Seaside — Historic Preservation

Last reviewed: July 3, 2026

Overview

Seaside’s historic preservation rules are contained in the City Zoning Ordinance (Title 17), Article/Chapter titled Chapter 17.68 — Historic and Cultural Resource Preservation. The chapter establishes local landmark/district designation, requires a Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) for most changes to designated resources or contributing buildings in historic districts, and creates incentives and procedural rules for rehabilitation and demolition review. See the City’s zoning ordinance for the controlling text at § 17.68.010 – § 17.68.100 and the general Zoning framework in Title 17 (Seaside Zoning).

This page summarizes what Title 17 actually requires, how COAs are processed, where the rules interact with district development standards, and practical next steps for property owners and applicants.

What the ordinance requires (top-line)

• Designation: The City Council may designate an improvement, site, or area as an historic landmark or historic district following the amendment/nomination procedures; nominated properties are put on the City’s historic register and recorded with the County Recorder once accepted. § 17.68.030.
• Applicability: No person may alter an exterior, construct improvements to, or demolish a historic structure except in compliance with Chapter 17.68; CEQA analysis for historic significance is required where applicable. § 17.68.020.
• COA required: A Certificate of Appropriateness is required for alteration, demolition, moving or removal of any landmark, any contributing resource in an historic district, or any cultural resource identified during permit or CEQA review. § 17.68.040.
• Review standards and authorities: The Planning Commission generally hears COAs that require Commission approval; the Zoning Administrator can approve minor COAs. Decisions must use applicable design guidelines and the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation where appropriate. § 17.68.050.
• Demolition: Demolition of a designated cultural resource is only permitted after findings showing the resource cannot be reasonably reused or where economic hardship findings (with substantial evidence) are made. For demolition, replacement plans and additional submissions are required. § 17.68.060.
• Incentives: The Council may grant adaptive reuse, Mills Act agreements, fee waivers, and reductions/modifications in development standards for designated cultural resources. § 17.68.080.
• Duty to maintain: Owners must keep exterior portions in good repair; disrepair is not a valid justification for demolition. § 17.68.090.

While Chapter 17.68 is citywide, its processes intersect with zone-specific rules elsewhere in Title 17 (for example setbacks, parking, and development standards). See the zoning map and zone tables in Article 2 and the citywide site standards in Article 3 for zone-specific numeric rules (Seaside Zoning; Seaside Development Standards).

District-by-district breakdown (how preservation rules interact with each Seaside zone)

The historic preservation chapter applies across all zones. Below are the Seaside zone symbols and short, ordinance-grounded notes about typical uses and where historic-review friction points are most likely. For zone names and the full zone list, see Table 1-1 – ZONES in Chapter 17.06. Bold indicates the official zone symbol or a code numeric called out by the ordinance.

Note: Chapter 17.68 itself does not replace or rewrite zone-specific permitted-use lists or most development standards — it overlays preservation review (COA) requirements on top of those rules. Where the ordinance does not provide numeric zone standards for a particular zone within Chapter 17.68, see the zone chapters in Article 2 (Chapters 17.12, 17.14, 17.24) and the citywide development standards in Article 3 (Seaside Development Standards).

RS‑8 (Single‑Family Residential)

• Purpose / Where applied: Implements low‑density single‑family General Plan designations (Table 1‑1). § 17.06.020.
• Typical permitted uses: Single‑family housing is the principal use; accessory uses follow Article 2 tables. (See Table 2‑1; residential uses listing).
• Historic-preservation implications: Any designated local landmark or contributing structure in RS‑8 requires a COA for exterior alterations, demolition, or moving per § 17.68.040; ordinary maintenance/in‑kind replacement may be allowed administratively by the Zoning Administrator.
• Key dimensional standards: Zone-specific setback/height/lot-area numbers for RS‑8 are found in Article 2 development tables and the citywide standards (not repeated in Chapter 17.68). Verify numeric values in Chapters 17.12/17.30. Not found in retrieved materials for numeric RS‑8 front/side/rear setbacks.

RS‑12 (Single‑Family Residential)

• Same preservation interaction as RS‑8: COA required for designated resources; routine maintenance may be approved by Zoning Administrator. § 17.68.040–.050.

RM (Medium Density Residential) & RH (High Density Residential)

• Purpose / Typical uses: Multi‑family uses allowed per Table 2‑1; higher density standards apply.
• Preservation interaction: Contributing historic multi‑family buildings are treated the same as single‑family resources — COA required; the Commission may approve waivers of development standards for a designated cultural resource where appropriate. § 17.68.040, .050.

