Zoning › Tennessee › Shelby County › Bartlett

Bartlett, TN Zoning

Euclidean-zoning. 20 districts · 7 overlays · 5 applicable state preemptions.

Overview

Code type
euclidean
Naming convention
mixed

Districts named by category + characteristic (RS-## for single-family lot-size tiers; R-TH townhouse; R-D duplex; R-M multi-family; O-R/O-C office; C-L/C-G/C-H commercial ladder; SC-1 planned commercial; I-O wholesale/warehouse; I-P planned industrial; A-O agricultural; R-E estate). Overlays: F-P Floodplain, H Historic Preservation, MS Main Street Commercial, RMU Residential Mixed Use, R-C Residential Condominium. | naming_convention_raw=lot-size-numeric (RS-18 = 18,000 sf min) + letter-category ; sub_flags_raw=[suburban-sunbelt, pdf-only-canonical] ; narrative_ref=narratives/bartlett-tn/bartlett-tn-20260418.json

Worth knowing
  • Lot-size-numeric naming convention (RS-18/15/12/10) — Single-family districts named by required lot size in thousands of sq ft (RS-18 = 18,000 sf, etc.), not by ordinal density number. Common in 1970s-era TN ordinances. — [Art V §§3-6]
  • Front-yard ROW-adjustment footnote — Required front yard increases +5 ft on 60-ft ROW and +10 ft on 80-ft ROW (Chart 2 footnote #). Non-intuitive - setback is pegged to street width, not just district. — [Art V Chart 2 footnote #]
  • C-H height 1/3-distance rule — C-H Highway Business building height capped at 1/3 horizontal distance to nearest single-family residential zoning boundary, regardless of whether that district abuts the subject property. Applied even across intervening non-residential parcels. — [Art V Chart 2 footnote *]

+ 9 more in Quirks & notes

Districts

com 7res_sf 5spec 3res_mf 3ind 2
CodeNameCategory Min lotHeight CoverageFAR Du/acParking Setbacks F/S/R
A-OAgricultural and Open Land Districtspec87,120 sf[4]35 ft[5]20[6]—0.5[7]2[8]50[1] / 20[2] / 35[3]
R-EResidential Estate Districtres_sf43,560 sf[12]35 ft[13]20[14]—1[15]2[16]50[9] / 20[10] / 35[11]
RS-18Single Family Residential District (18,000 sf)res_sf18,000 sf[20]35 ft[21]20[22]—2[23]2[24]50[17] / 12[18] / 35[19]
RS-15Single Family Residential District (15,000 sf)res_sf15,000 sf[28]35 ft[29]25[30]—2.5[31]2[32]40[25] / 10[26] / 30[27]
RS-12Single Family Residential District (12,000 sf)res_sf12,000 sf[36]35 ft[37]30[38]—3[39]2[40]35[33] / 8[34] / 30[35]
RS-10Single Family Residential District (10,000 sf)res_sf10,000 sf[44]35 ft[45]30[46]—3.5[47]2[48]30[41] / 5[42] / 25[43]
R-THTownhouse Residential Districtres_mf4,000 sf[52]35 ft[53]25[54]—8[55]2[56]30[49] / 5[50] / 30[51]
R-DTwo Family Residential Districtres_mf10,000 sf[60]35 ft[61]30[62]—7[63]2[64]30[57] / 5[58] / 25[59]
R-MMultiple Family Residential Districtres_mf217,800 sf[68]35 ft[69]30[70]—12[71]1[72]50[65] / 25[66] / 25[67]
O-R-1Neighborhood Office Districtcom—25 ft[76]30[77]——2.55[78]30[73] / 15[74] / 15[75]
O-R-2Neighborhood Office District (parking-in-front variant)com—25 ft[82]30[83]——2.55[84]30[79] / 15[80] / 15[81]
O-COffice Center Districtcom—50 ft[88]30[89]——2.55[90]50[85] / 10[86] / 20[87]
C-LNeighborhood Business Districtcom—25 ft[93]50[94]——4[95]45[91] / — / 20[92]
C-GGeneral Business Districtcom—60 ft[98]70[99]——4[100]40[96] / — / 20[97]
C-HHighway Business Districtcom10,000 sf[103]60 ft[104]40[105]——4[106]40[101] / — / 20[102]
SC-1Planned Unit Commercial Development Districtcom10,000 sf[108]60 ft[109]70[110]——4[111]15[107] / — / —
I-OWholesale and Warehouse Districtind—35 ft[115]———1.25[116]30[112] / 10[113] / 20[114]
I-PPlanned Industrial Park Districtind1,306,800 sf[120]40 ft[121]50[122]——1.02[123]50[117] / 20[118] / 20[119]
FWFloodway Districtspec——————— / — / —
POSPublic Open Space Districtspec——————— / — / —

Confidence: confirmed partial under review not found

Overlays

F-P
Floodplain Overlay Zone
SPEC
Article VI, Section 21

Areas of special flood hazard identified by FEMA FIS for the City of Bartlett and accompanying FIRM panels; enforced by the Bartlett Floodplain Administrator under TCA §§13-7-201 through 13-7-211.

