Danville Zoning, Planning & Building Codes

Last reviewed: July 3, 2026

Overview

Danville’s land-use rules are codified in the Danville Municipal Code under the planning and land use provisions grouped in Chapter XXXII (Planning and Land Use) and the Downtown Business District (DBD) provisions in § 32‑45. The code organizes district definitions, district‑specific development rules, and citywide development controls (parking, landscaping, trees, flood rules, etc.) across numbered sections such as § 32‑22 (residential districts), § 32‑45 (Downtown), and special topics like § 32‑76 (Accessory Dwelling Units) and § 32‑74 (density bonus) . This page explains how the Danville code is structured, which district families exist, where to find the citywide standards (setbacks/height/FAR/parking), how design and discretionary review works, what specific plans/overlays exist for Downtown, how the permit path works, and how California housing law interacts with local rules.

How Danville's code is organized

• The municipal development and planning rules appear in Chapter XXXII, whose table of contents shows Articles for General Provisions, Definitions, Planning Applications, Decision‑making/Review, Zoning Map/Districts, District Regulations, Additional Requirements for Development, Special Uses, Signs, etc. (e.g., the code’s table of contents under Chapter XXXII) .
• Districts and district regulations are collected under Article V (Zoning map; districts established) and Article VI (District regulations) — district chapters begin with items like § 32‑22 (Single Family Residential Districts) and proceed through the multifamily series and commercial/industrial districts .
• Downtown has a dedicated subchapter (the Downtown Business District, § 32‑45) with its own Land Use Areas, development standards, parking rules and a Development Plan Review procedure (Divisions 1–5 under § 32‑45) .
• Topic‑specific controls (trees, historic preservation, inclusionary housing, ADUs, density bonus, flood prevention, signs, etc.) are placed in separate sections across Chapter XXXII — for example, § 32‑79 (Tree Preservation), § 32‑72 (Historic Preservation), § 32‑73 (Inclusionary Housing), § 32‑74 (Density Bonus), and § 32‑76 (Accessory Dwelling Units) .

(For navigation: start at the Chapter XXXII table of contents and jump to the specific § number for the topic you need—e.g., district rules at § 32‑22 et seq., Downtown at § 32‑45, and ADUs at § 32‑76.)

Zoning district families

Danville’s code uses named district families with letter/number designations. Key families shown in the code include:

• Single family: identified under § 32‑22 (single family residential districts) .
• Two‑family: D‑1 (Two Family District) at § 32‑23 .
• Multifamily: several M‑ districts — M‑30, M‑25, M‑20, M‑13, M‑8, M‑35 — each established under § 32‑24–§ 32‑29 with district‑specific rules (unit density bands, permitted uses, height) .
• Agricultural / open: A‑1, A‑2, A‑4 (agricultural/light/general/preserve) under § 32‑36–§ 32‑38 .
• Downtown Business District (DBD): § 32‑45 establishes multiple Land Use Areas (Area 1 through Area 13), with fine‑grained rules for Old Town retail, mixed use, resident‑serving commercial, multifamily areas, and special opportunity sites — e.g., Area 12 (Multifamily Residential High Density) and Area 13 (Multifamily Residential‑High Special) with specific FAR, height and parking rules at § 32‑45.21.1 and § 32‑45.21.2 .
• Office / Commercial / Industrial / Planned: O‑1 (Limited Office) at § 32‑51, R‑B (Retail Business) at § 32‑60, C (General Commercial) at § 32‑61, L‑I (Light Industrial) at § 32‑62, and P‑1 (Planned Unit) at § 32‑63 .

When you look up a parcel, confirm its precise district code on the town zoning map (the code’s district list begins at § 32‑22 and the Downtown map and land‑use areas are in § 32‑45) .

Citywide development standards

High‑level controls—setbacks, height, FAR/coverage, parking, landscaping and special technical rules—are split between district chapters (e.g., § 32‑45 for DBD) and topic sections.

