Glenn County, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Adult Entertainment (2026)
Key Facts
- Permit required
- Use permit before opening
- Residential buffer
- 500 feet minimum
- Buffer from other adult business
- 1,000 feet minimum
- Buffer from schools/parks/churches
- 1,000 feet minimum
- Waiver authority
- Planning Commission, after hearing
- Governing section
- Glenn County Code § 15.73.010
Summary
Unincorporated Glenn County allows adult entertainment businesses only where the underlying zoning already permits them, and only after the operator secures a use permit under Glenn County Code Section 15.73.010. The same section bans locating within 500 feet of any residentially zoned area, within 1,000 feet of another adult business, or within 1,000 feet of a school, park, playground, public building or church.
In those land use zones where the “adult entertainment” businesses regulated by this chapter would otherwise be permitted uses, such businesses shall be permitted only upon the securing of a use permit. It shall be unlawful to establish any such “adult entertainment” business if the location is: Within five hundred feet of any area zoned for residential use; or Within one thousand feet of any other “adult entertainment” business; or Within one thousand feet of any public or private school, park, playground, public building, church, any noncommercial establishment operated by a bona fide religious organization or any establishment likely to be used by minors.
Full Breakdown
010, Regulation of Location, is the county's zoning control on "adult entertainment" establishments. It does not create a new zone for these uses; instead it layers extra requirements onto whatever base zoning district already allows them, starting with a discretionary use permit rather than a permit issued over the counter. " The chapter defines "establishment" broadly to include opening a new business, relocating an existing one, or converting an existing business location to adult-entertainment use, so an existing business changing its use is treated the same as a brand-new one.
020 gives an operator one way around the distance rules: apply to the Planning Commission for a waiver. The Commission can grant it only after a public hearing and only if it makes every one of four findings, including that the use "will not be contrary to the public interest," will not "enlarge or encourage the development of a skid row area," will not undercut any neighborhood conservation program, and will otherwise comply with the county's codes and ordinances.
Violations & Fines
Operating an adult entertainment business without the required use permit, or inside one of the 500-foot or 1,000-foot buffer zones without an approved waiver, is a code violation under Glenn County Code Section 1.12.010: an infraction on a first offense, rising to a misdemeanor "for the third and every subsequent violation... during any 12-month period," with each day of continued operation charged as a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I open an adult entertainment business anywhere zoning allows retail in Glenn County?
How close can an adult business be to a school or church in unincorporated Glenn County?
Is there any way around the distance requirements?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Glenn County
California rules heatmap·Compare Glenn County to another location·View the California business licensing & operations overview
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