M3-2 Zoning District — New York City
M3-2 is a high-density Heavy Manufacturing District (Low Performance) (NYC Zoning Resolution § 11-122) in New York City.
M3-2 is a high-density Heavy Manufacturing District (Low Performance) (NYC Zoning Resolution § 11-122) in New York City. It allows industrial and commercial uses; new residences are generally excluded. Under the as of right — narrow street rules, the maximum commercial FAR is 2. 168 tax lots citywide carry M3-2 as their primary zoning designation.
Records for lots carrying this designation describe an industrial file with a notable parking presence: 20% of these roughly 170 tax lots are recorded under parking use, alongside industrial and manufacturing use at 39% and transportation and utility use at 19%. Warehouses and garages are tied as the leading recorded building classes at 21% each. The federal flood map places 59% of these lots inside the mapped flood zone, and only 5% are recorded as residential.
What actually stands in this district
Parking is where this designation stands out. Across roughly 170 tax lots, 20% are recorded under parking use — a larger share than most comparable industrial designations in this file carry — alongside industrial and manufacturing use at 39% and transportation and utility use at 19%. That combination describes a working, vehicle-oriented industrial corridor rather than a purely manufacturing or purely open one, and the parking share alone sets this designation apart from the more purely storage-and-production files elsewhere in this batch.
The recorded building classes match that mixed-use picture: warehouses and garages are tied as the leading classes at 21% each, with factory and industrial buildings adding 14%. As with several of the larger industrial designations in this batch, no reliable year-built or height coverage exists for these lots, an absence in the record rather than an estimate filled in around it — a gap that recurs often enough across this batch's industrial designations to be worth expecting rather than treating as a one-off.
Only 5% of these lots are recorded as residential, and the file counts 166 units in total — a small residential footprint consistent with a designation built around industrial, transportation, and parking uses rather than housing. Lots run to a median of 10,200 square feet, with the largest on record reaching 71,000 square feet — mid-to-large parcels suited to the mixed industrial and vehicle uses described above, sized well above a typical residential lot but modest next to the largest infrastructure-scale designations in this batch.
The federal flood map places 59% of these roughly 170 lots inside the mapped Special Flood Hazard Area — a majority share, and a substantial one relative to most designations in this file. That is a statement about the regulatory flood boundary, not a record of which individual lots have taken on water. None of the lots, 0%, carry historic-district status on record, leaving flood exposure as the one recorded overlay on an otherwise straightforwardly industrial, parking-heavy file.
The absence of year-built, floor-height, and development-capacity coverage sits alongside a flood share, 59%, that is among the higher recorded shares in this batch — two very different kinds of gap and exposure layered onto the same roughly 170 tax lots. Lot size is the one file that stays complete here, and it runs large: a median of 10,200 square feet against a 71,000-square-foot 90th percentile, room enough for the warehouses, garages, and factory buildings that lead the recorded building classes. With age and height both absent from the record, the flood share above is one of the few overlay figures available for a designation otherwise defined mainly by its industrial composition and its unusually wide lot-size spread.
Bulk rules for M3-2
| Context | Commercial FAR | Manufacturing FAR | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| As of right — narrow street§ 43-12 lists M3 (no subscript) at FAR 2.0; CF FAR not set by § 43-122; slope 2.7:1 narrow / 5.6:1 wide. | 2 | 2 | NYC Zoning Resolution § 43-12, § 43-25, § 43-26, § 43-43 |
| As of right — wide street§ 43-12 lists M3 (no subscript) at FAR 2.0; CF FAR not set by § 43-122; slope 2.7:1 narrow / 5.6:1 wide. | 2 | 2 | NYC Zoning Resolution § 43-12, § 43-25, § 43-26, § 43-43 |
Values from the NYC Zoning Resolution, verified 2026-06-12; site-specific overlays, special districts, and waterfront rules can modify them — run a full lookup for a specific lot.
About manufacturing districts
Manufacturing districts allow industrial and many commercial uses; new residences are generally excluded. Manufacturing bulk is governed by § 43- of the NYC Zoning Resolution.
Contextual districts pair their floor-area ceilings with prescribed base and maximum building heights so new buildings mirror existing neighborhood form; non-contextual districts govern the envelope through more general height and setback rules, such as sky exposure planes. Commercial districts also allow residences under the rules of a residential-equivalent district, while manufacturing districts generally exclude new residences. Overlays and special purpose districts can modify any of this on a specific lot.
Example lots zoned M3-2
- 23-30 Borden Avenue — 203,236 sq ft lot, 3.82 built FAR, built 2022
- 427 Gansevoort Street — 323,300 sq ft lot, 0 built FAR
- 21-09 Borden Avenue — 31,500 sq ft lot, 5.33 built FAR, built 1930
- 47-20 Dutch Kills Street — 43,491 sq ft lot, 2.68 built FAR, built 2001
- 27-11 49 Avenue — 107,640 sq ft lot, 2 built FAR, built 1965
- 11-58 Borden Avenue — 28,368 sq ft lot, 4.81 built FAR, built 1916
- 10-04 Borden Avenue — 23,890 sq ft lot, 2 built FAR, built 2023
- 21-01 51 Avenue — 18,766 sq ft lot, 2.45 built FAR, built 1913
- 53-01r 11 Street — 121,700 sq ft lot, 0.74 built FAR, built 1954
- 25-20 Borden Avenue — 114,356 sq ft lot, 0.78 built FAR, built 1952
- 2047 Pitkin Avenue — 25,000 sq ft lot, 2.52 built FAR, built 2006
- 25-41 Borden Avenue — 13,500 sq ft lot, 2.75 built FAR, built 2022
M3-2 — quick questions
- What is the maximum commercial FAR in M3-2?
- 2, as of right — narrow street, per NYC Zoning Resolution § 43-12, § 43-25, § 43-26, § 43-43. Site-specific overlays, special districts, and waterfront rules can modify it — run a full lookup for a specific lot.
- Is M3-2 a contextual district?
- No. M3-2 is not a contextual district; its building envelope is governed by the district's general height and setback rules rather than a prescribed contextual envelope.
- How many tax lots are zoned M3-2?
- 168 tax lots citywide carry M3-2 as their primary zoning designation, per NYC municipal records as of 2026-07-11.
- What kind of buildings stand on lots with this designation?
- A mix of industrial and vehicle-related uses: warehouses and garages are tied as the leading recorded building classes at 21% each, with parking use covering 20% of the roughly 170 lots by land use.
- Does the record show when these buildings were built?
- No: this designation carries no reliable year-built or height coverage, consistent with several of the larger industrial designations in this file.
- Are lots with this designation in a flood zone?
- Yes, for a majority: 59% of these lots sit inside the mapped federal flood zone, a statement about the regulatory map rather than a record of actual flooding.
- Is there housing on lots with this designation?
- A small amount: only 5% of lots are recorded as residential, with 166 units in total on record.
Keep learning
What do the M3-2 rules mean for a specific lot?
PearlAudit resolves the governing zoning for any NYC tax lot — district, overlays, special districts — and cites the Zoning Resolution section behind every rule claim.
District data: NYC municipal records (Department of City Planning) and the NYC Zoning Resolution. See our sources and methodology. Parcel data as of 2026-07-11.