San Francisco Planning Code § 835 Red-Mx

Residential Enclave-Mixed Districts (RED-MX) encompass some of the clusters of low-scale, medium density, predominantly residential neighborhoods located along the narrow side streets of the Western SoMa area. Many parcels in these residential enclaves are underdeveloped and represent opportunities for new residential and low-intensity commercial uses.

While residential uses are encouraged throughout these districts, group housing is limited, and student housing and single-room-occupancy units are prohibited. Small-scale retail, restaurants, arts activities, and other commercial uses are principally permitted to create the potential for more active, mixed use alleys. Some automobile-related and production, distribution, and repair uses are also permitted with limitations. Existing commercial activities in nonresidential structures may continue as nonconforming uses subject to the termination requirements of Article 1.7. Accessory Dwelling Units are permitted.

Table 835

RED-MX – RESIDENTIAL ENCLAVE-MIXED DISTRICT ZONING CONTROL TABLE

Zoning Category	§ References	Residential Enclave-Mixed District Controls
BUILDING STANDARDS

Table 835

RED-MX – RESIDENTIAL ENCLAVE-MIXED DISTRICT ZONING CONTROL TABLE

Zoning Category	§ References	Residential Enclave-Mixed District Controls
BUILDING STANDARDS
Massing and Setbacks
Height and Bulk Limits	§§ 261.1, 263.21, 270, 270.1, 270.2, 271	Varies; see also Height and Bulk District Maps. Height sculpting required on Alleys as set forth in § 261.1. Except in the Western SoMa SUD, non-habitable vertical projections permitted as set forth in § 263.21. Horizontal mass reduction required as set forth in §270.1. Mid-block alleys required as set forth in §270.2.
Rear Yards	§§ 130, 134, 136	Minimum rear yard depth shall be equal to 25% of the total depth of the lot on which the building is situated, but in no case less than 15 feet.
Front Setback and Side Yards	§§ 130, 132, 133	Front setbacks for residential uses are governed by the Ground Floor Residential Guidelines. Otherwise not required.
Street Frontage and Public Realm
Streetscape and Pedestrian Improvements	§ 138.1	As required by §138.1.
Street Frontage Requirements	§ 145.1	As required by §145.1. Exceptions permitted for historic buildings.
Active street-facing ground-floor uses required	§ 145.4	None
Parking and Loading Access Restrictions	§ 155(r)	As required by §155(r). (4)
Usable Open Space for Non-Residential Uses	§ 135.3, 426	As required by §135.3 and §426; may also pay in-lieu fee.
Artworks and Recognition of Artists and Architects	§ 429	Required for new buildings and building additions of 25,000 square feet or more.
Miscellaneous
Design Guidelines and Standards	General Plan Commerce and	Subject to the Urban Design Guidelines, Citywide Design Standards, and any other applicable design guidelines that

	Industry Element.	have been approved by the Planning Commission..2
Large Project Review	§§ 329, 249.39	As required by § 329. (4)
Planned Unit Development	§ 304	NP
Awning or Canopy	§§ 136, 136.1	P
Marquee	§§ 136, 136.1	NP
Signs	§ 607.2	As permitted by Section § 607.2 . 1
General Advertising Signs	§§ 262, 602, 604, 608, 609, 610, 611	NP

Zoning Category	§ References	Residential Enclave-Mixed District Controls
RESIDENTIAL STANDARDS AND USES
Zoning Category	§ References	Residential Enclave-Mixed District Controls
RESIDENTIAL STANDARDS AND USES
Development Standards
Usable Open Space [Per Dwelling Unit or Group Housing Room]	§§ 135, 136, 249.39	80 square feet per Dwelling Unit, or 54 square feet if publicly accessible. (4)
Off-Street Parking Requirements	§§ 150-151.1, 153 - 156, 166, 167, 204.5	No car parking required. Maximum permitted as set forth in § 151.1 . Bike parking required per § 155.2. If car parking is provided, car share spaces are required when a project has 50 units or more per § 166.
Off-Street Freight Loading, Residential	§§ 150, 152, 153 - 155, 204.5	None required if Occupied Floor Area is less than 100,000 square feet.
Residential Conversion, Demolition, or Merger of Dwelling Units, including Residential Flats	§ 317	C
Dwelling Unit Mix	§ 207.6	At least 40% of all Dwelling Units must contain two or more bedrooms or 30% of all Dwelling Units must contain three or more bedrooms.
Use Characteristics
Intermediate Length Occupancy	§§ 102, 202.10	NP
Single Room Occupancy	§ 102, 249.39	NP
Student Housing	§ 102	NP
Residential Uses
Dwelling Units	§ 102	P
Group Housing	§ 102	C
Senior Housing	§§ 102, 202.2(f)	P
Homeless Shelter	§ 102	C
Dwelling Unit and Group Housing Density, General	§ 207	Form-Based Density.
Minimum Dwelling Unit Densities, if Applicable	§ 207.9	Varies depending on project location, but generally ranges between 50 and 100 dwelling units per acre.
Maximum Dwelling Unit Size	§§ 207.10, 317	P up to 4,000 square feet of Gross Floor Area or an equivalent Floor Area Ratio for any individual Dwelling Unit

