Philadelphia Overlay Districts

Philadelphia Overlay Districts: A Row of Homes in Fishtown, Philadelphia

In this space, we’ve explained what zoning districts are, and summarized the three main categories of zoning district: commercial, residential (single-family and multi-family), and industrial.  We’ve even reviewed the basics of sign permitting.  So you might think that our Philadelphia zoning guide is complete!

… you would be wrong.

Having a zoning code with detailed regulations for each parcel of land in the city might seem like the definition of a zoning code.  But Philly’s zoning code doesn’t merely define types of parcel.  It also sorts those parcels into geographic units.  In certain areas of the city, it’s not enough to know that your property is considered RSA-5 (that is, residential single-family, attached).  Your property might also fall under regulations for the Center City district – CTR – or the Central Delaware district – CDO.  There are twenty of these in all, and they are called Overlay Districts.

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