Ventura County California Zoning VENTURA COUNTY NON-COASTAL ZONING ORDINANCE
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Sec. 8104-0 - Purpose

The categories and purposes of land use zones in Ventura County are established as follows:

Sec. 8104-1.1 - Open Space (O-S) Zone

The purpose of this zone is to provide for the conservation of renewable and nonrenewable natural resources, to preserve and enhance environmental quality and to provide for the retention of the maximum number of future land use options while allowing reasonable and compatible uses on open lands in the County which have not been altered to any great extent by human activities.

Sec. 8104-1.2 - Agricultural Exclusive (A-E) Zone

The purpose of this zone is to preserve and protect commercial agricultural lands as a limited and irreplaceable resource, to preserve and maintain agriculture as a major industry in Ventura County and to protect these areas from the encroachment of nonrelated uses which, by their nature, would have detrimental effects upon the agriculture industry.

Sec. 8104-2.1 - Rural Agricultural (R-A) Zone

The purpose of this zone is to provide for and maintain a rural setting where a wide range of agricultural uses are permitted while surrounding residential land uses are protected.

Sec. 8104-2.2 - Rural Exclusive (R-E) Zone

The purpose of this zone is to provide for and maintain rural residential areas in conjunction with horticultural activities, and to provide for a limited range of service and institutional uses which are compatible with and complementary to rural residential communities.

Sec. 8104-2.3 - Single-Family Estate (R-O) Zone

The purpose of this zone is to provide areas exclusively for single-family residential estates where a rural atmosphere is maintained by the allowing of a range of horticultural activities as well as animals for recreational purposes.

Sec. 8104-3.1 - Single-Family Residential (R-1) Zone

The purpose of this zone is to provide for and maintain areas which are appropriate for single-family dwellings on individual lots.

Sec. 8104-3.2 - Two-Family Residential (R-2) Zone

The purpose of this zone is to provide for and maintain residential areas allowing two single-family dwelling units or a two-family dwelling unit on lots which meet the minimum area requirements of this zone.

Sec. 8104-3.3 - Residential Planned Development (R-P-D) Zone

The purpose of this zone is to provide areas for communities which will be developed utilizing modern land planning and unified design techniques; this zone provides a flexible regulatory procedure in order to encourage:

a. Coordinated neighborhood design and compatibility with existing or potential development of surrounding areas;

b. An efficient use of land particularly through the clustering of dwelling units and the preservation of the natural features of sites;

c. Variety and innovation in site design, density and housing unit options, including garden apartments, townhouses and single-family dwellings;

d. Lower housing costs through the reduction of street and utility networks; and

e. A more varied, attractive and energy-efficient living environment as well as greater opportunities for recreation than would be possible under other zone classifications.

Sec. 8104-4.1 - Commercial Office (C-O) Zone

The purpose of this zone is to provide suitable locations for offices and services of a professional, clerical or administrative nature.

Sec. 8104-4.2 - Neighborhood Commercial (C-1) Zone

The purpose of this zone is to provide areas for retail convenience shopping and personal services to meet the daily needs of neighborhood residents.

Sec. 8104-4.3 - Commercial Planned Development (C-P-D) Zone

The purpose of this zone is to encourage the development of coordinated, innovative and efficient commercial sites and to provide areas for a wide range of commercial retail and business uses, including stores, shops and offices supplying commodities or performing services for the surrounding community.

Sec. 8104-5.1 - Industrial Park (M-1) Zone

The purpose of this zone is to provide suitable areas for the exclusive development of light industrial, service, technical research and related business office uses in an industrial park context, in conjunction with stringent standards of building design, noise, landscaping and performance.

Sec. 8104-5.2 - Limited Industrial (M-2) Zone

The purpose of this zone is to provide suitable areas for the development of a broad range of industrial and quasi-industrial activities of a light manufacturing, processing or fabrication nature, while providing appropriate safeguards for adjoining industrial sites, nearby nonindustrial properties and the surrounding community.

Sec. 8104-5.3 - General Industrial (M-3) Zone

The purpose of this zone is to provide suitable areas for the development of a broad range of general manufacturing, processing and fabrication activities. The M-3 Zone is intended for uses which do not require highly restrictive performance standards on the part of adjoining uses. The M-3 Zone, as the heaviest manufacturing zone, is intended to provide for uses involving the kinds of processes, activities and elements which are specifically excluded from the M-1 Zone.

Sec. 8104-6.1 - Specific Plan (S-P) Zone

The purposes of the S-P Zone are:

a. To provide for the unified planning and diversified urban communities which reflect modern site design standards and concepts and incorporate a variety of uses, while providing for the separation of incompatible uses;

b. To encourage the provision of a broad range of community facilities, including recreational and commercial; and

c. To provide for flexibility in the design and development of such communities.

(AM. ORD. 4018 - 12/15/92)

The purposes of the T-P zone are:

a. To maintain the optimum amount of the limited supply of timberland so as to ensure its current and continued availability for the growing and harvesting of timber, and compatible uses;

b. To discourage premature or unnecessary conversion of timberland to urban and other uses;

c. To discourage the expansion of urban services into timberland; and

d. To encourage investment in timberlands based on reasonable expectation of harvest.

The purpose of overlay zones is to superimpose particular zones on existing base zones, thus establishing additional regulations and either reducing or extending permitted uses.

Sec. 8104-7.1 - Scenic Resource Protection (SRP) Overlay Zone

The purpose of this overlay zone is to preserve, protect and enhance the County's scenic resources through the regulation of uses that may adversely affect these resources.

Sec. 8104-7.2 - Mineral Resources Protection (MRP) Overlay Zone

The purposes of this zone are:

a. To safeguard future access to an important resource.

b. To facilitate a long term supply of mineral resources within the County.

c. To minimize land use conflicts.

d. To provide notice to landowners and the general public of the presence of the resource.

e. The purpose is not to obligate the County to approve use permits for the development of the resources subject to the MRP Overlay Zone.

(ADD. ORD. 3723 - 3/12/85; AM. ORD. 3900 - 6/20/89)

The purposes of this zone are:

a. To preserve and protect the visual quality along the County's scenic highways.

b. To minimize uses of land which conflict with the value of scenic highways.

c. To provide notice to landowners and the general public of the location and value of scenic highways which are of significance in the county and state.

(ADD. ORD. 3797 - 12/09/86)

The purposes of this zone are to:

a. Identity community business districts with unique historic character which justify special permit requirements and standards so as to preserve or re-create the historic character of the district;

b. Preserve the historic character of buildings and structures within the district; and

c. Allow deviations of certain development standards, parking standards, landscape standards, and sign standards of the zoning ordinance to permit the alteration or construction of buildings and structures, consistent with the design guidelines adopted under the applicable Area Plan or Specific Plan, so as to preserve or re-create the historic character of the district.

(ADD. ORD. 4144 - 7/22/97)

VENTURA COUNTY NON-COASTAL ZONING ORDINANCE