Part 6 — IG—General Industrial District
Watsonville Zoning Code · 2026-06 edition · ingested 2026-07-07 · Watsonville
14-16.600 Purpose. ¶
The purpose of the General Industrial District is to provide and protect an environment which will encourage sound industrial development. These regulations are intended to facilitate industrial operations to the highest degree while protecting the district and adjacent land uses, persons, and property from excessive noise, odor, dust, dirt, smoke, vibration, heat, glare, heavy traffic, and other objectional influences and from fire, explosion, fumes, radiation, and other hazards.
(Ord. 506-80 C-M, eff. September 11, 1980)
14-16.601 Principal permitted uses. ¶
All principal permitted and accessory uses shall be subject to the approval of an Administrative Review Permit issued without a public hearing by the Zoning Administrator.
INDUSTRIAL—NONMANUFACTURING
All nonmanufacturing uses shall be subject to review and to minimum Performance Standards.
| GLU | 10 | Lumber and other building | |
|---|---|---|---|
| material dealers | |||
| 11 | Public warehousing, excluding | ||
| 114 |
794-3
(Watsonville Supp. No. xx, 10-25)
14-16.602
| 12 | Wholesaling | |
|---|---|---|
| Exclusion: DLU 1229 | ||
| 13 | Transportation services | |
| 14 | Manufacturing research and development |
|
| 16 | Contractors, general and heavy | |
| 17 | Construction special trade | |
| contractors | ||
| 18 | Vacant industrial | |
| nonmanufacturing buildings | ||
| and uses. | ||
| 19 | Heavy commercial uses | |
| Exclusions: DLU 192, 194 and | ||
| 199 | ||
| 4833 | Satellite earth station antennas | |
| INDUSTRIAL—MANUFACTURING |
All manufacturing uses shall be subject to review and to minimum Performance Standards.
| GLU | 20 21 |
Food and kindred products Ordnance and accessories |
|---|---|---|
| 22 | Generalized manufacturing | |
| GLU | 23 | Apparel and other products |
| made from fabrics | ||
| 24 | Lumber and wood products, | |
| except furniture | ||
| 25 | Furniture and fixtures | |
| 26 27 30 31 32 |
Paper and allied products Printing, publishing, and reproduction Rubber, plastic, and leather products Vacant manufacturing buildings and uses Stone, clay, and glass products |
|
| 33 | Primary metal industries | |
| 34 | Fabricated metal products | |
| 35 | Machinery, except electrical | |
| 36 | Electrical machinery, | |
| equipment, and supplies | ||
| 37 38 |
Transportation equipment Instrument manufacturing |
|
| 39 | Miscellaneous manufacturing industries |
|
| --- | --- | --- |
(Ord. 506-80 C-M, eff. September 11, 1980, as amended by § 2, Ord. 850-90 C-M, eff. October 11, 1990, Ord. 1153-03 C-M, eff. April 24, 2003, § 1, Ord. 1181-04 C-M, eff. November 26, 2004, and § 2(3) (Exh. A), Ord. 1481-25 (CM), eff. October 9, 2025)
14-16.602 Accessory uses. ¶
Uses and buildings customarily appurtenant or incidental to a principal permitted use on the same parcel, subject to applicable regulations and Performance Standards, including service facilities, such as cafeterias, employee recreation facilities, and other similar installations intended solely for use by the occupants of a principal permitted use or uses; and watchman or caretaker’s residential quarters as an accessory use.
(Ord. 506-80 C-M, eff. September 11, 1980)
14-16.603 Conditional uses. ¶
(a) The following uses require an Administrative Use Permit: temporary buildings, structures, outdoor storage areas, office uses in conjunction with a valid building permit application for remodeling or new construction.
