Can you build self-storage in C-1 (unincorporated Maricopa County AZ)?

Not allowed. MCZO 601 use table (p. 6-8). Not listed for this district in the Chapter 6 use table. Base district only — overlays are not checked, and this is not a Zoning Verification Letter.

Can you build RV or boat storage in C-1 (unincorporated Maricopa County AZ)?

Unknown. Lyra's transcription of the code carries no row for RV or boat storage in C-1, and a missing row means 'not answered here', never 'not allowed'. Base district only — overlays are not checked, and this is not a Zoning Verification Letter.

Base district · commercial · unincorporated Maricopa County AZ

Can you build self-storage / multifamily in C-1 (unincorporated Maricopa County AZ)?

Q: Can you build multifamily in C-1 (unincorporated Maricopa County AZ)?

Allowed, but only with a discretionary approval. MCZO 601 use table (p. 6-2) · Plan of Development (MCZO 305). The commercial standards table (504) contains no minimum-lot-area-per-dwelling-unit row, so density is governed by coverage/height/parking rather than a stated cap. Confirm with the county before underwriting a unit count. Base district only — overlays are not checked, and this is not a Zoning Verification Letter.

Q: Can you build mixed use in C-1 (unincorporated Maricopa County AZ)?

Allowed, but only with a discretionary approval. MCZO 601 · Plan of Development (MCZO 305). DERIVED by stacking two separately-listed POD uses (Multifamily >2 units + retail/service uses) on one site. Not an express MCZO entitlement. Base district only — overlays are not checked, and this is not a Zoning Verification Letter.

Neighborhood commercial - daily-needs shops and services

What you may build in C-1

Every verdict below is the base-district answer read out of the ordinance of record, with the section that says so. A use with no row is shown as unknown rather than folded into “no”.

Self-storage

Not allowed

Code section: MCZO 601 use table (p. 6-8)
The code's own words for this use: Self-storage facilities
Transcription confidence: high

Not listed for this district in the Chapter 6 use table

Multifamily

Allowed, but only with a discretionary approval

Ordinance symbol: POD
Approval body: Plan of Development (MCZO 305)
Code section: MCZO 601 use table (p. 6-2)
The code's own words for this use: Multifamily (>2 units)
Transcription confidence: medium

The commercial standards table (504) contains no minimum-lot-area-per-dwelling-unit row, so density is governed by coverage/height/parking rather than a stated cap. Confirm with the county before underwriting a unit count

Mixed use

Allowed, but only with a discretionary approval

Ordinance symbol: POD
Approval body: Plan of Development (MCZO 305)
Code section: MCZO 601
The code's own words for this use: not a listed use category
Transcription confidence: medium

DERIVED by stacking two separately-listed POD uses (Multifamily >2 units + retail/service uses) on one site. Not an express MCZO entitlement

RV / boat storage

Unknown — this dataset has no row for it

No row for RV or boat storage in C-1 in this dataset. That means unknown — go and look. It does not mean no.

How big you may build it

A blank cell means this dataset carries no number for that standard — read it as “go and look”, not as zero.

Dimensional standards, C-1 — unincorporated Maricopa County AZ
Standard	Value	Field
Floor area ratio (FAR)	—	`far`
Maximum height	40 ft	`max_height_ft`
Maximum site coverage	60%	`site_coverage`
Minimum lot area	6,000 sf	`min_lot_area_sf`
Minimum lot width	60 ft	`min_lot_width_ft`
Minimum lot area per dwelling unit	—	`min_lot_area_per_du_sf`
Maximum density	—	`max_du_per_acre_derived`
Front setback	10 ft	`setback_front_ft`
Street-side setback	15 ft	`setback_side_street_ft`
Interior side setback	0 ft	`setback_side_interior_ft`
Rear setback	0 ft	`setback_rear_ft`

Dimensional standards from MCZO 503.1.3 / 504 / 601.

Standards notes. Interior side and rear: none required except 10 ft (side) and 25 ft (rear) where adjacent to a Rural or Residential zoning district

No district in this dataset publishes a floor area ratio: intensity in this code is governed by lot coverage, height and — for residential — density or minimum lot area per dwelling unit. See the metro page for the provenance note on that.

Now find out whether it pencils in unincorporated Maricopa County AZ.

Run the envelope this district allows, free, in about a minute — lot area, FAR or height, and the residual land value it supports.

Run the free quick screen See a full sample study

The quick screen is free and needs no account. The sample study is the seven-page deliverable the Feasibility Desk produces.

Before you rely on this

base district only; overlays not checked — Luke AFB overlay can flip answers

This is a base-district reading of the ordinance text, transcribed from the source below. It is not a Zoning Verification Letter, not a determination by the jurisdiction, not legal advice, and not a substitute for asking the planning department about a specific parcel. Overlays, recorded plan conditions, rezoning stipulations and parcel geometry are not checked here, and any one of them can change the answer on this page.

Verify locally before you spend money. Call the planning counter, pull the parcel's zoning-map designation and its case history, and confirm the section cited above still reads the way it reads here.

Source of record

Document: Maricopa County Zoning Ordinance (MCZO)
Publisher: Maricopa County Planning and Development Department, 301 W. Jefferson St., Suite 170, Phoenix, AZ 85003
Adopted: Board of Supervisors, 2025-12-10 (ordinance first effective 1969-05-29; revised 2001, 2025)
Effective: 2026-01-09
Retrieved: 2026-08-11

Full provenance, the source hashes and the known limitations for unincorporated Maricopa County AZ →