Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Lakewood, California

Lakewood’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  All land inside Lakewood city limits, under the city's own zoning ordinance (Article IX Planning and Zoning, Chapter 3 Zoning)

  • Each parcel is governed by the zone shown on the city's zoning map, so the zone must be checked per parcel.
  • Dimensional and use rules in the R-1 and other zone parts apply only within the zone they govern.

  “for the purpose of this chapter, thirteen (13) classes of zones are established as follows:”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Zone classes and zoning map for land inside Lakewood city limits

  • The eCode list in § 9310 reads R-1, R-A, M-F-R, A, C-1, C-3, C-4, M-1, M-2, O-S, PD-SF and PD-MF, which is twelve names although the text says thirteen classes; verify the list against the official zoning map.
  • Zone boundaries are shown on the adopted Zoning Map of the City of Lakewood, which was not opened.

  “the location and boundaries of the various zones are such as are shown and delineated on the "zoning map of the city of lakewood" which map is attached hereto and made a part of this chapter.”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Subdividing an existing lot in the R-1 (Single-Family Residential) zone inside Lakewood city limits. This is only the subdivision floor; the base R-1 minimum lot area is set by reference to § 9210, which was not opened.

  • Subdivided lots may not be smaller than 1,200 sq ft, as allowed by state law.
  • The base minimum lot area for R-1 lots is governed by § 9210 and is not stated here.

  minimum lot area of a subdivided lot: >= 1200 sq ft (as allowed by state law; base R-1 minimum per § 9210 not reviewed)

  “in no instance shall the minimum lot area of the subdivision of an existing lot in the r-1 zone result in a lot to be less than 1,200 square feet, as allowed by state law.”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Lots in the R-1 (Single-Family Residential) zone inside Lakewood city limits

  • Front setback is 10 ft instead of 20 ft on a cul-de-sac street or knuckle intersection.
  • Lots in Tract No. 11600 and Tract No. 12673 (Lakewood Gardens) have a 14 ft front setback.
  • Setbacks may be waived or modified by state law; nonconforming buildings are governed by section 9396.

  front yard setback: >= 20 feet (10 ft on cul-de-sac or knuckle lots; 14 ft in Lakewood Gardens tracts) · interior side yard setback: >= 4 feet (corner lot side-street yard also 4 ft) · rear yard setback: >= 4 feet

  “for interior lots, the side yard setback area shall be four (4) feet in width from the side property line, unless otherwise waived or modified by state law.”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  Lots in the R-1 (Single-Family Residential) zone inside Lakewood city limits

  • Limits apply unless waived or modified by state law.
  • The 60% limit is on living floor area of the main building (floor area ratio), a separate test from the 45% coverage limit.

  lot coverage (first floor area of main building plus enclosed accessory structures): <= 45 percent of lot area (unless waived or modified by state law) · floor area ratio (living floor area of main building): <= 60 percent of lot area (unless waived or modified by state law)

  “the total first floor area of the main building and all enclosed accessory structures shall not exceed forty-five percent (45%) of the lot area, unless otherwise waived, or modified by state law.”

• Building heightSpecified

  Buildings in the R-1 (Single-Family Residential) zone inside Lakewood city limits

  • Structures in the front yard area are limited to 18 ft if detached from all other structures and 25 ft if attached to a structure that is not in the front yard.
  • An additional 2 ft may be added to match the adjoining roof pitch.

  building height: <= 35 feet (or two and one-half stories, whichever is the lesser)

  “in the r-1 zone, no building shall exceed two and one-half (2 1/2) stories or thirty-five (35) feet in height, whichever is the lesser”

• Accessory dwellingsLimited

  ADUs and junior ADUs on R-1 lots with one or two single-family dwellings inside Lakewood city limits

  • Listed as an accessory use in R-1 under § 9320(a)(1), with standards in § 9302.21a (ADU) and § 9302.21b (JADU), which were not opened.
  • The sentence containing the ADU listing was cut off in the harvested text before a restriction beginning 'neither an ADU nor a JADU is allowed to be constructed on an R-1'; the rest of that restriction is not verified.

  “neither an adu nor a jadu is allowed to be constructed on an r-1 lot that has two dwelling units and that was created by a parcel map or other land division procedure that occurred on or after january 1, 2022.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Lakewood or Los Angeles County directly.

• Building permit — New residential construction inside Lakewood city limits
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder construction inside Lakewood city limits
• Building code adopted — Building construction inside Lakewood city limits
• Inspections — New residential construction inside Lakewood city limits
• Certificate of occupancy — Occupancy of new homes inside Lakewood city limits

Each answer was extracted from an official source and independently re-checked against that source by a second reviewer. That is an evidence check, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the authority before you buy or build.

Off-grid gear

Going off-grid in Lakewood means bringing your own water and power. The kit we’d start with:

• Water Crystal Quest Filter any source — well, rain, or creek — to drinking-clean.
• Power Bluetti Solar generators and home battery backup for living off the grid.
• Septic Soil percolation test kit Run your own perc test before paying an engineer — the first thing a septic office asks about.
• Water Well water test kit Bacteria, nitrates, hardness — know what the well on a parcel is really pumping.

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