		of 1.2:1. C for Dwelling Units that exceed the greater of those thresholds.
Homeless Shelter Density	§§ 102, 208	Density limits regulated by the Administrative Code.
Zoning Category	§ References	Residential Enclave-Mixed District Controls
NON-RESIDENTIAL STANDARDS AND USES
Zoning Category	§ References	Residential Enclave-Mixed District Controls
NON-RESIDENTIAL STANDARDS AND USES
Development Standards
Floor Area Ratio	§§ 102, 123, 124	Section 124 sets forth the Basic FAR, based on height. Childcare Facilities and Residential Care Facilities are exempt from FAR limits.
Off-Street Parking Requirements	§§ 150-151.1, 153 - 156, 166, 204.5	No car parking required. Maximum permitted as set forth in § 151.1 . Bike parking required per § 155.2. If car parking is provided, car share spaces are required when a project has 25 units or more per § 166.
Off-Street Freight Loading, Non-Residential	§§ 150, 152, 153 - 155, 204.5	None required if Occupied Floor Area is less than 10,000 square feet.
Ground Floor Ceiling Height	§ 145.1(c)(4)	Required minimum floor-to-floor height of 14 feet, as measured from grade.
Commercial Use Characteristics
Drive-up Facility	§ 102	NP
Formula Retail	§§ 102, 303.1	NP
Hours of Operation	§ 102	No limit
Maritime Use	§ 102	NP
Open Air Sales	§ 102	P(3)
Outdoor Activity Area	§§ 102, 145.2	P if in front or it complies with Section 202.2(a)(7), C if elsewhere.
Walk-up Facility	§ 102	NP
Non-Residential Uses
Uses in Historic Buildings
Historic Buildings	§ 202.11	In Historic Buildings, additional Uses are P; Office Uses and certain Retail Sales and Service Uses are C, as specified in § 202.11.
Agricultural Use Category
Agricultural Uses	§§ 102, 202.2(c)	P
Automotive Use Category
Automotive Uses*	§ 102	NP
Automotive Repair	§ 102	P(3)
Electric Vehicle Charging Location^†	§§ 102, 202.2 (b), 202.13	NP
Fleet Charging^†	§ 102	NP

Private Parking Garage	§ 102	C

Zoning Category	§ References	Residential Enclave-Mixed District Controls
Vehicle Storage Lot	§ 102	C
Vehicle Storage Garage	§ 102	C
Entertainment, Arts and Recreation Use Category
Entertainment, Arts and Recreation Uses*	§ 102	NP
Arts Activities	§ 102	P(3)
Open Recreation Area	§ 102	P
Industrial Use Category
Industrial Uses*	§ 102	NP
Light Manufacturing	§ 102	P(3)
Institutional Use Category
Institutional Uses*	§§ 102, 202.2(e)	P
Hospital	§ 102	NP
Medical Cannabis Dispensary	§ 102	NP
Post-Secondary Educational Institution	§ 102	C
School	§ 102	C
Sales and Service Category
Retail Sales and Service Uses*	§§ 102, 202.2(a)	P(3)
Adult Business	§ 102	NP
Bar	§ 102	NP
Hotel	§ 102	NP
Massage Establishment	§ 102	NP
Mortuary	§ 102	NP
Reproductive Health Clinic	§§ 102, 202.5	P
Self Storage	§ 102	NP
Service, Financial	§ 102	NP
Service, Fringe Financial	§ 102	NP
Non-Retail Sales and Service*	§ 102	P(3)
Laboratory	§ 102	NP
Life Science	§ 102	NP
Office Uses	§ 102	NP
Utility and Infrastructure Use Category
Utility and Infrastructure uses*	§ 102	NP
Public Transportation Facility	§ 102	C
Wireless Telecommunications Services Facility	§ 102	C(1)

Not listed below (1) P if the facility is a Micro WTS Facility.

