zoneoptics
Alexandria, Virginia · General provision

Section 4-800 (OC Zone)

Office CommercialAll Alexandria districts0

Dimensional standards

lot requirementsSTREETbuildable areaFront 20 ftRear 8 ftSide 8 ftMin frontage 50 ftMIN LOT AREA5,000 sq ftMAX HEIGHT50 ftMAX FAR1MAX DENSITY22 du/acMIN OPEN SPACE35%
Plan view of the district’s stated lot requirements. Solid line: the property line. Dashed: the setback lines the ordinance imposes; a building must stay inside the tinted envelope. Drawn from the figures extracted below — illustrative, not a survey.

Lot

Minimum lot areaMinimum lot areaThe smallest parcel on which the district allows anything to be built.
5,000 sq ftsq ftSquare feet. An acre is 43,560 sq ft; a typical suburban lot is 7,000–10,000.
Minimum frontageFrontageThe length of a lot line that touches a public street.
50 ft

Density

Maximum density
22 du/acredu/acreDwelling units per acre — the number of homes allowed on each acre of land.
Lot area per dwelling unitLot area per dwelling unitLand required for each home — the same limit as du/acre, expressed per unit instead of per acre.
2,500 sq ftsq ftSquare feet. An acre is 43,560 sq ft; a typical suburban lot is 7,000–10,000.

SetbacksSetbackThe distance a building must be held back from a lot line.

FrontSetbackThe distance a building must be held back from a lot line.
20 ft
RearSetbackThe distance a building must be held back from a lot line.
8 ft
SideSetbackThe distance a building must be held back from a lot line.
8 ft

Height & bulk

Maximum heightMaximum heightThe tallest a building may be, given in feet, in storeys, or both — whichever binds first.
50 ft
Maximum floor area ratioFloor area ratio (FAR)Total floor area divided by lot area — an FAR of 2.0 permits 20,000 sq ft of floor on a 10,000 sq ft lot.
1
Minimum open spaceOpen spaceLand a development must leave unbuilt, sometimes required to be usable or planted.
35%

Uses

Permitted by right25

Conditional / special use37

Prohibited1

From the ordinance

Each single-unit dwelling shall be located on a lot with a minimum land area of 5,000 square feet. ... The maximum permitted floor area ratio for nonresidential uses is 1.00. ... The maximum permitted height of a building is 50 feet.
Section 4-800 (OC Zone)