NATCHEZ &8212; The city now has official regulations for townhouses, patio homes and zero lot line dwellings and a new ordinance for driveways.

The Natchez Board of Aldermen approved the regulations at Tuesday&8217;s meeting. The regulations were approved by the planning commission last month.

Previously, the city code did address those issues.

Now, the minimum lot area is 2,400 square feet for townhouses and 3,200 square feet for patio home or zero lot line dwellings.

Minimum front yard depth is 20 feet, and the maximum height allowed is 35 feet.

A maximum of eight &8220;living units&8221; will be allowed in each row of townhouses.

Townhouses built up to side lot lines without side yards will not be allowed windows or doors facing that lot line.

The regulations also allow for individual and shared driveways for townhouses and patio homes.

Under the new rules, the owners are responsible for maintenance of the buildings.

Revision of the city code was sparked around the time Russ Young Construction of Ferriday proposed a 119-lot subdivision made of townhouses and single-family residences they hoped to build south of the Natchez Mall. The total investment for the project would be more than $20 million, developers said in September.

The Natchez Preservation Commission tentatively approved the design. At the time, city code did not address such designs.

In July, developer Dick Thompson announced plans to build 20 to 25 patio homes in a subdivision on Duncan Avenue.

The high-end homes will share driveways and walls, he said.

At Tuesday&8217;s meeting, the board also approved an ordinance regulating private driveway and street design, construction and use.

The ordinance applies to new streets and applies to previously built streets under certain conditions.

Under the new ordinance, private streets must be at least 20 feet wide and have adequate drainage. Also, they cannot have the same name as any city street.