H
Historic Preservation Overlay Zone
SPEC
Article VI, Section 24 (overlay) and Section 25 (Historic Preservation standards)

Areas designated on the Official Zoning Map with the letter 'H'; an overlay may span multiple underlying districts or portions thereof. Designation follows Art VI §25 procedural criteria.

MS
Main Street Commercial Overlay District
SPEC
Article VI, Section 26

May be applied by BMA action to any area classified O-R-1, O-R-2, C-L, C-G, C-H, or SC-1.

RMU
Residential Mixed Use Overlay District
SPEC
Article VI, Section 29

Allowed in O-R-1, O-R-2, O-C, C-L, C-G, C-H, or SC-1; also in residential (R-E, RS, R-TH, R-M) where commercial/office zoning directly abuts or on combination-zoned lots with major/minor road frontage. Site-specific Special Use Permit.

R-C
Residential Condominium Overlay
SPEC
Article V, Chart 2 (R-C Residential Condominium Overlay row)

Overlay applied to allow multi-story dwelling condominium structures within underlying residential districts.

SHELBY-CO
Shelby County Coordination
SPEC
Shelby County Code Chapter 26 (Planning & Development)

All of Bartlett is within Shelby County; county code cross-references for subdivision and flood management.

AE
Airport Environs (Memphis International AICUZ)
SPEC
N/A

N/A - Bartlett ~15-18 mi NE of MEM; outside 65 DNL + Part 77 surfaces

State preemptions

TN-STR-ACTapplies
Qualifying condition
qualifying_condition=Bartlett is a Tennessee municipal corporation; statute applies to all 'local governmental units' in TN. ; city_specific_note=Bartlett zoning ordinance contains Art VI §30 Short-term Rentals (at A--VI-213). Local STR ordinance in place; grandfathering and parity with state statute apply.
Effect
Any Bartlett STR ordinance cannot retroactively prohibit pre-existing lawfully operating STRs. Pre-ordinance STRs are grandfathered in perpetuity. Prospective regulation (registration, occupancy, noise, tax) permitted.
TN-IZ-BANapplies
Qualifying condition
qualifying_condition=Bartlett is a TN municipal corporation; statute applies to all 'local governmental units'. ; city_specific_note=No mandatory IZ percentage observed in extracted ordinance; no preemption conflict. mandatory_iz_preempted = false.
Effect
Bartlett may not enact mandatory affordable set-asides tied to zoning approvals, building permits, or COs. Voluntary density-bonus or direct-subsidy-tied affordability permitted.
TN-MH-PARITYapplies
Qualifying condition
qualifying_condition=Bartlett residential districts permit site-built SFD; parity requirement attaches. ; city_specific_note=Art VI §21 Art 5.A.4 addresses manufactured homes in flood zones (anchoring/elevation); no disparate SF-residential exclusion observed. Parity assumed in the absence of disparate treatment.
Effect
HUD-code manufactured homes must be allowed on parity with site-built SFD for any Bartlett compatibility standard.
TN-Greenbeltapplies
Qualifying condition
qualifying_condition=Any parcel in Bartlett-or-ETJ under active Greenbelt classification. ; city_specific_note=A-O Agricultural and Open Land District exists (Art V §1); residual Greenbelt parcels possible. Flag at site-selection stage.
Effect
Conversion triggers rollback tax (3-year ag/forest, 5-year open space).
TN-13-7-208-Nonconformingapplies
Qualifying condition
qualifying_condition=Any lawfully established industrial/commercial use pre-dating a Bartlett zoning change.
Effect
Such use cannot be terminated by subsequent zoning change absent discontinuance.
Non-applicable laws (1)
TN-ADU-NONEunder_review
Qualifying condition
qualifying_condition=N/A ; city_specific_note=Bartlett Art VI §28 Guest Units addresses accessory dwelling-like use locally.
Effect
ADU regulation is fully local; no state ceiling or floor.

Adopted building codes

Major cities adopt newer locally

IBC
2012
IRC
2021
NEC
2017
IFC
2012
IECC (Residential)
2009
IECC (Commercial)
2012

Click a code label to open its state-by-state adoption atlas.

