PMD Planned Manufacturing District
An industrial-preservation zoning classification (§17-6-0400) protecting Chicago's manufacturing base — only areas of 5+ contiguous acres qualify, and each PMD is established by its own rezoning ordinance. Manufacturing, warehousing and industrial-service uses are permitted by-right; most commercial uses are allowed too, subject to floor-area caps that vary by district. FAR is set per PMD (2.2–5.0) rather than one fixed citywide table.
The Cherry Avenue Bridge, an 1902 steel through-truss rail bridge over the North Branch Canal to Goose Island, one of Chicago’s largest Planned Manufacturing Districts. A PMD sets its own FAR and bulk standards through its individual ordinance rather than a fixed zoning table, so there’s no standard buildable envelope to diagram.
Specifications
- Zoning Ordinance reference
- §17-6-0400
View in the Chicago Zoning Ordinance - Floor area ratio (FAR)
- Varies per the specific PMD ordinance (see §17-6-0405-E).
- Maximum building height
- No fixed height limit. Standards are set by the specific Planned Manufacturing District ordinance.
- Lot area per unit (density)
- No residential density standard (residential not a primary use).
- Minimum lot area
- —
- Rear yard open space
- —
- On-site open space
- —
- Parking requirements
- —
Setbacks
- Front yard
- None required, except for industrial parks and for properties bordering R-zoned lots — see §17-5-0405-A for details.
- Side yard
- None required, except for industrial parks and for properties bordering R-zoned lots — see §17-5-0405-A for details.
- Rear yard
- None required, unless the rear property line borders the side or rear of an R-zoned lot — then at least 30 ft.
Districts Established
Each numbered PMD is established by its own rezoning ordinance (§17-6-0401-C) and carries its own max floor area ratio (§17-6-0405-E). No. 1 (the former Clybourn Corridor) is Reserved and no longer active.
- PMD 2
- Elston Corridor (FAR 3)
- PMD 3
- Goose Island (FAR 3)
- PMD 4
- Kinzie Corridor (FAR 3)
- PMD 5
- Chicago/Halsted Corridor (FAR 5)
- PMD 6
- Lake Calumet (FAR 3)
- PMD 7
- Western/Ogden (FAR 3)
- PMD 8
- Stockyards (FAR 3)
- PMD 9
- Northwest (FAR 3)
- PMD 10
- West Pullman (FAR 3)
- PMD 11
- Pilsen (FAR 3)
- PMD 12
- Harlem (FAR 2.2)
- PMD 13
- Greater Southwest (FAR 2.2)
- PMD 14
- Kennedy (FAR 2.2)
- PMD 15
- Armitage (FAR 3)
Allowed Uses
Curated from the §17-6-0403 use table. P = permitted by-right; S = special-use approval required. Always confirm against the full ordinance text.
- Manufacturing, production & industrial service (artisan, limited & general)
- Warehouse & freight movement
- Recycling facilities, Class I & II
- Postal service; public safety services; utilities, minor
- Building maintenance & business support services
- Construction sales & service; building material sales
- Eating & drinking establishments (floor-area capped)
- Food & beverage retail sales (floor-area capped)
- Office, incl. electronic data storage centers (floor-area capped)
- Medical service; financial services (floor-area capped)
- Motor vehicle repair, sales & service; vehicle storage & towing
- Wireless communication facilities, co-located
- Day care; detention & correctional facilities
- Parks & recreation; religious assembly
- Recycling facilities, Class III–V
- Container storage; freight terminal; outdoor storage of raw materials
- Waste-related use (hazardous materials, transfer stations, resource recovery)
- Cannabis cultivation, craft grow, infusion & processing
- Wagering facility; industrial private event venue
- Signs, advertising (billboards); freestanding wireless towers
- Planned Development review (for larger/taller projects)
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.