Woodinville residential zoning
Woodinville residential zoning and setbacks
Woodinville uses fixed zone setbacks but a lot-area-based building-coverage ladder in R-1. It pairs building coverage with minimum landscaping and separate tree, grading, drainage, shoreline, and critical-area requirements.
Reviewed against official Woodinville sources, August 2026Official starting point: Woodinville residential lot standards. Verify the parcel zone, current code, and every applicable footnote before fixing the design.
Woodinville residential base-zone screen
| Zone | Minimum lot | Front / street | Rear | Side / interior | Height | Size controls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R1 / R-1 | 35,000 sq ft | 10 ft | 10 ft | 10 ft | 35 ft | See code notes |
| R4 / R-4 | 9,000 sq ft | 10 ft | 5 ft | 5 ft | 35 ft | 35% building; Coverage is 40% below 5,000 sq ft, 35% from 5,000 through 43,559 sq ft, and 28% at one acre or more. |
| R6 / R-6 | 6,000 sq ft | 10 ft | 5 ft | 5 ft | 35 ft | 50% building; Coverage is 50% below one acre and 40% at one acre or more. |
| R8 / R-8 | 5,000 sq ft | 10 ft | 5 ft | 5 ft | 35 ft | 55% building; Coverage is 55% below one acre and 45% at one acre or more. |
| R12 / R-12 | 3,600 sq ft | 10 ft | 5 ft | 5 ft | 35 ft | 65% building; Coverage is 65% below 5,000 sq ft, 60% from 5,000 through 43,559 sq ft, and 50% at one acre or more. |
| R18 / R-18 | 2,400 sq ft | 10 ft | 5 ft | 5 ft | 45 ft | 65% building; Coverage is 65% below 5,000 sq ft, 60% from 5,000 through 43,559 sq ft, and 50% at one acre or more. |
| R24 / R-24 | 1,700 sq ft | 10 ft | 5 ft | 5 ft | 45 ft | 70% building; Coverage is 70% below one acre and 65% at one acre or more. |
| R48 / R-48 | 900 sq ft | 10 ft | 5 ft | 5 ft | 45 ft | 70% building; Coverage is 70% at every lot-area tier in the current table. |
Code audit
Verified jurisdiction rule checklist
Each item below links to the official source used by the feasibility-study logic. "No general private-view right identified" is a limited conclusion from the reviewed city code, not a title clearance or statement about private covenants.
| Rule | Verified screen | Official source |
|---|---|---|
| FAR | Residential base zones do not use a general FAR. Garages still consume building coverage. | WMC 21.32 ↗ |
| Setbacks | Street setback is 10 ft and interior setback is 10 ft in R-1 / 5 ft in other residential zones. A street-facing garage generally needs 20 ft of driveway. | WMC 21.32 ↗ |
| Lot coverage | R-1 coverage steps down by actual lot area to 15% at one acre or more; R-4 through R-48 use zone-specific percentages. | WMC 21.32 ↗ |
| Impervious / hard surface | The code uses minimum landscaping coverage alongside building coverage; shoreline, drainage, and critical areas can impose additional surface limits. | WMC 21.32 ↗ |
| Height | R-1 through R-12 are 35 ft; R-18 through R-48 are 45 ft, measured under the average designated-grade and roof rules. | WMC 21.32 ↗ |
| Trees | Qualifying proposals require 70 tree credits/acre in R-1 and 50 credits/acre in R-4 through R-8, with replacement or approved alternatives where allowed. | WMC 21.50 ↗ |
| Existing private views | No general residential private-view right was identified. Viewshed review in this chapter concerns certain nonresidential height bonuses. | WMC 21.32 ↗ |
Parcel-specific checks
What can change the table
- The current coverage table uses lot-area tiers in several zones. R-1 steps from 40% on legacy lots under 5,000 sq ft to 15% at one acre; R-4, R-6, R-8, R-12, R-18, and R-24 also step down at one or more lot-area thresholds. The feasibility report calculates the parcel's exact row.
- Street setback is 10 ft; interior setback is 10 ft in R-1 and 5 ft in other residential zones. Street-facing garages generally need 20 ft of driveway.
- Qualifying R-1 proposals require 70 tree credits per acre; R-4 through R-8 require 50 credits per acre.
How to use this guide
Turn a zone row into a useful screen
- 1
Find the parcel on the city's current zoning map and copy the complete zone name.
- 2
Read the full row, table footnotes, and definitions. Do not use only the front setback.
- 3
Check corner-lot yards, access easements, critical areas, shorelines, trees, overlays, and recorded restrictions.
- 4
Use a boundary and topographic survey to place the setbacks against the actual lot.
- 5
Have the city or project team confirm any uncertainty before the design is fixed.
Official resources