Del Norte County — Land Use

Last reviewed: July 6, 2026

Overview

This page explains how land use is regulated in unincorporated areas of Del Norte County under the county’s zoning ordinances: inland Title 20 Zoning and coastal Title 21 Coastal Zoning. Know which title applies to your parcel and whether you’re in any special district or overlay before you plan a use. Start with the Del Norte County zoning & planning overview, then confirm your base zoning on the county maps on file with the Planning Director.

The single most important rule: determine first whether your parcel is governed by inland Title 20 or coastal Title 21; many standards and “principal permitted use” rules differ in the coastal zone.

Use this page together with Del Norte County Zoning, Del Norte County Development Standards, Del Norte County Parking, and Del Norte County Design Review. Where housing is involved (ADUs, supportive housing), also see California ADU law.

How Del Norte County organizes land use

• Title 20 (Zoning) governs most inland unincorporated areas; Title 21 (Coastal Zoning) governs the California Coastal Zone. When coastal permit jurisdiction lies with the Coastal Commission, county zoning still applies, but a county approval is not the coastal permit.
• Title 21 uses the concept of a “principal permitted use” for Coastal Act purposes; each coastal district lists these uses explicitly.
• Zoning maps are on file with the Planning Director; always verify the mapped district before applying ordinance standards.

Quick-use matrix (selected districts)

District-by-district

Each standard below applies only in unincorporated areas.

PO — Public Ownership (Title 20)

• Purpose: Recognizes and manages state/federal lands and some interspersed private lands.
• Typical permitted uses: State park, national park, and national forest uses as authorized by the responsible agencies; single-family dwelling; home occupations; stables; logging; animal husbandry; ADUs/JADUs.
• Use permit on private lands: mobile home parks, mining, RV parks, country clubs, produce stands tied to onsite production.
• Key dimensional standards: Not found in retrieved materials.
• Where it applies: State/federal holdings and some private inholdings.

R-1A — Residential and Agricultural (Title 20)

• Purpose: Suburban homesites on roughly one to five acres for residential use intertwined with small-scale agriculture.
• Typical permitted uses: Single-family dwelling; child day care home (≤14); small community care (≤6); agriculture; animal husbandry with specific animal-per-area limits; ADUs/JADUs; nurseries/greenhouses; home occupations; private stables/corrals.
• Key dimensional standards: Not found in retrieved materials.
• Where it applies: Semi-rural settings in unincorporated areas.

R-2 — Low Density Multiple-Family (Title 20)

• Purpose: Areas with services sufficient for duplexes.
• Typical permitted uses: One single-family or one duplex per building site; small community care (≤6); ADUs.
• Key dimensional standards (Title 20 version): Not found in retrieved materials.
• Where it applies: Serviceable residential neighborhoods in unincorporated areas.

R-2 — Low Density Multiple-Family (Coastal, Title 21)

• Purpose: Same duplex-oriented intent within the Coastal Zone, with “principal permitted use” status for listed uses.
• Typical permitted uses: One single-family or one duplex; accessory buildings.
• Key dimensional standards: 30 ft primary height; 16 ft detached accessory; 7,200 sf min lot area; 60 ft width; 35% coverage; yards 25 ft front, 5 ft side, 20 ft rear (main).
• Where it applies: Coastal Zone portions of unincorporated areas.

FR-1 — Forest and Recreation (Title 20)

• Purpose: Prioritizes recreational development and protection of forest resources.
• Typical permitted uses: Single-family; ADUs/JADUs; various recreation-related uses; logging; agriculture; employee housing per State law; day care home.
• Key dimensional standards: Not found in retrieved materials.
• Where it applies: Forested/recreation areas in unincorporated lands.

FR-2 — Forest-Recreation (Title 20)

• Purpose: Transitional recreation/conservation areas, often adjacent to national/state parks and forests.
• Typical permitted uses: Single-family; ADUs/JADUs; child day care home (≤14); hunting/fishing camps; pack stations; home occupations; agriculture; employee housing per State law; one guest cottage with an SF residence.
• Key dimensional standards: 35 ft height; min lot area not less than 2 acres; yards 40 ft front, 15 ft side, 50 ft rear (main; 30 ft accessory); 20% lot coverage.
• Where it applies: Near or adjacent to national/state park/forest lands.

NH — Natural Hazard Area (Title 20)

• Purpose: Open space and very low-intensity use in areas with flood, seismic, or drainage hazards.
• Typical permitted uses: Utility lines/corridor maintenance; day-use public recreation needing little/no land alteration; limited signage; emergency work; vegetation maintenance without soil disturbance.
• Uses with a use permit: Allowed only with findings that hazards are mitigated, adjacent lands protected, and objectives addressed.
• Key dimensional standards: Not found in retrieved materials.

