Fresno Municipal Code Art. 8 Buffer District (b)

The Buffer (B) District is intended to separate urban uses from commercial agricultural uses to preserve long-term viable agricultural areas and intensive farming operations in adjacent areas. The Buffer District serves to prevent urban residential and related uses from developing near agricultural operations, and thereby infringing on full operation of farmland of importance. Allowable uses include environmental habitat; water conveyance, retention, and recharge; preservation and preparation of gravel resources; beneficial uses related to permanent water resource facilities; limited agriculture and necessary supportive uses, such as agricultural processing (not including animal processing or rendering, nor uses that have the potential to create obnoxious noise, odor, etc.); and residential uses with 20 acres of land required per residence.

(Added Ord. 2015-39, § 1, eff. 1-9-16).

A. Table 15-802 prescribes the land use regulations for the Buffer District. The regulations for the district are established by letter designations listed below. These designations apply strictly to the permissibility of land uses; applications for buildings or structures may require discretionary review.

"P" designates permitted uses.

"C" designates uses that are permitted after review and approval of a Conditional Use Permit.

"(#)" numbers in parentheses refer to specific limitations listed at the end of the table.

"-" designates uses that are not permitted.

B. Land uses are defined in Article 67, Use Classifications.

C. In cases where a specific land use or activity is not defined, the Director shall assign the land use or activity to a classification that is substantially similar in character per Section 15-5020, Director's Determination.

D. All permitted uses are allowed either alone or in combination with other permitted uses unless otherwise stated in this Code.

E. Use classifications and subclassifications not listed in the table or not found to be substantially similar to the uses below are not permitted.

F. The table also notes additional regulations that apply to various uses. Section numbers in the right hand column refer to other sections of this Code.

TABLE 15-802: USE REGULATIONS—BUFFER DISTRICT

(Added Ord. 2015-39, § 1, eff. 1-9-16; Am. Ord. 2025-024, § 7, eff. 7-27-25).

Tables 15-803-1 and 15-803-2 prescribe the density and massing development standards for the Buffer District. Additional regulations are denoted in a right hand column. Section numbers in this column refer to other sections of the Code, while individual letters refer to subsections that directly follow the table. The numbers in each illustration below correspond to the "#" column in the associated table. Drawings are for illustrative purposes and are not drawn to scale.

TABLE 15-803-1: LOT AND DENSITY STANDARDS—BUFFER DISTRICT

TABLE 15-803-2: BUILDING FORM AND LOCATION STANDARDS—BUFFER DISTRICT

(Added Ord. 2015-39, § 1, eff. 1-9-16).

A. Additional Height for Agricultural-Related Structures. The Director may approve Accessory Structures, up to a height of 75 feet, for agricultural-related structures, per the following standards:

1. The Accessory Structure shall be used only for agricultural products.

2. Any request to exceed the 35 foot maximum shall be subject to a flag test to be performed by the applicant, with a member of City staff in attendance.

3. There shall be no advertising on the structure.

4. Sight lines, shadows, and overall aesthetics shall be considered by the Director when over-height structures are proposed.

(Added Ord. 2015-39, § 1, eff. 1-9-16).