The City of Kingston's Form-Based Zoning Code

The City of Kingston’s zoning code, called Kingston Forward, is a form-based code that regulates the location, design, alteration, occupancy, and use of structures and the use of land. It is designed to make it easier to develop in Kingston while protecting what makes our City so unique. The code was adopted on August 2, 2023.

Some noteworthy priorities:

• Diversify housing types, prices, and locations
• Introduce new mandates and incentives for affordable housing
• Design streets for everyone, not just cars
• End minimum parking requirements in all transects to make development more feasible and encourage a more walkable City
• Allow adaptive reuse of existing buildings
• Legalize accessory dwelling units (ADUs) Citywide
• Legalize neighborhood businesses and mixed-use development as had been common prior to the adoption of the 1960s zoning code
• Ensure that new development contributes to the City’s historic urban form.

Read the press release on the adoption of the form-based code here.

* To see the previous version of this page that describes the process leading up to adoption, see: engagekingston.com/kingston-forward-archive *

To access the Form-Based Code and its included Regulating Maps, please access the Online Zoning Portal to the right. A PDF version may also be found here.