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Redding, CA Building Safety: Childcare Center Rules (2026)

Significant Restrictions
Compiled from the official code textEditor Martyn O'NeillLast verified September 2026

Key Facts

Minimum lot size
20,000 square feet
Minimum lot frontage
80 feet
Max building height
22 feet, one story
Normal hours
7:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m., Mon-Fri
Parking ratio
1 space per 10 children plus staff
License
state license plus city operating permit

Summary

Redding requires daycare centers for fifteen or more children in RE and RS districts to sit on at least 20,000 square feet with 80 feet of frontage, cap buildings at 22 feet and one story, and limit normal hours to 7:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. weekdays under Section 18.43.070.

B.Development Standards.1.Minimum Lot Size. Twenty thousand square feet.2.Minimum Lot Frontage. Eighty feet.3.Maximum Building Height. Twenty-two feet (limited to one story).10.Hours of Operation. Normal hours of operation shall be limited to seven thirty a.m. to six thirty p.m. Monday through Friday. The planning commission may consider other operating hours with approval of the use permit.11.Applicable Codes. The facility shall meet all health, fire and building codes applicable to its operation.12.License and Permit. The facility shall be state-licensed, and a permit to operate shall be provided to the city.

View official code

Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 48).

Full Breakdown

070 sets Redding's zoning standards for daycare centers serving fifteen or more children in the RE and RS residential districts, aimed at keeping the use compatible with its neighborhood; the planning commission can add stricter requirements or deny an application where compatibility can't be achieved. The minimum lot size is twenty thousand square feet with eighty feet of lot frontage. 020. Building and parking setbacks are fifteen feet on the front and street side and ten feet on the interior side, and front and street-side yards must be intensively landscaped except where driveways cross them.

The center must provide a usable outdoor playground area sized to the number of children under care, and the buildings and grounds must replicate a single-family residential style as closely as feasible, with the planning commission given significant latitude to enforce that look. Parking is calculated at one space per ten children plus one per teacher or employee, plus two clearly marked loading spaces. , Monday through Friday, though the planning commission can approve different hours as part of the use permit. The facility must meet all applicable health, fire and building codes, hold a state license, and provide the city with a permit to operate.

Violations & Fines

A daycare center operating in an RE or RS district without meeting the Section 18.43.070 lot-size, setback, height, parking or hours-of-operation standards, or without the required state license and city operating permit, is subject to the planning commission's review-and-revocation authority and the code's general nuisance and penalty provisions for zoning violations.

Frequently Asked Questions

How big a lot does a daycare center need in Redding?
Section 18.43.070(B) requires at least twenty thousand square feet of lot area with a minimum of eighty feet of street frontage for a daycare center serving fifteen or more children in the RE or RS district. The building itself is capped at twenty-two feet and a single story.
What hours can a Redding daycare center operate?
Normal hours are limited to seven-thirty a.m. to six-thirty p.m., Monday through Friday, under Section 18.43.070(B)(10). The planning commission can approve different operating hours as a condition of the use permit if the applicant requests them and demonstrates neighborhood compatibility.
Does a Redding daycare center need a state license as well as a city permit?
Yes, both. Section 18.43.070(B)(12) requires the facility to be state-licensed and to provide the city with a permit to operate before it can run legally, in addition to meeting the zoning code's lot size, setback, parking and building-style standards.

Sources & Official References

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