FP-3 — Protected Areas within Flood Zones (Title 20)

• Purpose: Areas in mapped flood zones protected by levees/dikes constructed by agencies.
• Typical permitted uses: Any uses otherwise permitted in the underlying zone.
• Key dimensional standards: Governed by the underlying zone.

C-1 — Neighborhood Commercial (Title 20)

• Purpose: Small, low-intensity commercial uses compatible with nearby housing.
• Typical permitted uses: Placement of a single-family, manufactured, or mobile home; ADUs/JADUs; day care (≤14); small employee housing/community care (≤6). Use permit: small shops/offices, grocery, social halls/lodges, churches, schools.
• Key dimensional standards: Height equals the lowest height limit of any adjoining residential zone; other numeric standards not confirmed here.

C-2 — General Commercial (Title 20)

• Purpose: “Downtown/central shopping” and higher-intensity retail/commercial.
• Typical permitted uses: Wide range of retail, offices, hotels/motels, theaters; department stores and regional centers; ADUs/JADUs as described. Some multi-family and supportive/transitional/SRO housing allowed with a use permit.
• Key dimensional standards: 45 ft height; other lot standards not confirmed here.

C-4 — Service Commercial / Light Industrial (Title 20)

• Purpose: Heavier commercial and light industrial, with some mixed commercial-residential provisions on identified parcels.
• Typical permitted uses: Light industrial shops, storage/warehousing, light manufacturing, food/pharma production; ADUs/JADUs; limited multi-family on listed APNs per the Housing Element; many additional commercial uses by use permit.
• Key dimensional standards: 45 ft height; no minimum lot area with public/mutual water and sewer (otherwise 12,000 sf); min width 25 ft; up to 100% coverage where utilities are public.

TPZ — Timberland Preserve Zone (Title 20)

• Purpose: Ten-year timber preserve zoning with taxation aligned to timber production.
• Typical permitted uses: Growing/harvesting timber and compatible accessory uses; public camps/stables; caretaker dwelling. ADUs/JADUs are allowed and do not require a conditional use permit under the stated sections.
• Uses with a use permit: Timber product processing plants; public camps/stables; caretaker dwelling if not otherwise allowed.
• Key dimensional standards: Not found in retrieved materials.

TP — Timberland Preserve (Coastal, Title 21)

• Purpose: Coastal counterpart to TPZ with coastal-specific provisions and accessory uses.
• Typical permitted and conditional uses: Similar to TPZ; special resource conservation area rules can supersede base TP provisions where RCA overlays apply.
• Key dimensional standards: Not found in retrieved materials.

CT — Coastal Timber (Title 21)

• Purpose: Coastal timber production with a defined set of compatible accessory activities.
• Typical permitted uses: Growing/harvesting timber; watershed/fish and wildlife management; forest roads/log landings/storage; utilities; grazing; mineral extraction (subject to Chapter 7.36); temporary labor camps; low-impact recreation.
• Uses with a use permit: Timber product processing plants; public camps/stables; caretaker dwelling.
• Key dimensional standards: Not found in retrieved materials.

M — Manufacturing and Industrial (Coastal, Title 21)

• Purpose: Coastal industrial areas; lists principal permitted uses for Coastal Act purposes.
• Typical permitted uses: Most C-4 commercial uses (excluding residential/hotel types noted), plus other manufacturing; accessory uses including one watchman’s residence. Use permit: heavy industry (refining, pulp/paper, acids/chemicals, smelting), stockyards, junkyards, sawmills, off-site signs, etc.
• Key dimensional standards: 75 ft height; 3,000 sf min lot area (with utilities); 30 ft min width.

Practical notes across districts

• ADUs/JADUs appear throughout residential and some non-residential districts, with coastal/inland nuances; confirm eligibility and standards early and coordinate with California ADU law. Examples include FR-1/FR-2, C-1, C-2, C-4, and TPZ provisions stating ADUs/JADUs do not require a CUP under specified sections.
• In the Coastal Zone, what counts as a “principal permitted use” matters for coastal permit appeal jurisdiction; use the coastal chapters’ principal-permitted lists.
• Many commercial districts list housing types allowed with a use permit or on specific APNs; check both the district and any parcel-specific notes.

