What’s the Use? Residential vs. Commercial

By Carolyn Ristau

While zoning staff will start with the question of what is the property’s use, at one or more points along the way of the zoning review or larger permitting process the use will be identified as either residential or commercial. These categories can affect the regulations and application fees that apply when seeking permits. The challenge here is that each code (ex. zoning, building, and historic) has a different interpretation of these categories.

Pittsburgh’s zoning code has the largest residential category compared with the City’s building and historic codes. A simplified view of zoning’s residential category is if it is a use that primarily provides a principal residence for one or more people, then it is likely considered residential. This includes multi-unit apartment buildings, dormitories, assisted living facilities, and other group residences. Extending this simplified view, uses that primarily provide temporary residences, such as traditional bed and breakfasts, hotels, and motels, fall into the commercial category.

On the other hand, the building code restricts the residential category to one-unit or two-unit dwellings, while the historic code limits it to one-, two-, or three-unit dwellings.

For all three codes, any use not considered residential is commercial.