How is Buffalo's Green Code different from a traditional zoning ordinance?

The Green Code is a form-based code: it regulates building placement, height, and street-frontage design by neighborhood context rather than relying primarily on a use table, and it consolidates zoning, subdivision, and streetscape standards into one document adopted in 2017.

How do I find the zoning designation for a Buffalo parcel?

The City of Buffalo Office of Strategic Planning maintains the official Green Code zoning map, which shows the district and any applicable design overlay for a specific parcel.

Does Buffalo require off-street parking for new development?

No minimum parking requirement applies citywide. Buffalo was the first major U.S. city to eliminate off-street parking minimums when it adopted the Green Code in 2017.

Buffalo, New York · city zoning districts · 11 districts

Buffalo, NY zoning map & districts

Buffalo replaced its 1953 Euclidean zoning code with the Green Code (Unified Development Ordinance) in 2017, administered by the Office of Strategic Planning. It was the first major U.S. city to eliminate off-street parking minimums citywide, and it consolidates zoning, subdivision, and streetscape/design standards into a single form-based document organized around neighborhood context rather than strict use separation — districts step in intensity from lower-density neighborhood contexts through a Downtown core, with dedicated mixed-use corridor designations layered in along commercial arterials.

The code Buffalo Green Code (Unified Development Ordinance)

Buffalo zoning map

The City of Buffalo Office of Strategic Planning maintains the Green Code zoning map and publishes the Unified Development Ordinance text.

There is no link to the official map here yet — confirm current district boundaries directly with the Buffalo planning or zoning department.

A published summary is never the authority. The adopted ordinance and the city's official zoning map govern, and both change — verify the district and every standard on your parcel before you rely on it.

How zoning works in Buffalo

Because the Green Code is form-based, building placement, height, and street-frontage design typically matter as much as, or more than, the specific use table for a given district. Developers should confirm both the mapped district and any applicable design guidelines before assuming a conventional use-based zoning analysis is sufficient.

Buffalo zoning districts by family

The 11 district codes below are the ones that decide most projects in Buffalo, grouped by what they are for rather than by the order the ordinance prints them.

Key districts in the Buffalo Green Code (Unified Development Ordinance) — a curated reference, not the exhaustive list. Confirm against the current adopted code.
Code	District	What it is for
Residential 4 districts
N-2R	Residential	Compact residential blocks adjoining N-2 mixed-use centers.
N-3R	Residential	Moderately compact residential blocks with occasional mixed-use pockets.
N-4-30	Single-Family	Single-family zone for narrower 30-foot-wide lots.
N-4-50	Single-Family	Single-family zone for wider 50-foot-wide lots.
Mixed-use 6 districts
N-1C	Mixed-Use Core	High-intensity mixed-use centers at strategic nodes outside downtown proper.
N-1S	Secondary Employment Center	Mixed-use employment zone concentrated along the Belt Line.
N-2C	Mixed-Use Center	Walkable center-format zone for compact neighborhoods.
N-2E	Mixed-Use Edge	Transitional zone blending homes and small stores at neighborhood edges.
N-3C	Mixed-Use Center	Same center typology as N-2C, calibrated for moderately compact neighborhoods.
N-3E	Mixed-Use Edge	Transitional edge zone in Buffalo's streetcar-era neighborhoods.
Downtown / core 1 district
N-1D	Downtown/Regional Hub	Buffalo's most intense Green Code zone, built for substantial-scale downtown development.

Buffalo zoning — common questions

How is Buffalo's Green Code different from a traditional zoning ordinance?: The Green Code is a form-based code: it regulates building placement, height, and street-frontage design by neighborhood context rather than relying primarily on a use table, and it consolidates zoning, subdivision, and streetscape standards into one document adopted in 2017.
How do I find the zoning designation for a Buffalo parcel?: The City of Buffalo Office of Strategic Planning maintains the official Green Code zoning map, which shows the district and any applicable design overlay for a specific parcel.
Does Buffalo require off-street parking for new development?: No minimum parking requirement applies citywide. Buffalo was the first major U.S. city to eliminate off-street parking minimums when it adopted the Green Code in 2017.

Working in New York? Get on the list.

The parcel layer lands in the order demand does. Illinois went first because that's where the deals were; the next state is decided by who tells us what they're trying to underwrite. Tell us where you're building and what you wanted to run — you'll hear from us when New York opens, and sooner if we need a test parcel.

Keep reading

← New York zoning — who holds the zoning power in New York, under which enabling statute, and the reforms that override local rules.

Other New York cities

The zoning reference → — every state, plus city-level district guides like this one.

Buffalo zoning summaries on this page are provided for information, not legal advice. Confirm every project against the current adopted code for the jurisdiction.