Zoning & Subdivision Regulations

What is the purpose of the City's Zoning and Subdivision Regulations?

The purpose of the Zoning and Subdivision Regulations is to implement the City’s General Plan. More specifically, these regulations are adopted by the Richmond City Council to achieve the following objectives:

1. To provide a guide for the physical development of the City in a manner as to progressively achieve the arrangement of land uses depicted in the General Plan, consistent with the goals and policies of the General Plan;
2. To foster harmonious, convenient, and workable relationships between land uses and ensure compatible infill development, consistent with the General Plan;
3. To support economic development and job creation and provide for the housing needs of all economic segments of the community;
4. To promote high quality architecture, landscape architecture and urban design, consistent with the General Plan;
5. To promote the stability of existing land uses that conform to the General Plan, protecting them from inharmonious influences and harmful intrusions, and protect and enhance real property values; and
6. To facilitate the appropriate location of community facilities, institutions, parks, and recreational areas.

How do I find the zoning district designation for a property?

You can look up the zoning district designation for a property by using the City's Interactive Zoning Map. Here are some general instructions for using the mapping tool:

1. Go to the Interactive Zoning Map and keep this page open for easy reference.
2. Read the welcome information and agree to the disclaimer.
3. Enter the property's address or assessor's parcel number (APN) into the search bar located on the upper right corner of the page. Your search results will appear in a panel on the left side of the page. Note that entering an APN will give you the best search results.
4. Review your results and click on the one that best matches your search criteria. Once you've clicked on a result, the mapping tool will zoom into and highlight the property.
5. Next, right-click the highlighted property and then select "Find data on the map". Doing this will display the property's zoning district designation as an abbreviation on the left side of the page.

How do I look up the land use regulations and development standards that apply to zoning district designation of the property?

You can use the table below to browse through the land use regulations and development standards that apply to a specific zoning district designation. To review the definitions for specific land use classifications and key zoning code terms, review RMC 15.04.104.020.