• Heights and stories: many districts state numeric height caps by district. Example Downtown DBD special areas: Area 12 sets a height limit of 35 ft (accessory structures 15 ft) in § 32‑45.21.1; Area 13 uses an average 35 ft with building mixes at 33/35/37 ft and accessory limit 15 ft in § 32‑45.21.2 .
• Floor area ratio (FAR) / lot coverage: DBD areas include FAR caps — e.g., Area 12 allows a maximum 80% FAR of net developable area (§ 32‑45.21.1) while Area 13 shows a maximum 120% FAR in § 32‑45.21.2 .
• Setbacks: district rules supply front/side/rear yard minima. Example: Area 13 front yard average 10 ft from the right‑of‑way; Area 9 requires a 25 ft front yard and side/rear setbacks by table at § 32‑45.20 and § 32‑45.27 (Area‑specific rules) .
• Parking: numerical parking standards and allowances for reductions or alternatives are called out inside district chapters — the Downtown Business District contains a Parking Standards Division (see § 32‑45 parking subsections and cross‑references to § 32‑45.34 and § 32‑45.34.j/ .q for reduction criteria) . (See the town’s local parking rules for project‑specific minimums and reduction criteria in the DBD.) For the town’s explanatory guidance on parking see Danville Parking.
  • First internal link: the town’s parking chapter is linked as Danville Parking — use that when you need the local numeric tables.
• Landscaping, screening, and trees: § 32‑79 (Tree Preservation) and landscaping standards are separate sections that impose mitigation, protection and replacement requirements; the DBD also has § 32‑45.23 Landscaping Development Standards for downtown projects .
• Design/architectural standards: the Downtown chapter contains Architectural Development Standards (§ 32‑45.22) and the development plan review and design review rules are present in the DBD Development Plan Review Division and at application sections such as § 32‑45.41 (Application) and other review procedure sections in Chapter XXXII .

For a practical quick check, start with the district § that applies to your parcel (e.g., § 32‑22 series for single‑family, § 32‑24 series for multifamily, § 32‑45 for Downtown) to find the specific numeric standards that apply to that site .

Specific plans & overlays

• Downtown is regulated through the Downtown Business District ordinance (DBD; § 32‑45) which splits downtown into discrete Areas (Area 1–13) with site‑specific rules and development standards (see § 32‑45.10 and each Area’s subsection, e.g., § 32‑45.21.1 for Area 12 and § 32‑45.21.2 for Area 13) .
• Overlays and special requirement sections exist as topic‑based overlays such as Scenic Hillside / Major Ridgeline (§ 32‑69), Wireless Communication Facilities (§ 32‑70), Reasonable Accommodation (§ 32‑71), and Historic Preservation (§ 32‑72) — see Chapter XXXII topic sections for these overlays and special controls . For the town’s list of overlays see Danville Overlay Districts and Danville Historic Preservation.
• Where a specific parcel has special standards (e.g., the DBD has parcel‑specific height allowances for identified APNs), those are called out in the Area subsections (for example § 32‑45.21.2.h includes parcel‑level height rules for certain Diablo Road parcels) .

Building permits & review

• The application, decision authority and review process are covered by the code’s planning application and review Articles. The code lists planning applications and decision‑making authorities in Article III/IV and cross‑references specific permit procedures (for example, certain permits or variances follow the procedures in § 32‑3 and municipal code cross‑references) — see the Chapter XXXII table of contents and the procedural cross‑references (e.g., the land use/variance permit procedure reference in § 32‑130.7) .
• For most non‑exempt projects in downtown, you will use the DBD Development Plan Review procedures (Divisions 3–5 under § 32‑45) and submit the supplemental application materials described in Area subsections (see § 32‑45.41 application submittal and Area supplemental submittal lists) .
• Discretionary entitlements (land use permits, conditional uses, variances) are explicitly required for conditional uses listed in district chapters (see, e.g., conditional use cross‑references at § 32‑24.4 and language in the Area subsections permitting conditional uses “upon issuance of a Land Use Permit”) .
• Design review and architectural standards: the Downtown chapter requires architectural and landscape standards and design review as part of the Development Plan Review process (see § 32‑45.22, § 32‑45.23, and Division 5 procedures) .
• Practical permit path: 1) confirm zone and applicable Area (parcel lookup, § 32‑22 / § 32‑45), 2) review district numeric standards and any Area supplemental requirement (e.g., § 32‑45.21.1–.2 for multifamily Areas), 3) prepare Development Plan or Land Use Permit submittal per § 32‑45.41, 4) follow the review route in the chapter’s review/decision sections (administrative staff, Planning Commission, or Town Council depending on the entitlement) — specific decision authority and appeals are described in the Chapter XXXII decision process articles .