Quirks & notes

  • Lot-size-numeric naming convention (RS-18/15/12/10) — Single-family districts named by required lot size in thousands of sq ft (RS-18 = 18,000 sf, etc.), not by ordinal density number. Common in 1970s-era TN ordinances. — [Art V §§3-6]
  • Front-yard ROW-adjustment footnote — Required front yard increases +5 ft on 60-ft ROW and +10 ft on 80-ft ROW (Chart 2 footnote #). Non-intuitive - setback is pegged to street width, not just district. — [Art V Chart 2 footnote #]
  • C-H height 1/3-distance rule — C-H Highway Business building height capped at 1/3 horizontal distance to nearest single-family residential zoning boundary, regardless of whether that district abuts the subject property. Applied even across intervening non-residential parcels. — [Art V Chart 2 footnote *]
  • SC-1 100 ft residential buffer — Planned Unit Commercial Development (SC-1) must set buildings back 100 ft from any abutting residential district line. Larger than typical. — [Art V §16.B]
  • O-R vs O-R-2 parking-placement inversion — O-R requires parking in rear/side yards only (no front); O-R-2 requires parking in front/side yards only (no rear). Same general use but mirror-image site layout rules. Rare. — [Art V §§10-11]
  • R-TH townhouse = 0 lot width for interior unit — Townhouse units in R-TH have 'na' minimum lot width (fee-simple unit on shared party walls). End/attached-SF units carry 40 ft width and 4,000 sf area. — [Art V Chart 2 R-TH rows]
  • Flood freeboard 30 inches residential / 18 inches non-residential — Bartlett's F-P overlay requires 30 in freeboard on residential new-construction/substantial-improvement and 18 in on non-residential - higher than the typical 12 in TN municipal standard. — [Art VI §21 Art 5.A.1-2]
  • Landscape screen 20 ft between SF residential and all other uses — Plate 23D landscape screen (6-ft wood fence + brick/stone columns + plantings) required at any boundary between single-family residential and any other land use, borne by the non-residential property. — [Art VI §23 Plate 23D]
  • MS overlay allows 20 ft lot width and 0 ft setbacks — Main Street Commercial Overlay District (applied by BMA action) reduces lot width to 20 ft and setbacks to 0 ft for 2+ story buildings; no lot-coverage maximum. Unusually form-based for a conventional TN suburb. — [Art VI §26.D-F]
  • RMU 5-acre minimum — Residential Mixed Use Overlay requires 5-acre minimum site (except Bartlett Station CG-MS area); 20% green open space mandatory. — [Art VI §29]
  • PDF-only canonical source — Bartlett's zoning ordinance canonical source is a city-hosted PDF. Extraction requires PDF text tooling (pdftotext used here).
  • I-P requires 30-acre minimum park — Planned Industrial Park district requires 30-acre minimum site area - one of the largest thresholds in west TN. Individual lots within set by approved master plan. — [Art V Chart 2 (I-P row)]

Formulas

Definitions

height
Residential 35 ft; R-TH 2.5 stories; O-R/O-R-2 2 stories; O-C 4 stories; C-G/C-H/SC-1 5 stories; I-O 2 stories or 35 ft; I-P 40 ft
setbacks
Front-yard increase: +5 ft on 60-ft ROW, +10 ft on 80-ft ROW (Chart 2 footnote #)
lot_coverage
Building coverage as % of lot
parking
Off-street parking (Article VI Section 12, Table VI-12a)

Capacity calculations

sc1_residential_buffer
SC-1 Planned Unit Commercial minimum setback from abutting residential district (=100 ft)
residential_fence_screen
Landscape screen required between single-family residential and all other uses (=20 ft_depth)
flood_freeboard_residential
Finished floor elevation above BFE, residential (=30 in)
flood_freeboard_nonresidential
Finished floor elevation above BFE, non-residential (=18 in)

Massing explorer

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District Category Height FAR Coverage Setbacks Parking Density Min lot Overlays

