shale and Utica Shale formations. No unconventional gas wells of record in Conshohocken (a 1-sq-mi urban borough). Recorded for completeness.
Effect
Not applicable in practice.
Adopted building codes
Most jurisdictions opt in
Click a code label to open its state-by-state adoption atlas.
Amendment history
| Date | Kind | Citation |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-04-26 | retrieved at | research run |
| 2024-02-01 | amendment effective | February 2024 — Borough Council 5-2 vote adopting Fayette Street Corridor Overlay District (3 zones between Elm/1st Ave, 4th/9th Ave, 9th/12th Ave; precise date not retrieved) |
| 2022-04-01 | amendment effective | April 2022 — Borough Council voted to remove residential uses from SP-1, SP-2, SP-3, SP-4 (MoreThanTheCurve coverage; precise effective date within month not retrieved) |
| 2001-01-01 | adoption | Chapter 27 — Conshohocken Borough Zoning Ordinance of 2001 (full date not retrieved; year confirmed from ordinance title) |
Quirks & notes
- April 2022 SPD anti-residential amendment — Borough Council voted to REMOVE residential uses from SP-1, SP-2, SP-3, SP-4 (all four Specially Planned Districts). This is a striking policy reversal: the SPDs were the borough's primary mid-rise mixed-use entitlement and had been the engine of post-2010 multifamily redevelopment along the Schuylkill. Underwriting any SP-zoned site for residential now requires either non-conforming-use-grandfather analysis OR a curative amendment / variance. Pro forma pencils completely changed for new SP-zoned acquisitions. [severity: high; citation: MoreThanTheCurve coverage (April 2022); §27 Parts 15-17 amended ordinances]
- February 2024 Fayette Street Corridor Overlay (FSCOD) — three-zone overlay adopted 5-2 to EXPAND allowable uses along Fayette Street as a counterweight to the SPD anti-residential move. Where SPD amendment closed the riverfront to new residential, FSCOD opened the central spine. Net policy posture: residential growth is being steered onto Fayette Street rather than the riverfront. [severity: high; citation: MoreThanTheCurve coverage (Feb 2024); §27 FSCOD ordinance]
- Mandatory riverfront access dedication — SPDs require riverfront access deeded to the Borough in perpetuity providing unrestricted public access. SP-3 specifies a 25-ft Riverfront Access Area easement + 25-ft setback from top of bank to any building, structure, or parking area. Underwriting must subtract this 50-ft riverfront strip from net buildable area. [severity: high; citation: §27 Part 15 SP-1/SP-2; §27 Part 16 SP-3 (ecode360.com/14318542)]
- SP-4 net-buildable-area rule: 100-year floodplain land + ≥15% slope land are EXCLUDED from developable area. Combined with the 1-sq-mi borough footprint and Schuylkill / steep-bluff topography, the effective FAR-2.5-on-net-buildable cap can be substantially less than 2.5 on gross site. [severity: high; citation: §27 Part 17 SP-4 (ecode360.com/32727165)]
- 9-district economy with outsized SPD weight — 4 of 9 zoning districts are Specially Planned (SP-1 through SP-4) covering virtually the entire Schuylkill riverfront. Conshohocken's redevelopment economy is more SPD-dependent than any other PA municipality in the corpus; SPD policy moves are de-facto borough-wide policy moves. [severity: medium; citation: §27 Part 9 Zoning District Classifications (ecode360.com/14318121)]
- 1-sq-mi borough, 9,261 pop (2020) — tiny municipality with corporate-corridor economic weight massively disproportionate to size. Hosts SEPTA Manayunk/Norristown Line + Schuylkill River Trail terminus. Very dense per-acre amendment activity (multiple zoning hearing board notices per year per ZHB calendar). [severity: medium; citation: Census QuickFacts; conshohockenpa.gov news / ZHB calendar]
- 9th zoning district code not retrieved — Part 9 Zoning District Classifications confirms 9-district count, but only 8 codes (BR-1, BR-2, R-O, BC, SP-1-4) were confirmable via Google snippets. The 9th is likely an institutional, light-industrial, or BR-3 tier; flagged as `not_found` for follow-up rather than fabricated. [severity: medium; citation: §27 Part 9 (ecode360.com/14318121); search budget exhausted before retrieval]
- Active variance / curative-amendment market — Morgan Properties pursued 85+ ft office tower zoning relief on the riverfront in recent reporting; multiple ZHB cases per year (per 2024-2026 ZHB notice archive). Treat any SPD-zoned site as a likely-variance entitlement path until otherwise proven. [severity: medium; citation: MoreThanTheCurve coverage (Morgan Properties zoning determination appeal); conshohockenpa.gov ZHB notices 2024-2026]
Massing explorer
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| District | Category | Height | FAR | Coverage | Setbacks | Parking | Density | Min lot | Overlays |
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Sources & references
Citations
- [1] §27
- [2] §27
- [3] §27
- [4] i
- [5] i
- [6] n
- [7] n
Research status
Publication gates
| primary url present | passed | |
|---|---|---|
| no aggregator cited | passed | |
| confidence tags full form | passed | |
| overlays have parameters trigger confidence | passed | |
| preempt section city specific | passed |
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