For design review guidance see the town’s design review page for practical checklists: Danville Design Review. When you need building‑code compliance, use the California Building Standards Code link California Building Standards Code.

State housing law in Danville

The Danville code recognizes and cross‑references several state‑driven housing topics; the local code provisions and their locations are:

• Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs): Danville implements accessory dwelling unit rules under § 32‑76 (Accessory Dwelling Units) within Chapter XXXII. That section should be consulted for local application steps and any local limits that are consistent with state law; state ADU rules also preempt some local controls — see Danville ADUs and state law (link below) .
• Density bonus: the code includes a density bonus ordinance at § 32‑74, which implements the state density bonus framework and local procedures for bonus requests and concessions/waivers .
• Inclusionary housing: Danville maintains an inclusionary housing requirement in § 32‑73 (location and requirements are in Chapter XXXII) .
• SB9/ministerial lot splits and duplex+ADU ministerial changes: the supplied municipal code text does not show a Danville local implementing section that explicitly references SB9 ministerial parcel split or duplex provisions. That specific implementation language was Not found in retrieved materials; confirm with the Town’s planning staff or the updated municipal code for an explicit SB9 local ordinance or objective standards (Verify with the jurisdiction) .
• Rent control and tenant protections: there are no local rent‑control provisions or tenant‑protection sections located in the provided Chapter XXXII excerpts (Not found in retrieved materials). Danville appears to address housing production (inclusionary/density bonus/ADU) rather than rent regulation in Chapter XXXII; verify any municipal rent ordinance outside Chapter XXXII with the Town Attorney’s office if needed .
• Interaction with state ADU law: state ADU statute limits some local controls (size, setbacks, parking prohibitions in specified conditions). Danville’s ADU section (§ 32‑76) is the local implementation point, but applicants should also follow statewide ADU rules — see California ADU law for the state standards and Danville’s § 32‑76 for local application requirements .

Summary table (where to look)

• Zone/district definitions: § 32‑22–§ 32‑29 (residential families) and § 32‑45 (DBD) .
• Downtown Land Use Areas & numeric standards: § 32‑45.10 and § 32‑45.21.1–.2 (Area 12/13 examples) .
• Parking standards & reductions (DBD): § 32‑45.34 and related subsections .j/.q for reduction criteria .
• ADUs: § 32‑76 .
• Density Bonus & inclusionary: § 32‑74, § 32‑73 .
• Trees / landscaping: § 32‑79 and § 32‑45.23 (DBD landscaping) .
• Decision authority / procedural cross‑references: Article III/IV and procedural cross‑references in Chapter XXXII (see Chapter table of contents and procedural callouts such as § 32‑130.7 referencing § 32‑3) .

Information gaps / verification items

• Local SB9 implementation language (ministerial parcel split / objective standards) was not present in the retrieved Chapter XXXII excerpts — verify whether the Town has adopted an SB9 implementation ordinance or objective design standards with Danville planning staff (Not found in retrieved materials) .
• Any municipal rent‑regulation/tenant protection ordinance is not visible in the Chapter XXXII excerpts (Not found in retrieved materials) — confirm outside Chapter XXXII or with other municipal code volumes if needed .

Source References

• Danville Municipal Code — Chapter XXXII, Planning and Land Use (table of contents and sections cited throughout): see the Town of Danville zoning/land use code excerpts (representative sections: § 32‑22, § 32‑24, § 32‑45, § 32‑45.21.1, § 32‑45.21.2, § 32‑45.34, § 32‑45.41, § 32‑72, § 32‑73, § 32‑74, § 32‑76, § 32‑79) .
• For statewide ADU and building‑code interaction referenced in the Danville ADU section, see California ADU law and statewide building standards (use local links below): California ADU law, California Building Standards Code.
• Town topic pages linked in the text: Danville Parking, Danville Design Review, Danville Overlay Districts, Danville Historic Preservation, Danville ADUs, Danville Development Standards (these are the internal quick‑reference links used above).