| DLU | 115 | Cannabis distribution facility (Type 11 license) |
|---|---|---|
| 115 | Type 9 cannabis delivery for cultivation/manufacturing facilities only |
|
| 2 | Cannabis manufacturing (Type 6 or 7 license) volatile and/or nonvolatile solvents |
|
| 6291 | Cannabis testing lab (Type 8 license) |
(b) The following uses require a Special Use Permit:
| GLU | 15 | Minerals and petroleum, wholesale |
|---|
794-4
(Watsonville Supp. No. xx, 10-25)
14-16.603
| 28 | Chemicals and allied products | DLU | 63 | Automotive repair, services, and garages |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 | Petroleum products refining and storage |
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| 64 | Repair services, miscellaneous | |||||
| 40 | Railroad transportation | 651 | Dance studio | |||
| 41 | Transit, local and suburban | 6791 | Artist studio | |||
| 42 | Motor freight transportation | 692 | Utility company offices | |||
| 43 | Right-of-way transportation | 715 | Industrial trade school | |||
| 44 | Water transportation | 731 | City garage | |||
| 45 | Air transportation | 733 | Fire station | |||
| 46 | Pipeline transportation | 734 | Police station | |||
| 47 | Utilities, R/W | 78 | Armory | |||
| 48 | Communication | 7911 | Business and trade organization | |||
| 49 | Electric, gas, and sanitary service |
7913 | Labor union office | |||
| 7917 | Social service and welfare organizations which are IRS 501(c)(3) charitable nonprofit corporations |
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| 4811 | Telecommunications sites | |||||
| 4812 | Telecommunications facilities | |||||
| DLU | 50 | Retail cannabis facility (Type 10 license only) |
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| GLU | 91 | Indoor cultivation of cannabis up to twenty-two thousand (22,000) square feet (Type 1A, 2A or 3A license) |
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| 51 | Service station | |||||
| 551 | Motor vehicle dealers—new and used |
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| NONURBAN, AGRICULTURAL, AND EXTRACTIVE LAND (NEW USES ONLY) |
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| 552 | Used car sales and display | |||||
| 555 | Recreation vehicles and mobile homes, sales and displays |
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| GLU | 90 | Extensive land uses, mining | ||||
| 5811 | Restaurant | |||||
| 91 | Irrigated agriculture | |||||
| 5811 | Restaurant with beer and wine sales |
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| 92 | Nonirrigated agriculture | |||||
| 93 | Pasture, native vegetation, pastured range, grass |
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| 5811 | Restaurant with liquor sales | |||||
| 5811 | Restaurant with bar | |||||
| 94 | Animals, agriculture | |||||
| 5812 | Eating and drinking places Exclusions: drive-through facilities |
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| 95 | Reservoirs, water supply, irrigation lands |
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| 96 | Woodland, forest, and brush | |||||
| 5814 | Donuts/pastry shops | |||||
| 97 | Water areas, river, lake | |||||
| 618 | Cabinet or furniture, custom manufacturing |
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| 98 | Wetlands, slough, marsh, swamp, tidal flats |
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| 6193 | Equipment rental and leasing services |
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| 99 | Testing facilities | |||||
| DLU | 114 | Mini storage, household goods | ||||
| 6212 | Outdoor advertising company | |||||
| 05 | Farmworker housing | |||||
| 624 | Service to buildings, machinery, and property |
|||||
| 4583 | Crop dusting operation | |||||
| 6297 | Automatic merchandising companies |
Radioactive materials, manufacture and use of |
794-5
(Watsonville Supp. No. xx, 10-25)
14-16.603.1
(c) Any building with a height over three (3) stories or thirty-five (35') feet requires a Special Use Permit.
(Ord. 506-80 C-M, eff. September 11, 1980, as amended by § 3, Ord. 659-84 C-M, eff. December 27, 1984, § 1, Ord. 754-87 C-M, eff. October 8, 1987, § 1, Ord. 772-88, eff. February 11, 1988, § 1, Ord. 844-90 C-M, eff. July 26, 1990, § 2, Ord. 850-90 C-M, eff. October 11, 1990, Ord. 1095-00 C-M, eff. October 12, 2000, § 1, Ord. 1135-02 C-M, eff. September 10, 2002, Ord. 1153-03 C-M, eff. April 24, 2003, § 1, Ord. 1276-11 (CM), eff. August 11, 2011, § 1, Ord. 1327-16 (CM), eff. February 25, 2016, § 1, Ord. 1405-20 (CM), eff. July 23, 2020, § 1, Ord. 1421-21 (CM), eff. October 28, 2021, and § 2(3) (Exh. A), Ord. 1481-25 (CM), eff. October 9, 2025)
14-16.603.1 Prohibited uses. ¶
The following uses are specifically prohibited within the IG General Industrial District:
| DLU | 194 | Auto Dismantler, Auto Wreckers, Auto Parts Dealers |
|---|---|---|
| 199 | Junkyard | |
| 541 | Convenience store | |
| 541 | Convenience store with beer and wine sales |
|
| 541 | Convenience store with liquor sales |
|
| 541 | Grocery store | |
| 541 | Grocery store with beer and wine sales |
|
| 541 | Grocery store with liquor sales | |
| 582 | Bar | |
| 592 | Liquor Store | |
| 496 | Waste/Recycle processing and transfer station |
(§ 1, Ord. 1135-02 C-M, eff. September 10, 2002, as amended by § 1, Ord. 1181-04 C-M, eff. November 26, 2004, and § 1, Ord. 1225-07 (CM), eff. November 8, 2007)
14-16.604 District regulations. ¶
The following regulations shall be observed in the General Industrial District for the use proposed, except as otherwise provided in this title or as modified by Special Use Permit:
(a) Minimum lot area and dimensions.
| Area (interior lot) | 5,000 square feet |
|---|---|
| Area (corner lot) | 5,000 square feet |
| Frontage (interior) | 25 feet |
| Frontage (corner) | 50 feet |
(b) Minimum yard setback requirements.
| Front of structure | 0 |
|---|---|
| Side (interior) | 0** |
| Side (street) | 0 |
| Rear | 0** |
| Distance between buildings on the same lot |
As allowed by Uniform Building Code |
(c) Maximum building height and lot coverage.
| All buildings | 35 feet* |
|---|---|
| Lot coverage, total structures | 100% |
Except as may be approved by exception by Special Use Permit.
** Except where abutting the boundary of any other zoning district, then not less than the minimum yard required to the adjacent yard in said abutting zoning district.
(Ord. 506-80 C-M, eff. September 11, 1980)