Ventura County, CA Building Setbacks & Zoning: Lot Coverage Limits (2026)
Key Facts
- Agricultural/Open Space max
- 5%
- Rural and ECU-Rural max
- 25%
- Mixed Use/Commercial max
- 60%
- Industrial max
- 50%
- Parks and Recreation max
- 5%
- Exceptions
- Section 8106-1.4.2
- Adopted
- Ord. No. 4618, 7-25-2023
Summary
Ventura County caps how much of a lot buildings may cover on unincorporated land that lies outside a mapped existing community boundary and is not governed by an area plan. Table 9 of Ordinance Code § 8106-1.4.1.3 sets the ceiling by General Plan land use designation: 5 percent on Agricultural and Open Space land, 25 percent on Rural land, 50 percent on Industrial land, and 60 percent in the Mixed Use and Commercial designations.
Maximum Building Lot Coverage for Lots Outside of a Mapped Existing Community Designated Area Boundary and Not Subject to an Area Plan
General Plan Land Use Designation Maximum Building Lot Coverage (Percent)
Rural 25 ECU-Rural 25 Agricultural 5 ECU-Agricultural 5 Open Space 5 ECU-Open Space 5 Mixed Use 60 Commercial 60 Commercial Planned Development 60 Industrial 50 Parks and Recreation 5 State, Federal, Other Public Land Not Applicable
Exceptions and exclusions may apply, refer to Section 8106-1.4.2.
(Ord. No. 4618, § 3, 7-25-2023)
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 51).
Full Breakdown
Table 9 applies only where both conditions in its title hold: the lot sits outside a mapped Existing Community designated area boundary, and no area plan covers it. Lots inside a mapped community or under an area plan are measured against other standards, not this table. The table pairs each base designation with an ECU version carrying the identical cap, so ECU-Rural matches Rural at 25 percent, and ECU-Agricultural and ECU-Open Space match their base designations at 5 percent. The low 5 percent ceiling also covers Parks and Recreation land, keeping structures to a small fraction of those lots.
At the other end of the table, Mixed Use, Commercial, and Commercial Planned Development lots may all be covered up to 60 percent, while Industrial land stops at 50 percent. For State, Federal, and Other Public Land the table lists the cap as Not Applicable, so no percentage is assigned there at all. 2 for exceptions and exclusions that may change how coverage works on a given lot. The current version of the table was adopted by Ordinance No. 4618, § 3, on July 25, 2023.
Violations & Fines
Building beyond the applicable percentage without an approved exception is a zoning code violation enforceable through the county Planning Division.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the maximum lot coverage on Rural unincorporated land?
Does this table apply inside Ojai or Santa Paula?
Are there exceptions to the percentages?
What is the cap on public land?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Ventura County
California rules heatmap·Compare Ventura County to another location·View the California building setbacks & zoning overview
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