Madison, WI Zoning

TR-R

Traditional Residential-Rustic district for lower-density residential development with some flexibility for small multi-unit formats.

Allowed uses: Single family building, 2-unit buildings, Cottage courts

SR-C1

Suburban Residential-Consistent 1 district intended for primarily single-family and 2-unit residential patterns.

Allowed uses: Single family and 2-unit buildings, Cottage courts

TR-C4

Traditional Residential-Consistent 4 district allowing somewhat more compact traditional residential form.

Allowed uses: Single family and 2-3 unit buildings, Cottage courts

SR-V1

Suburban Residential-Varied 1 district allowing a mix from single-family up to small multifamily and limited mixed-use buildings.

Allowed uses: Single family and 2-3 unit buildings, Cottage courts, 3-4 unit townhome, 4-8 unit multifamily

TR-V2

Traditional Residential-Varied 2 district allowing a broader mix of housing types with some larger formats by conditional use.

Allowed uses: Single family and 2-3 unit buildings, Cottage courts, 3-4 unit townhome, 4-12 unit multifamily

TR-U1

Traditional Residential-Urban 1 district for higher-density urban neighborhoods with a broad range of housing types.

Allowed uses: Single family building, 2-3 unit building, 3-8 unit townhome, 4-24 unit multifamily

TR-U2

Traditional Residential-Urban 2 district for high-density urban residential development.

Allowed uses: 3 unit building, 3-8 unit townhome, 4-36 unit multifamily

TR-P

Traditional Residential-Planned district for larger planned residential areas with multiple housing types.

Allowed uses: Single family and 2-3 unit buildings, Cottage courts, 5-8 unit townhome, More than 60 unit multifamily

LMX

Limited Mixed-Use district for small-scale mixed-use development within or next to residential areas.

Allowed uses: Live-work unit, 1 to 2 unit mixed-use buildings

NMX

Neighborhood Mixed-Use district for medium-scale mixed-use areas.

Allowed uses: Live-work unit, 4-12 unit multifamily, 1-24 unit mixed-use building

TSS

Traditional Shopping Street district for mixed-use street corridors.

Allowed uses: Live-work unit, 5-24 unit multifamily, 1-48 unit mixed-use building

CC-T

Commercial Corridor-Transitional district for historically auto-oriented commercial corridors intended to transition to mixed-use corridors.

Allowed uses: Live-work unit, 5-36 unit multifamily, 1-60 unit mixed-use building

Outdoor eating area in UMX after 9:00 p.m.

A May 11, 2026 Plan Commission agenda item states that an outdoor eating area open after 9:00 p.m. in the UMX district requires conditional use approval.

• Conditional use approval in the UMX district

Outdoor eating area with amplified sound in UMX

A May 11, 2026 Plan Commission agenda item states that an outdoor eating area with amplified sound in the UMX district requires conditional use approval.

• Conditional use approval in the UMX district

Short-term rentals

The city’s Zoning & Signs page points users to a separate short-term rental rules page, indicating the use is specifically regulated, but the standards were not provided in the research excerpts.

• Verify rules on the city’s short-term rental page and Chapter 28/related code provisions

Fairground as accessory use

An adopted 2026 ordinance amended Chapter 28 to add “fairground” as an accessory use.

• Verify exact amended code language and where accessory use classification applies

Are short-term rentals allowed in Madison, WI?

The city’s Zoning & Signs page points users to a separate short-term rental rules page, indicating the use is specifically regulated, but the standards were not provided in the research excerpts.

How tall can buildings be in Madison, WI?

Height limits are set per district — TR-R: 3; SR-C1: 2; TR-C4: 2; SR-V1: 3.

What zoning districts are in Madison, WI?

Madison, WI includes districts such as TR-R, SR-C1, TR-C4, SR-V1, TR-V2, TR-U1, TR-U2, TR-P.

Are there flood zones or overlay districts in Madison, WI?

The strongest environmental constraint evidence in the Madison-specific source set comes from variance standards referencing floodplain districts. The city’s variance page shows floodplain-specific limits, indicating floodplain regulation is active and can materially constrain relief requests.

Have there been recent zoning changes in Madison, WI?

The city code on Municode was updated online on April 23, 2026 and includes adopted ordinances through ORD-26-00018 published April 3, 2026, plus adopted but not yet codified ordinances listed separately. A zoning-specific recent change identified in the source set is Ordinance No.