Cerritos Zoning, Planning & Building Codes

Last reviewed: July 4, 2026

Overview

Cerritos organizes land use through a city development code centered in Title 22 (land use zones and area development plans) with procedures and administration in Title 23 and definitions in Title 20. The code uses conventional zone families — single‑family RS zones (e.g., RS-5000, RS-6500), multi‑family RM, commercial (CN, CR, MC-1), industrial (M) and a set of city area development plans (ADP / specific plans) and overlay districts (examples ADP-12, ADP-16, ADP-19, ADP-21, ADP-5.1) that replace or supplement base zoning in targeted places (§ 22.20.030; § 22.14.020) . The city requires precise plans or other discretionary approvals for many larger or coordinated developments; rules for review and appeals live in the precise‑plan and conditional‑use chapters (§ 23.90.x; § 23.10.x) .

How Cerritos's code is organized

• Title and chapters: the development/zoning rules are contained in the city code as Title 22 (land use zones and area development plans), with administrative/permit procedures in Title 23 and definitions in Title 20; zone rules are collected in Chapters 22.21–22.39 and area development plans in the 22.30–22.56 range (§ 22.20.030; § 22.14.020; definitions § 20.30.274) .
• How to navigate:
  • Zone regulations and permitted uses: see the relevant zone chapter (for example, RS zone provisions are in Chapter 22.22, RM in 22.23, MC‑1 in 22.32) — the code directs readers to Chapters 22.21–22.39 for zone rules (§ 22.20.030; § 22.23.100; § 22.32.100) .
  • Area development plans / specific plans: each ADP is its own chapter (for example, ADP‑12 at § 22.36.x; ADP‑16 at § 22.51.x) and explicitly functions as a “specific plan” that replaces usual zoning within its boundaries (§ 22.36.020; § 22.51.020) .
  • Procedures, hearings and appeals: application content, staff and commission review, design review and city council action appear under Chapter 23.90 (precise plans) and Chapters 23.10 (conditional uses) and 20.95 (appeals referenced) (§ 23.90.100–500; § 23.10.510–610; § 22.20.100) .

Zoning district families

Cerritos groups land use into traditional families and many area‑specific plans. Key, city‑specific labels you will see in the code:

• RS-5000 and RS-6500 — single‑family residential districts (Chapter 22.22). Lot size, frontage, setbacks and intensity are spelled out in § 22.22.600–700; for example, minimum lot area 5,000 sf (RS‑5000) and 6,500 sf (average) in RS‑6500, minimum frontage 50 ft (RS‑5000) and 60 ft (RS‑6500), front setback 20 ft, maximum building coverage 40%, and FAR not to exceed 0.70 (§ 22.22.600; § 22.22.700) .
• RM — multi‑family residential (Chapter 22.23). Purpose, permitted uses and the chapter’s note that “nothing in this section shall be construed to permit second units as provided in § 65852.1 et seq. of the California Government Code” appear in § 22.23.100–300; specific intensity/site standards are in § 22.23.600–700 (§ 22.23.300) .
• Commercial strata — CN (neighborhood commercial), CR (regional commercial) and MC‑1/commercial‑industrial hybrid chapters provide use lists and intensity/site rules (see Chapters 22.25, 22.27, 22.32) with typical commercial setbacks, coverage and FAR limits (e.g., CN building coverage and FAR limits at § 22.25.600–700) .
• Industrial / manufacturing — M and MC‑1 zones (Chapter 22.28 and 22.32) set separate standards for building coverage, setbacks and specialized site rules such as enclosed storage, equipment screening, and circulation (§ 22.11.220–230; § 22.32.x) .
• Open Space / Overlay zones — Cerritos uses overlay and special purpose zones (for example, OS‑1 overlay, M‑1 overlay, and the ADP overlay family) to add or substitute rules in discrete places; the code explains overlay operation and conditional uses in those chapters (see § 22.31.100; § 22.60.300) .
• Area Development Plans / ADP (specific plans): many ADPs are codified as chapters (e.g., ADP‑2, ADP‑12, ADP‑16, ADP‑19, ADP‑21) and explicitly “replace the usual zoning regulations” within their boundaries and carry detailed intensity, design, open‑space and precise‑plan submittal rules (see § 22.14.020; § 22.36.020; § 22.51.020; § 22.54.020; § 22.56.020) .