Checklist

• Confirm your parcel’s mapped zoning district and whether you are inland (Title 20) or coastal (Title 21).
• Identify whether your proposed activity is a permitted use, requires a use permit, or is prohibited in your base district. Use district “Permitted Uses” and “Uses Permitted with a Use Permit” lists.
• If coastal, verify the “principal permitted use” category and any overlay constraints (e.g., Resource Conservation Areas).
• Check dimensional standards (lot size, height, yards, coverage) in your district and any general provisions that modify them.
• Confirm parking ratios and any design review triggers for your project type.
• If reusing an existing nonconforming site or structure, review Nonconforming Uses.
• If standards cannot be met, evaluate Variances and Exceptions.
• Cross-check any signage/landscaping proposals under Signage and Landscaping and Screening.

Risks & Ambiguities

Plain-English Summary

If your property is in unincorporated Del Norte County, your allowed land uses depend on your zoning district and whether you’re inland (Title 20) or in the Coastal Zone (Title 21). Look up your zone, check what’s permitted outright versus what needs a use permit, then make sure your plan fits height, lot size, and setback rules—and don’t forget parking and any design review requirements.

Source References

• Zoning maps; applicability of coastal vs. noncoastal processing: § 20.06.50; § 21.20.10–21.20.30 (coastal administration note)
• PO Public Ownership: § 20.08.5; § 20.08.10–.20
• R-1A Residential & Agricultural: § 20.13.10–.20
• R-2 (Title 20): § 20.18.10–.20
• R-2 (Coastal): § 21.21.10–.80
• FR-1 and FR-2: § 20.35.10–.20; § 20.34.5; § 20.34.10; § 20.34.30–.80
• NH Natural Hazard: § 20.39.10–.30
• FP-3 Protected Flood Areas: § 20.42.10–.20
• C-1: § 20.24.10–.40
• C-2: § 20.28.10–.40
• C-4: § 20.29.20–.70
• TPZ (Title 20): § 20.43.10–.40
• TP/CT (Coastal): § 21.13.20–.40; § 21.14.20–.40
• Coastal general provisions (principal permitted use concept); general coastal standards: § 21.31.20 preface; § 21.46.10–.110 (selected headings)

Information Gaps

• FR-1 dimensional standards (heights, lot size, yards) — Not found in retrieved materials.
• R-1A dimensional standards — Not found in retrieved materials.
• C-1 and C-2 minimum lot sizes, yard setbacks, and coverage — Not found in retrieved materials.
• Any additional overlay districts beyond NH/FP-3/Coastal RCAs — Not found in retrieved materials. For overlay guidance, see Del Norte County Overlay Districts.

Retrieved passages

• Del Norte County Zoning Code (Section 20.32.030) High relevance show source text
• Del Norte County Zoning Code (section cannot) High relevance show source text
• Del Norte County Zoning Code (Section 20.48.90) High relevance show source text
• Del Norte County Zoning Code (§ 1) High relevance show source text
• Del Norte County Zoning Code (§ 1) High relevance show source text
• Del Norte County Zoning Code (§ 36) High relevance show source text
• Del Norte County Zoning Code (Section 21.52.20) High relevance show source text
• Del Norte County Zoning Code (chapter apply) High relevance show source text

Cited sections

• Zoning maps; applicability of coastal vs. noncoastal processing: § 20.06.50; § 21.20.10–21.20.30 (coastal administration note) (§ 20.06.50)
• PO Public Ownership: § 20.08.5; § 20.08.10–.20 (§ 20.08.5)
• R-1A Residential & Agricultural: § 20.13.10–.20 (§ 20.13.10)
• R-2 (Title 20): § 20.18.10–.20 (Title 20)
• R-2 (Coastal): § 21.21.10–.80 (§ 21.21.10)
• FR-1 and FR-2: § 20.35.10–.20; § 20.34.5; § 20.34.10; § 20.34.30–.80 (§ 20.35.10)
• NH Natural Hazard: § 20.39.10–.30 (§ 20.39.10)
• FP-3 Protected Flood Areas: § 20.42.10–.20 (§ 20.42.10)
• C-1: § 20.24.10–.40 (§ 20.24.10)
• C-2: § 20.28.10–.40 (§ 20.28.10)
• C-4: § 20.29.20–.70 (§ 20.29.20)
• TPZ (Title 20): § 20.43.10–.40 (Title 20)
• TP/CT (Coastal): § 21.13.20–.40; § 21.14.20–.40 (§ 21.13.20)
• Coastal general provisions (principal permitted use concept); general coastal standards: § 21.31.20 preface; § 21.46.10–.110 (selected headings) (§ 21.31.20)
• DelNorteCounty_ZoningCode.md

• Official Del Norte County code library