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

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

Key Facts

Buffer distance
750 feet, day care centers vs. adult businesses
Governing section
VMC §14.09.270.050.D
Freeway exception
Barrier with no pedestrian path breaks 750-ft rule
Day Care Center defined at
VMC §14.02.060.020.G (nonresidential)
Zoning approval
Minor/Conditional Use Permit in several districts

Summary

Vacaville's Land Use and Development Code keeps day care centers and adult-oriented businesses at least 750 feet apart in both directions. Municipal Code Section 14.09.270.050.D bars a new adult-oriented business from locating within 750 feet of an existing or approved day care center, school, park, or other use frequented by minors, and blocks the reverse siting too.

D. Minimum Distance Requirements. 1. Adult-oriented business shall be located a minimum of 750 feet from any residential district or zone under the jurisdiction of the City or the county, school, park and recreation facility, community assembly use, day care center, commercial entertainment and recreation use, use frequented by minors, or other adult-oriented business. ... 3. No school, park and recreation facility, community assembly use, day care center, commercial entertainment and recreation use, or any use frequented by minors shall be established or located within 750 feet of an existing or approved adult-oriented business.

Full Breakdown

050, Adult-Oriented Businesses, sets the City's only distance-based siting standard that names day care centers directly. 3 mirrors that protection from the other direction: a school, park, community assembly use, day care center, or other use frequented by minors cannot be established within 750 feet of an existing or approved adult-oriented business, and while either application is pending, the City will not accept a competing application for the conflicting use within that 750-foot radius until the first application is finally decided. G, meaning nonmedical, licensed care for children or adults on a less-than-24-hour basis outside a residential home, such as a nursery school, preschool, or day care facility. 2. 030, Common Procedures, in addition to the state childcare license, before a center can operate.

Violations & Fines

An adult-oriented business sited within 750 feet of an existing or approved day care center, or a day care center proposed within 750 feet of an existing or approved adult-oriented business, fails Section 14.09.270.050.D, and the City will not accept the land use application while a competing application for the conflicting use is pending in that radius. Adult-oriented business permits are separately governed by Chapter 9.05, Adult-Oriented Business Permit, referenced in Subsection C.

Frequently Asked Questions

How far must a day care center be from an adult business in Vacaville?
At least 750 feet, measured under Municipal Code Section 14.09.270.050.D. The 750-foot buffer runs both ways: an adult-oriented business cannot locate within 750 feet of an existing or approved day care center, and a day care center cannot locate within 750 feet of an existing or approved adult-oriented business.
Does the 750-foot buffer apply to home-based family day care?
No. The buffer names 'day care center,' the nonresidential classification defined at Section 14.02.060.020.G. Family day care homes are a separate residential classification under Section 14.02.060.010.B and are not listed among the protected or restricted uses in the adult-business distance standard.
What zoning approval does a day care center need to open in Vacaville?
Beyond the 750-foot adult-business buffer, the City's land use tables require a Minor Use Permit or Conditional Use Permit for Day Care Centers in several zoning districts rather than allowing the use outright, so an operator must go through the discretionary review process in Chapter 14.09.030, Common Procedures, before opening.

Sources & Official References

Other rules in Vacaville

All Vacaville rules

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