DC-12 Downtown Core District A Chicago zoning district · Title 17
Downtown Core — the highest-intensity downtown district for high-rise offices and apartments. Height is set through Planned Development review.
Example on a 120 × 200 ft lot. The dashed box is the maximum zoning envelope, the buildable footprint after setbacks, raised to the §17-8-0512 Planned Development height threshold (330 ft). The solid building is an illustrative example at FAR 12: covering the full footprint reaches only ~12 stories before the floor-area cap binds, so a taller building needs a smaller floor plate. Downtown massing steps a slender tower back from the street, spending its floor area on height rather than coverage.
Specifications
- Zoning Ordinance reference
- §17-4-0100
View in the Chicago Zoning Ordinance - Floor area ratio (FAR)
- 12
- Maximum building height
- No fixed limit; tall buildings require Planned Development review and height is negotiated with the Department of Planning & Development. §17-8-0512.
- Lot area per unit (density)
- 115 sq ft of lot area per dwelling unit. 75 sq ft per efficiency unit; 60 sq ft per SRO unit.
- Minimum lot area
- —
- Rear yard open space
- —
- On-site open space
- —
- Parking requirements
- Downtown districts set their own parking standard rather than the §17-10-0207 residential ratio.
Setbacks
- Front yard
- None required.
- Side yard
- None required.
- Rear yard
- None required.
Allowed Uses
Curated from the §17-4-0207 use table. P = permitted by-right; S = special-use approval required. Always confirm against the full ordinance text.
- Household living (dwelling units, multi-unit, townhouse, two-flat)
- Group living (assisted living, nursing home, community homes)
- Cultural exhibits & libraries
- Parks & recreation
- Office
- Eating & drinking establishments
- Food/beverage retail & general retail
- Financial services
- Personal service
- Medical service
- Entertainment & spectator sports
- Adult use
- Hospital
- Religious assembly
- Drive-through facility
- Animal services
- Major utilities & services
- Manufacturing / industrial service (limited)
- Warehousing / freight (limited)
In Chicago, DC-12 allows a floor area ratio of 12 and a height limit of No fixed limit; tall buildings require Planned Development review and height is negotiated with the Department of Planning & Development. §17-8-0512.. The figures above are the DC-12 standards as the Chicago Zoning Ordinance states them, each citation linking to the section it comes from in our hosted copy of Title 17. What a specific lot allows also depends on its frontage, depth, corner or through geometry, and any overlay it sits in — run the DC-12 numbers for your lot to see those applied.
Reference figures are modeled from the Chicago Zoning Ordinance (Title 17) for general guidance and do not constitute zoning or legal advice. Lot-specific limits depend on frontage, depth, adjacencies and overlays — analyze a specific address for exact figures. Always confirm against the official ordinance.