CMX (Commercial Mixed‑Use), CC (Community Commercial), CRG (Regional Commercial), CA (Automotive), CH (Heavy Commercial)

• Purpose / Typical uses: Commercial and mixed uses governed by Article 2 commercial zone tables; see Table 2‑1 and the development standards table for commercial setbacks, FAR, height limits (examples shown for CRG, CA, CH in the development table).
• Preservation interaction: Historic commercial buildings and contributing storefronts require a COA for changes to facades, signage, and demolition; the Zoning Administrator may handle minor facade, paint, and signage COAs without hearing. § 17.68.040–.050.

Example numeric references (from the zoning development table): in the CRG zone the ordinance shows 0 ft front setback allowed and maximum FARs and coverage rules vary by use — consult Article 2 and Section 17.30.100 for exceptions. These numbers appear in the Article 2 development features table.

V‑FO (Fort Ord Visitor‑Serving Commercial)

• Purpose / Where applied: Visitor-serving zone on Fort Ord lands (Polygon 22). § 17.18.030.
• Special preservation notes: Specific plan standards apply and the zone requires preservation of historic places and community assets in planned projects; preservation rules in Chapter 17.68 still apply. The V‑FO chapter specifically requires that historic places, groves, scenic points, trees… be preserved to the greatest extent possible. § 17.62.050 / 17.18.030.

OSR (Open Space‑Recreation), OSC (Open Space‑Conservation), PI (Public/Institutional), M (Military)

• Purpose / Typical uses: Special purpose zones; site planning standards apply in Chapter 17.18. § 17.18.050.
• Preservation interaction: Cultural resources on public/institutional/open space parcels still fall under the COA rules; in the event of disaster, the Zoning Administrator must follow special procedures to stay demolition notices and require evaluation by a structural engineer with historic expertise before allowing demolition. § 17.68.070, .100.

Overlay zones: ORD (Ordnance Remediation District) and H1 (Highway 1 Design Overlay)

• Overlays add requirements on top of base zones; historic district designation can overlap overlays. See Chapter 17.22 for overlay application rules. § 17.06.020 (Table 1‑1).
• Where an historic resource sits inside an overlay (for example H1), both overlay design controls and Chapter 17.68 COA requirements must be satisfied; the COA review will consider applicable design guidelines. § 17.68.050.

Key decision‑relevant standards and permitted‑use table

Practical guidance and interpretation (plain‑English synthesis)

• If your property is nominated or designated as a local landmark or is inside a local historic district, you cannot lawfully demolish, alter, or move the exterior without first getting a COA in addition to any building or planning permits — start with the Planning Division. § 17.68.020–.040.
• Many routine repairs (replacement in‑kind, small paint changes, minor site work, signage) can be handled administratively by the Zoning Administrator without a public hearing — but larger work will go to the Commission and require public notice/hearing. § 17.68.050.
• The Commission and Zoning Administrator must use the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation and any City design guidelines when reviewing COAs; expect to provide materials, elevations, and historic‑sensitive specifications. § 17.68.050.
• If a COA would permit demolition, the City expects replacement plans and may require documentation that meets Historic American Building Survey (HABS) standards. § 17.68.060.
• Designated property owners can apply for rehabilitation incentives (including Mills Act and fee waivers). These incentives are discretionary and require Commission/Council findings that they compensate the increased maintenance burden while protecting integrity. § 17.68.080.

Practical cross‑checks: Because Chapter 17.68 can allow waivers of development standards for designated resources, applicants should coordinate preservation review with the staff handling setbacks, parking, and height (Seaside Development Standards; Seaside Parking) early in the application/pre‑application stage to avoid conflicts.

Inline links to the City pages you will need while preparing applications: Seaside Zoning, Seaside Development Standards, Seaside Parking, Seaside Design Review, Seaside Overlay Districts, Seaside ADUs, and the California Building Standards Code (Title 24) — use those pages as the next-stop references while you prepare COA materials:

• Seaside Zoning (/us/california/seaside) — the Zoning Ordinance (Title 17) housing Chapter 17.68.
• Seaside Development Standards (/us/california/seaside/development-standards) — site, setback and dimensional rules that interact with COA requests.
• Seaside Parking (/us/california/seaside/parking) — parking rules that a COA or adaptive reuse may implicate.
• Seaside Design Review (/us/california/seaside/design-review) — design guidelines/architectural review process referenced in COA standards.
• Seaside Overlay Districts (/us/california/seaside/overlay-districts) — overlay controls that may stack with preservation requirements.
• Seaside ADUs (/us/california/seaside/adu) — if considering an ADU on or near a historic resource, ADU rules and preservation requirements intersect.
• California Building Standards Code (/us/california/building-codes) — the ordinance references use of the State Historic Building Code where feasible.

(Those links are embedded as the first natural mention of each topic above.)