(2) [Note Deleted]

(3) P up to 1,250 gsf per lot; C above; NP above 1 FAR.

(4) Within the Western SoMa SUD, see Planning Code Section 249.39 for specific controls.

(5) [Note Deleted]

(Added as Sec. 847 by Ord. 42-13, File No. 130002, App. 3/28/2013, Eff. 4/27/2013; amended by Ord. 235-14, File No. 140844, App. 11/26/2014, Eff. 12/26/2014; Ord. 14-15, File No. 141210, App. 2/13/2015, Eff. 3/15/2015; Ord. 162-16, File No. 160657, App. 8/4/2016, Eff. 9/3/2016; Ord. 166-16, File No. 160477, App. 8/11/2016, Eff. 9/10/2016; Ord. 99- 17, File No. 170206, App. 5/19/2017, Eff. 6/18/2017; Ord. 189-17, File No. 170693, App. 9/15/2017, Eff. 10/15/2017; Ord. 296-18, File No. 180184, App. 12/12/2018, Eff. 1/12/2019; Ord. 136-21, File No. 210674, App. 8/4/2021, Eff. 9/4/2021; Ord. 75-22, File No. 220264, App. 5/13/2022, Eff. 6/13/2022; Ord. 190-22, File No. 220036, App. 9/16/2022, Eff. 10/17/2022; redesignated and amended by Ord. 70-23, File No. 220340, App. 5/3/2023, Eff. 6/3/2023; Ord. 62-24, File No. 230310, App. 3/28/2024, Eff. 4/28/2024; Ord. 187-24, File No. 240173, App. 7/26/2024, Eff. 8/26/2024; Ord. 297-24, File No. 241055, App. 12/19/2024, Eff. 1/19/2025; Ord. 245-25, File No. 250701, App. 12/12/2025, Eff. 1/12/2026, Oper. 1/12/2026; Ord. 1-26, File No. 250385, App. 1/8/2026, Eff. 2/8/2026; Ord. 37-26, File No. 250886, App. 3/11/2026, Eff. 4/11/2026)

AMENDMENT HISTORY

Zoning Control Table: 847.33 amended; Ord. 235-14, Eff. 12/26/2014. Zoning Control Table: 844.23b [later 847.23] added; Ord. 14-15, Eff. 3/15/2015. Introductory material amended; Zoning Control Table: 847.03 amended; Specific Provisions: 847.24 added [later 847.03]; Ord. 162-16, Eff. 9/3/2016. Zoning Control Table: 847.99 added; Ord. 166-16, Eff. 9/10/2016. Zoning Control Table: 847.25 - 847.30 and 847.58 amended; Ord. 99-17, Eff. 6/18/2017. Zoning Control Table: 847.22 amended; Ord. 189-17, Eff. 10/15/2017. Zoning Control Table: 847.66 amended; Ord. 296-18, Eff. 1/12/2019. Zoning Control Table: 844.23b corrected to 847.23b; Specific Provisions: 847.24 corrected to 847.03; Ord. 136-21, Eff. 9/4/2021. Zoning Control Table: 847.36a added; Ord. 75-22, Eff. 6/13/2022. Zoning Control Table: 847.64 and 847.65 added; Ord. 190-22, Eff. 10/17/2022. Section redesignated as Sec. 835; Zoning Control Table 847 and Specific Provisions deleted; Table 835 and Notes * and (1)- (5) added; Ord. 70-23, Eff. 6/3/2023. Introductory material amended; Ord. 62-24, Eff. 4/28/2024. Table 835 amended; Ord. 187-24, Eff. 8/26/2024. Table 835 amended; Note (2) deleted; Ord. 297-24, Eff. 1/19/2025. Introductory material and Table 835 amended; Note (5) deleted; Ord. 245-25, Eff. 1/12/2026. Table 835 amended; Ord. 1-26, Eff. 2/8/2026. Table 835 amended; Note (5) deleted; Ord. 37-26, Eff. 4/11/2026. CODIFICATION NOTES

So in Ord. 70-23.
So in Ord. 245-25.

† Editor’s Note:

This Use, added to former Table 847 by Ord. 190-22, was inadvertently omitted from Table 835 as restructured and redesignated by Ord. 70-23. It has been restored at the direction of the Office of the City Attorney.