Arlington County, VA · Arlington County Zoning Ordinance (ACZO)
M-2 is a service industrial district for more intensive industrial uses than M-1 (ACZO §8.4). Height 75ft, FAR 1.5 industrial (up to 2.0 with residential above second floor). Very limited in extent in Arlington County.
Development standards in M-2
We don't hold published dimensional standards for this zone yet — see the ordinance link below for the authoritative table.
Permitted uses in M-2
AllowedManufacturing and Production By-right: ACZO §8.1.2 use table row 'All other manufacturing and production uses' reads P for M-2 (p160; use standard §12.6.4).
AllowedConcrete Batching By-right: ACZO §8.1.2 use table row 'Concrete batching' reads P for M-2 (p160; M-1 reads U).
ConditionalAsphalt Processing Use permit required: ACZO §8.1.2 use table row 'Asphalt processing and manufacture' reads U for M-2 (p160).
ConditionalWrecking and Salvage Yards Use permit required: ACZO §8.1.2 use table row 'Wrecking and salvage yards' reads U for M-2 (p160; use standard §12.6.14).
Not AllowedHeavy Industrial (All Other Uses) The ACZO §8.1.2 use table row 'All other heavy industrial uses' (§12.2.6.C) carries no entry in any M district (p160); per the table key a blank cell is not permitted.
AllowedIndustrial Storage By-right: ACZO §8.1.2 use table rows 'Wholesale storage or warehouses' (§12.6.4) and 'All self-storage uses' (§12.5.25) read P for M-2 (p160).
Not AllowedSTR - Short-Term Rentals Not permitted: the accessory homestay use (§12.9.12) appears in the R, RA and C district accessory use tables and carries no row in the ACZO §8.1.2 Industrial (M) districts accessory use table (p161); per the table key a blank cell is not permitted.
"Conditional" means the use generally requires a public hearing or special-exception approval — a very different timeline and risk profile from a by-right permit.
This is the zone. What about the parcel?
Zone rules are the starting point — the answer for a specific property also depends on lot
size, overlays, existing improvements and site conditions. Run a free address lookup to see
what applies to one property.
Standards as recorded by Zonescore: Arlington County Zoning Ordinance (ACZO), Effective June 13, 2026
Values are read from the Arlington County Zoning Ordinance (ACZO). Where a district allows more density through site plan approval than by right, both are shown -- they are very different entitlement paths.