Checklist

• Determine whether the property is nominated, designated, or contributing to a local historic district (check the City’s historic register). § 17.68.030.
• If designated or potentially historic, plan for a Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) as part of your permit package; include elevations, materials, color samples, and site context. § 17.68.040.C.
• For demolition proposals: prepare replacement project plans and economic feasibility/adaptive reuse documentation as required by § 17.68.060.
• Budget for environmental review (CEQA) addressing historic‑resource impacts when a COA is reviewed. § 17.68.020; § 17.68.040.F.
• Consider applying for rehabilitation incentives (Mills Act, fee waivers, permit‑standard adjustments) if restoration is proposed; hearings and findings required. § 17.68.080.
• Coordinate with staff about zone development standards (setbacks, parking, height) early — these remain in Article 2/3 unless a designated resource receives a waiver per COA. § 17.68.040; see Seaside Development Standards.

Risks & Ambiguities

Plain‑English Summary

If your Seaside property is on the local historic register or contributes to an historic district, you usually need a Certificate of Appropriateness before you change the exterior, demolish, move, or significantly alter it — routine in‑kind repairs may be allowed administratively, while bigger projects go to the Commission and require CEQA review and design‑standard compliance; incentives (Mills Act, fee waivers) are available but discretionary. § 17.68.020–.080.

Source References

• City of Seaside Zoning Ordinance (Title 17), Chapter 17.68 — Historic and Cultural Resource Preservation: § 17.68.010 – § 17.68.100 (Purpose; Applicability; Historic Landmark Designation; Certificate of Appropriateness rules; Demolition; Disaster; Incentives; Duty to Maintain).
• COA review and approval details, Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and review authority (Zoning Administrator / Planning Commission): § 17.68.040 – § 17.68.050.
• Demolition findings, economic hardship definitions, and memorialization requirements (HABS): § 17.68.060.
• Adaptive reuse incentives and required Commission/Council findings (including Mills Act): § 17.68.080.
• Zoning map and zone list (Table 1‑1) including RS‑8, RS‑12, RM, RH, CMX, CC, CRG, CA, CH, V‑FO, OSR, OSC, PI, M, and overlays ORD, H1: § 17.06.020 / Table 1‑1.
• Development standards and zone permitted‑use tables referenced by Chapter 17.68 (Article 2 & Article 3): Table 2‑1 (allowed land uses / permit requirements) and the development features table for setbacks/FAR/height examples — see Chapters 17.12 / 17.14 / 17.24 and 17.30 (Seaside Development Standards; Seaside Parking).

(If you need scans or direct links to the ordinance text of the specific subsections cited above, I can extract and provide the exact ordinance excerpts or point you to the City’s official PDF.)

Retrieved passages

• Seaside Zoning Code (Chapter 17.74) High relevance show source text
• Seaside Zoning Code (§ 20) High relevance show source text
• Seaside Zoning Code (§ 21) High relevance show source text
• Seaside Zoning Code High relevance show source text
• CBC § 050 (Chapter 17.78) High relevance show source text
• CBC § 21 (section may) High relevance show source text
• Seaside Zoning Code (section shall) High relevance show source text
• Seaside Zoning Code Medium relevance show source text
• CBC § 050 (Chapter 17.78) Medium relevance show source text
• Seaside Zoning Code Medium relevance show source text
• Seaside Zoning Code (Section 65000) Medium relevance show source text
• Seaside Zoning Code (Article 6) Medium relevance show source text
• Seaside Zoning Code (chapter is) Medium relevance show source text
• Seaside Zoning Code (Section 17.30.100) Medium relevance show source text
• Seaside Zoning Code (Article 1) Medium relevance show source text
• Seaside Zoning Code (Article 3) Medium relevance show source text

Cited sections

• City of Seaside Zoning Ordinance (Title 17), Chapter **17.68 — Historic and Cultural Resource Preservation**: **§ 17.68.010 – § 17.68.100** (Purpose; Applicability; Historic Landmark Designation; Certificate of Appropriateness rules; Demolition; Disaster; Incentives; Duty to Maintain). (Title 17)
• COA review and approval details, Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and review authority (Zoning Administrator / Planning Commission): **§ 17.68.040 – § 17.68.050**. (§ 17.68.040)
• Demolition findings, economic hardship definitions, and memorialization requirements (HABS): **§ 17.68.060**. (§ 17.68.060)
• Adaptive reuse incentives and required Commission/Council findings (including Mills Act): **§ 17.68.080**. (§ 17.68.080)
• Zoning map and zone list (Table 1‑1) including **RS‑8, RS‑12, RM, RH, CMX, CC, CRG, CA, CH, V‑FO, OSR, OSC, PI, M**, and overlays **ORD, H1**: **§ 17.06.020 / Table 1‑1**. (§ 17.06.020)
• Development standards and zone permitted‑use tables referenced by Chapter 17.68 (Article 2 & Article 3): Table 2‑1 (allowed land uses / permit requirements) and the development features table for setbacks/FAR/height examples — see Chapters **17.12 / 17.14 / 17.24** and **17.30** (Seaside Development Standards; Seaside Parking). (Chapter 17.68)
• Seaside_ZoningCode.md