Santa Clara Zoning Code § 12.1 Building Use

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Use Shopfront Overlay [1] Retail-Ready [1] Downtown General
Automobile service Not permitted Not permitted Not permitted
Automobile dealership Permitted only as a small-format showroom within a Shopfront
Assisted living / memory care Not permitted Not permitted Not permitted
Corporate cafeteria, as Not permitted Not permitted Not permitted
accessory to office use
Data center Not permitted Not permitted Not permitted
Drive-through facility Not permitted Not permitted Not permitted
Dwelling unit Permitted on upper floors; not Permitted on upper floors; not Permitted
permitted on ground floor permitted on ground floor
Heavy industrial/manufacturing Not permitted Not permitted Not permitted
Laboratory CUP required on upper floors; CUP required on upper floors; CUP required
not permitted on ground floor not permitted on ground floor
Liquor store CUP required CUP required CUP required
Office Permitted on upper floors; CUP Permitted [1] Permitted
required for ground floor [1]
Lobby Permitted on upper floors; not Permitted on upper floors; not Permitted
permitted on ground floor [2] permitted on ground floor [2]
Place of assembly CUP required CUP Required CUP Required
Private building amenities Permitted on upper floors; not Permitted on upper floors; not Permitted
and leasing offices permitted on ground floor permitted on ground floor
Specified “regulated businesses” CUP required CUP required CUP required
(per SCCC § 18.70)
Storage/warehouse Not permitted Not permitted Not permitted
Surface parking Not permitted [3] Not permitted [3] Not permitted [4]
Thrift shop (not including CUP required CUP required CUP required
buy-sell-trade stores)
Vehicle fueling facility Not permitted anywhere in zone Not permitted anywhere in zone Not permitted anywhere in zone

A. Introduction

This section includes provisions for building use and parking for all properties within the Plan area Uses not listed in Table 12-1 Specific Building Use Provisions shall be allowed by right unless prohibited everywhere in the City by the Santa Clara City Code All uses are subject to all applicable development standards, State law, and any other applicable requirements that are beyond the scope of this Chapter

Any use that is not specifically prohibited within in this section, but is deemed by the Director of Community Development to be of such a nature as to be detrimental to neighboring properties by reason of emission of odor, excessive noise, or any other factor that is adverse to their comfort, peace, enjoyment, health, or safety, shall also be prohibited All procedural requirements of SCCC § 18 110 shall apply

Parking requirements associated with building uses, as well as standards for how that parking may be provided, are established in Section 12.3

Legend

Notes

• 1 All ground-floor office uses in the Shopfront or Retail-Ready Overlay shall be designed with Shopfront frontages (See Table 9-1 and Section 9.4.A ).

• CUP: Conditional Use Permit ( SCCC § 18.110 )

• 2 Exception: If a project has no frontage in the Downtown General Overlay, a Lobby of 20' maximum width and designed as a Shopfront is permitted in the first of the following options where the project has frontage: Option 1) in the Retail-Ready Overlay on any street other than Franklin St; Option 2) in the Shopfront Overlay on any street other than Franklin St; Option 3) in the Retail-Ready Overlay on Franklin St; or Option 4, last resort) in the Shopfront Overlay on Franklin St. (Example: Option 1 shall be chosen over Option 2 if a project has frontage in both locations.)

• 3 Exceptions: Parking spaces along an alley, with no additional aisles for the purposes of accessing parking, are permitted. Also, interim on-site surface parking is permitted with a Conditional Use Permit, provided that it serves a phased development strategy.

18 Attachment 1:161

Publication, Apr 2026

SANTA CLARA CODE

71 | Chapter 12: Building Use & Parking