Citywide development standards (high‑level)

Cerritos spreads standards between base zone chapters, ADPs, and centralized development standards chapters. Representative, city‑wide patterns in the ordinance:

• Lot and intensity controls: single‑family zones cap building coverage at 40% (up to 45% in some RS‑5000 circumstances) and limit FAR to 0.70 for RS lots (§ 22.22.600(2)–(3)) .
• Setbacks & lot dimensions: typical front setback in RS zones is 20 ft (with subdivision averaging rules permitting 18–25 ft range), rear setback 10 ft (second‑story rear setback 20 ft when rear abuts a street), side yard 5 ft (with larger street‑side setbacks) — see § 22.22.700(5)–(8) for the RS rules and subdivision/precise‑plan averaging rules (§ 22.22.700; § 22.22.600) .
• Height: many single‑family and ADP chapters set 35 ft / two stories as the common cap; larger commercial or ADP projects may have higher caps tied to design (§ 22.36.130(7); § 22.15.235) .
• Lot coverage / FAR in ADPs: ADPs carry their own intensity numbers — many ADPs limit building coverage to ~40%–60% and set density and minimum unit sizes or unit mixes (see ADP examples § 22.34.130; § 22.36.130; § 22.51.120) .
• Parking and loading: parking minimums and dimensional standards are spelled out in specific‑use and ADP chapters and referenced centralized parking sections (bicycle racks and other rules are required by cross‑reference to Chapter 22.76; see § 22.11.230(8) and § 22.60.350(4) for examples) — see the city’s chapter references to parking and loading standards (§ 22.11.230(8); § 22.60.350(4); cross‑refs to § 22.76.400) .
  • For quick guidance on on‑site parking expectations, consult the city’s parking menu (parking) and the applicable zone/ADP chapter first; special uses like service stations and auto dealerships have tailored ratios and layout rules (§ 22.40.530; § 22.11.230) .

(For quick navigation to those topic pages: see the links for development standards, parking, and design review below: the city’s code does both distributed and cross‑referenced standards.) First mentions of these topics are linked in this page: development standards, parking, design review, overlay districts, ADUs, California Building Standards Code.

Design standards & discretionary review

• Precise plans: many subdivisions or multi‑parcel developments require a precise plan that demonstrates compliance with ADP or zone intensity and design standards; the ordinance requires that no building permit for such projects be issued until the precise plan is approved (§ 22.22.900; § 23.90.100–300) .
• Design review: the city authorizes advisory or formal design review committees and explicitly cross‑references design review in the precise‑plan chapter (design review at § 23.90.240; the planning commission may refer projects to a design review committee) (§ 23.90.240; § 22.15.240) .
• Architectural standards in ADPs: many ADPs require four‑sided architecture, material palettes, articulation, and minimum percentages of enhanced façade materials for larger developments (see § 22.34.140; § 22.36.050; § 22.51.030) .

Specific plans & overlays (how they operate)

• Area development plans (ADPs) are codified specific plans — each ADP chapter states that an ADP “replaces the usual zoning regulations” within its boundaries and contains its own permitted uses, intensity standards, development standards, and precise‑plan requirements (see § 22.14.020; § 22.36.020; § 22.51.020) .
• Overlays (for example the OS‑1 open‑space overlay or M‑1 overlay) layer additional restrictions or permissions on an underlying zone and explicitly state that overlay standards control where there is conflict (§ 22.31.100; § 22.60.350; § 22.61.110) .
• Example: ADP‑5.1 (Auto Retail/Dealership overlay) has dedicated height, setback and parking/coverage rules for the Auto Square area and supersedes underlying standards where it applies (§ 22.61.110(1)–(4)) .