Sources & references

Primary source
City of Bartlett Zoning Ordinance (Ordinance 80-18, as amended)
base ordinance July 1980; incorporated amendments include 99-12 (Historic), 01-05 (SC-1 bulk), 01-08 (MS overlay), 03-12, 05-06, 05-07 (RMU), 05-08, 07-14, 11-02/11-03 (temp uses), 19-04 (RMU revision) · retrieved 2026-04-24
Citations
  1. [1] Art V Chart 2
  2. [2] Art V Chart 2
  3. [3] Art V Chart 2
  4. [4] Art V Chart 2 (A-O row, 2 Acres SFD)
  5. [5] Art V Chart 2
  6. [6] Art V Chart 2
  7. [7] Art V Chart 2
  8. [8] Table VI-12a (Dwellings, Single-Family)
  9. [9] Art V Chart 2 (# - increase +5 on 60-ft ROW, +10 on 80-ft ROW)
  10. [10] Art V Chart 2
  11. [11] Art V Chart 2
  12. [12] Art V Chart 2 (R-E row, 1 Acre SFD)
  13. [13] Art V Chart 2
  14. [14] Art V Chart 2
  15. [15] Art V Chart 2
  16. [16] Table VI-12a
  17. [17] Art V Chart 2 (# - ROW adjustment)
  18. [18] Art V Chart 2
  19. [19] Art V Chart 2
  20. [20] Art V Chart 2 (RS-18 row)
  21. [21] Art V Chart 2
  22. [22] Art V Chart 2
  23. [23] Art V Chart 2
  24. [24] Table VI-12a
  25. [25] Art V Chart 2 (# - ROW adjustment)
  26. [26] Art V Chart 2
  27. [27] Art V Chart 2
  28. [28] Art V Chart 2 (RS-15 row)
  29. [29] Art V Chart 2
  30. [30] Art V Chart 2
  31. [31] Art V Chart 2
  32. [32] Table VI-12a
  33. [33] Art V Chart 2 (# - ROW adjustment)
  34. [34] Art V Chart 2 (footnote 1: minimum 8', total 18')
  35. [35] Art V Chart 2
  36. [36] Art V Chart 2 (RS-12 row)
  37. [37] Art V Chart 2
  38. [38] Art V Chart 2
  39. [39] Art V Chart 2
  40. [40] Table VI-12a
  41. [41] Art V Chart 2 (# - ROW adjustment)
  42. [42] Art V Chart 2 (footnote 2: minimum 5', total 15')
  43. [43] Art V Chart 2
  44. [44] Art V Chart 2 (RS-10 row)
  45. [45] Art V Chart 2
  46. [46] Art V Chart 2
  47. [47] Art V Chart 2
  48. [48] Table VI-12a
  49. [49] Art V Chart 2 (# - ROW adjustment)
  50. [50] Art V Chart 2 (attached SF: 5/0 - 5' on end, 0' interior; footnote 2 applies to SFD)
  51. [51] Art V Chart 2
  52. [52] Art V Chart 2 (R-TH attached unit row)
  53. [53] Art V Chart 2 (2.5 stories; ~35 ft equivalent)
  54. [54] Art V Chart 2
  55. [55] Art V Chart 2
  56. [56] Table VI-12a (SF attached)
  57. [57] Art V Chart 2 (# - ROW adjustment)
  58. [58] Art V Chart 2 (footnote 2 applies: 5' min, 15' total)
  59. [59] Art V Chart 2
  60. [60] Art V Chart 2 (R-D SFD row; 12,500 sf for two-family)
  61. [61] Art V Chart 2
  62. [62] Art V Chart 2
  63. [63] Art V Chart 2 (two-family row; SFD row = 4 du/ac)
  64. [64] Table VI-12a
  65. [65] Art V Chart 2 (# - ROW adjustment)
  66. [66] Art V Chart 2
  67. [67] Art V Chart 2
  68. [68] Art V Chart 2 (R-M row; 5 Acres)
  69. [69] Art V Chart 2
  70. [70] Art V Chart 2
  71. [71] Art V Chart 2
  72. [72] Table VI-12a (Dwellings, Multi-Family, Low-/Mid-Rise)
  73. [73] Art V Chart 2 (O-R row)
  74. [74] Art V Chart 2
  75. [75] Art V Chart 2
  76. [76] Art V Chart 2 (2 Stories, ~25 ft equivalent)
  77. [77] Art V Chart 2
  78. [78] Table VI-12a (Offices: General)
  79. [79] Art V Chart 2 (O-R-2 row)
  80. [80] Art V Chart 2
  81. [81] Art V Chart 2
  82. [82] Art V Chart 2 (2 Stories)
  83. [83] Art V Chart 2
  84. [84] Table VI-12a (Offices: General)
  85. [85] Art V Chart 2 (O-C row)
  86. [86] Art V Chart 2
  87. [87] Art V Chart 2
  88. [88] Art V Chart 2 (4 Stories, ~50 ft equivalent)
  89. [89] Art V Chart 2
  90. [90] Table VI-12a (Offices: General)
  91. [91] Art V Chart 2
  92. [92] Art V Chart 2
  93. [93] Art V Chart 2 (2 Stories)
  94. [94] Art V Chart 2
  95. [95] Table VI-12a (e.g., retail / banks / restaurants per specific use row)
  96. [96] Art V Chart 2
  97. [97] Art V Chart 2
  98. [98] Art V Chart 2 (5 Stories, ~60 ft equivalent)
  99. [99] Art V Chart 2
  100. [100] Table VI-12a
  101. [101] Art V Chart 2 (footnote **: min 15' from curb where sidewalk/plaza+ground-floor commercial)
  102. [102] Art V Chart 2
  103. [103] Art V Chart 2 (C-H row)
  104. [104] Art V Chart 2 (5 Stories*; * = height limited by 1/3 horizontal distance to nearest SF residential boundary)
  105. [105] Art V Chart 2
  106. [106] Table VI-12a
  107. [107] Art V Chart 2
  108. [108] Art V Chart 2 (SC-1 row)
  109. [109] Art V Chart 2 (5 Stories)
  110. [110] Art V Chart 2
  111. [111] Table VI-12a (Shopping Centers)
  112. [112] Art V Chart 2
  113. [113] Art V Chart 2
  114. [114] Art V Chart 2
  115. [115] Art V Chart 2 (2 Stories or 35 ft)
  116. [116] Table VI-12a (Wholesale / Light Industrial)
  117. [117] Art V Chart 2
  118. [118] Art V Chart 2
  119. [119] Art V Chart 2
  120. [120] Art V Chart 2 (I-P row, 30 Acres minimum park area)
  121. [121] Art V Chart 2
  122. [122] Art V Chart 2
  123. [123] Table VI-12a (Manufacturing / Commercial not catering to retail)

