Marin County · Zoning setbacks
Fairfax setback requirements
Lekua resolves a parcel’s jurisdiction and zone, then draws this envelope on the site plan with its citation in the title block. Enter a Fairfax address and the setbacks arrive already drawn.
The envelope
What the numbers below make on the ground. Shown for the first district in the table; the rest follow the same geometry at their own dimensions.
Zone RS — the envelope Lekua draws on the plan.
- Front
- 10′
- Side
- 5′
- Rear
- 10′
The hatched band is the yard — ground the code gives up. Drawn not to scale: the yards are proportional to each other, so the deepest one fills the band and the rest follow. The dimensions carry the real numbers, and the export draws them on the actual parcel outline.
Fairfax setbacks by district
Every row is produced by the same function the exporter calls, so this page cannot drift from what the drawing gets. The citation under each row is what prints on the sheet.
Corner lots: 10′ on the secondary street frontage.
Fairfax Town Code §17.040.020 (RS single-family): front 10, rear 10, side 5 (lots under 50 ft average width: 10% of width, min 3 ft — lot width unavailable, ring drawn at the standard 5); corner-lot street frontages 10. §17.040.040: structures within 20 ft (or 2x bank depth, whichever is greater) of the top of bank of Fairfax/San Anselmo creeks require a variance. §17.040.010: max 35% lot coverage. Verify with Town of Fairfax Planning.
Corner lots: 10′ on the secondary street frontage.
Fairfax Town Code §17.088.070 (RM multifamily): per-yard minimums front 10, rear 10, side 10 (garage face >= 18 ft). COMBINED-yard rule: front+rear >= 40 ft, two sides >= 25 ft (density-bonus affordable projects may reduce to 35/15). Corner lots: all street frontage 10 ft. §17.040.040: structures within 20 ft (or 2x bank depth, whichever is greater) of the top of bank of Fairfax/San Anselmo creeks require a variance. §17.040.010: max 35% lot coverage. Verify with Town of Fairfax Planning.
Corner lots: 10′ on the secondary street frontage.
Fairfax Town Code §17.090.080 (RM-S multifamily-senior): per-yard minimums front 10, rear 10, side 10 (garage face >= 18 ft). COMBINED-yard rule: front+rear >= 40 ft, two sides >= 25 ft (density-bonus affordable projects may reduce to 35/15). Corner lots: all street frontage 10 ft. §17.040.040: structures within 20 ft (or 2x bank depth, whichever is greater) of the top of bank of Fairfax/San Anselmo creeks require a variance. §17.040.010: max 35% lot coverage. Verify with Town of Fairfax Planning.
Corner lots: 10′ on the secondary street frontage.
Fairfax Town Code §17.084.070 (RD 5.5-7): per-yard minimums front 6, rear 10, side 5; site slope unknown — drawn at the >10%-slope tier (rear 10 ft, conservative); on lots <=10% slope the rear minimum is 6 ft. COMBINED-yard rule: front+rear must total >= 35 ft and the two sides >= 20 ft (limits building depth/width beyond the drawn edges). Corner lots: all street frontage 10 ft. §17.040.040: structures within 20 ft (or 2x bank depth, whichever is greater) of the top of bank of Fairfax/San Anselmo creeks require a variance. §17.040.010: max 35% lot coverage. Verify with Town of Fairfax Planning.
Corner lots: 10′ on the secondary street frontage.
Fairfax Town Code §17.124.070 (UR upland residential): per-yard minimums front 6, rear 12, side 5; site slope unknown — drawn at the >10%-slope tier (rear 12 ft, conservative); on lots <=10% slope the rear minimum is 6 ft. COMBINED-yard rule: front+rear must total >= 35 ft and the two sides >= 20 ft (limits building depth/width beyond the drawn edges). Corner lots: all street frontage 10 ft. §17.040.040: structures within 20 ft (or 2x bank depth, whichever is greater) of the top of bank of Fairfax/San Anselmo creeks require a variance. §17.040.010: max 35% lot coverage. Verify with Town of Fairfax Planning.
What the export says about this table
Fairfax residential zones reviewed 2026-07-21 against Town Code ch. 17.040/084/088/090/124, current through Ord. 908 (5-6-2026). RS-6/RS-7.5, RM/RM-S, RD and UR standards are captured, including narrow-lot and slope-tiered yards. Corner frontages are 10 ft in all zones; 35% lot coverage (17.040.010) and the creek rule (17.040.040) apply. Confirm the zone and any overlay with Town Planning before layout.
Printed verbatim on every Fairfax export — the same words the reviewer signed off, not a summary of them.
Setbacks are one layer of a Fairfax site plan
The same address search returns the parcel boundary, 1–2 ft contours, building footprints, CAL FIRE defensible-space zones, the soil profile, four-season sun, and a native plant palette matched to the site. See everything Lekua resolves in Marin County→
Fairfax setback FAQ
What are the residential setbacks in Fairfax?
In RS the code sets a 10 ft front yard, 5 ft sides, and a 10 ft rear yard. The full table is below, transcribed from Fairfax Town Code §17.040.020 with the citation attached to every row. This table has passed independent review, so Lekua draws the setback envelope on the site plan for a Fairfax parcel.
Does Lekua draw the setback envelope for Fairfax?
Yes. Fairfax is one of the jurisdictions whose table has passed review, most recently on 2026-07-20, so the envelope is drawn on the DXF and the PDF site plan with its citation in the title block.
Where do these Fairfax setback numbers come from?
They are transcribed from the adopted code — Fairfax Town Code §17.040.020 — and this page renders them by calling the same function the exporter calls, so what you see here is what the drawing gets. Zoning changes; verify against the current code and with the planning department before submittal.
Can I get a CAD base map for a Fairfax parcel?
Yes. Enter any Fairfax address and Lekua returns a layered DXF base plan and a PDF site report — property lines, 1–2 ft contours, building footprints, CAL FIRE defensible-space zones, soil, seasonal sun, and a native plant palette matched to the parcel, alongside the zoning determination. See what else resolves in Marin County.
Start with a Fairfax address
Free to search. The zone resolves from the parcel, not from the mailing address.