Building permits & review — the typical path (city‑level)

• Preliminary contact and plan submittal: start with the Department of Community Development for a preliminary review; precise plan applications require the application contents in § 23.90.210 and are processed by staff (§ 23.90.100–210) .
• Discretionary review: if an ADP, precise plan, or conditional use is required, the planning commission and potentially the city council perform public hearings; applications for conditional use permits follow the procedures in Chapter 23.10 and are noticed to adjacent owners (§ 23.10.510–610; § 23.90.400–500) .
• Design and architecture: precise plans are conditioned on architectural review and the city (or a design review committee) must find compatibility and quality (§ 23.90.210; § 23.90.240) .
• Building permit issuance: in many residential subdivisions and ADP areas, the code explicitly states that no building permit will be issued until the precise plan has been approved by the planning commission (see § 22.22.900) .
• Appeals: decisions of the Director, Planning Commission or Council are subject to appeal as provided in the code (see § 20.95 references in zone and procedure chapters) (§ 22.20.100; § 23.90.500 references appeals) .

State housing law in Cerritos

• ADUs & second units: the Cerritos code expressly cross‑references state law on second units in the RM chapter (“nothing in this section shall be construed to permit second units as provided in § 65852.1 et seq. Gov. Code”) — that shows local code defers to state ADU rules where applicable (§ 22.23.300) .
• Practical interaction: state ADU reforms (summarized in the provided ADU handbook) restrict local ability to impose some size, setback, parking and permitting barriers and create streamlined permit timelines; applicants should expect the city to process ADU permits consistent with state law while still checking local ADP/zone cross‑references for conflicts (see statewide ADU rules summary and Gov. Code citations in the ADU handbook) .
• SB 9 / lot splits and other recent statewide statutes: specific local implementing language for SB 9 (urban lot splits/duplexes) or local density‑bonus implementation was not identified in the retrieved chapters — verify with the city (see “Information Gaps” below) (Not found in retrieved materials) .

Information Gaps (items not located in uploaded excerpts)

• A consolidated, standalone “ADU chapter” in Cerritos’s municipal code was not found in the retrieved material; the city appears to reference state ADU law in places but local ADU implementation language (if any) was not located in the excerpts (Not found in retrieved materials; verify with the planning department) .
• Explicit SB 9 or local objective implementation standards for ministerial lot splits/duplex approvals were not visible in the provided excerpts (Not found in retrieved materials).
• A single consolidated parking table chapter is referenced (Chapter 22.76) and cross‑referenced from other chapters, but the full Chapter 22.76 text was not included in the excerpts I reviewed (see § 22.60.350 and § 22.11.230 for cross‑refs) .

Source References

• Land use zones and purpose (Ch. 22.20 and zone chapters): § 22.20.010; § 22.20.030 .
• RS zones: intensity and site standards — § 22.22.600; § 22.22.700 (lot sizes, 40% coverage, 0.70 FAR, frontage and setback rules) .
• Precise plans & design review: Chapter 23.90 (precise plan application/processing and design review: § 23.90.100–500; § 23.90.240) .
• Area development plans (ADPs are treated as specific plans): § 22.14.020; § 22.36.020; § 22.51.020; § 22.54.020; § 22.56.020 (examples of ADP chapters) .
• Conditional uses and permit procedures: Chapter 23.10 (process and noticing; § 23.10.510–610) and Chapter 23.50 on nonconformities (§ 23.50.010–700) .
• Parking cross‑references and examples: § 22.11.230(8) (manufacturing/office parking rules); § 22.40.530 (service station parking) and cross‑refs to Chapter 22.76 (bicycle racks and parking detail at § 22.76.400 cited in ADP/M‑1 rules) .
• State ADU summary and permitting requirements: 2025 California ADU handbook (state law summary; Gov. Code citations) — used to explain state/local interaction (see ADU permitting timelines and limitations) .