Research status

Publication gates

primary url presentpassed
no aggregator citedpassed
confidence tags full formpassed
overlays have parameters trigger confidencepassed
preempt section city specificpassed

Data quality

88%completeness178 confirmed
Documented gaps
  • I-P lot-level dimensional standards within the 30-ac park set by approved master plan (per-tenant standards not in ordinance text)
  • H Historic Overlay geographic boundaries not extracted (depends on current Zoning Map; ordinance references but does not enumerate designated H zones)
  • MS overlay designated areas not enumerated (applied ad hoc by BMA action)
  • SC-1 minimum lot width not specified in Chart 2 (blank cell)
  • FEMA FIRM panel numbers for F-P overlay not captured (dynamic)
  • STR ordinance (Art VI §30) parameters not deep-extracted - noted as present but not itemized here (out of scope for base-district upgrade)

Verification

last_verified_at2026-05-21T00:00:00Z
verifier_specialistmanual-pdf-reextraction
verifier_version2.0
verification_resultpassed
atomic_claims_checked178
atomic_claims_passed178
atomic_claims_failed0
notesPDF fetched (4.1 MB, 11,180 text lines via pdftotext). All 19 base districts and 5 overlays extracted from Article V Chart 2 + Article VI sections 21, 24-26, 29. Every dimensional value carries an Article/Section/Chart-2 citation. No aggregator citations. Parking values extracted from Table VI-12a with use-specific breakdowns.
narrative_refnarratives/bartlett-tn/bartlett-tn-20260418.json
last_verified_evidence{"verified_at": "2026-05-21T00:00:00Z", "method": "re-fetch primary PDF + pdftotext + line-by-line compare against profile", "url": "https://www.cityofbartlett.org/DocumentCenter/View/10525/Zoning-Ordinance", "sections_resampled": ["Article V Chart 2 row RS-15: '15,000 sq. ft. | 100 | 40# | 10 | 30 | 35 | 2.5 | 25' (line 2536 of pdftotext-layout output) — matches profile RS-15 base_district dimensions exactly", "Article V Chart 2 row SC-1: 'SC-1 COMMERCIAL | 10,000 Sq. Ft. | (blank width) | 15 | 5 Stories | 70' (line 2577) — matches profile SC-1 base_district", "Article VI Section 21 (F-P Floodplain Overlay) — 'Residential Construction...lowest floor...elevated no lower than (30) inches above the base flood elevation' and 'Non-Residential...no lower than 18 inches above...base flood elevation' (lines 6473-6496) — matches profile F-P overlay params exactly", "Article VI Section 21 (SC-1 buffer cross-ref to Art V §16.B): 'Where the Planned Unit Commercial Development abuts a residential district, no building shall be constructed less than one hundred (100) feet from such district line' (line 2120) — matches profile quirk + capacity formula"], "match_rate_pct": 100, "outcome": "verified-and-bumped"}

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