Muncie, IN Building Safety: Childcare Center Rules (2026)

Once a facility cares for more than five children who are not the caregiver's relatives, it becomes a nursery/day care center under Sec. 150.226(A) and falls under the section's siting and operating conditions. Sec. 150.226(B) permits centers only in the F Farming Zone and the R-1 through R-4 residence zones, and only as a special use approved by the Delaware-Muncie Metropolitan Board of Zoning Appeals following the hearing procedure in Sec. 150.216, which requires a Plan Commission study and a public hearing before the board decides.

Sec. 150.226(C) then layers on three operating conditions: first, the center must comply with every state statute governing day care licensing; second, it must provide off-street parking meeting the standards in Sec. 150.211; and third, any sign identifying the center in a residence zone is limited to the ground sign specifications of Sec. 150.211(E)(1), may not be illuminated, and its faces or panels cannot exceed 12 square feet in total, whether mounted as a ground sign or flat against the building wall. Special-use applications for care centers are also cross-referenced into every residence zone's permitted and special-use lists (for example Secs.

150.76(D) and 150.86(D)), which additionally tie the use to that zone's dimensional standards, such as lot area and yard requirements. The administrative zoning officer under Sec. 150.232 issues the zoning permit and certificate of occupancy after inspecting the site, and may revoke either if the center falls out of compliance. Because Chapter 150 has no center-specific fine, a violation is punished under the citywide general penalty in Sec. 10.99, up to $2,500.00 per offense.