Chico, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Tattoo & Body Modification (2026)
Key Facts
- Use category
- Personal Services, § 19.04.020
- Zoning status
- Permitted (P) in 8 districts
- Districts
- OR, OC, CN, CC, DN, DS, CS, CR
- Parking
- 1/employee plus 1/service chair
- Governing table
- Table 4-6, § 19.44.020
Summary
Chico classifies tattoo parlors and body-piercing studios as "Personal Services," a use permitted by right in all eight commercial zoning districts, with its own parking standard.
Personal Services (land use). Establishments providing non-medical related services, including beauty and barber shops, clothing rental, small-scale dry cleaners, laundromats (self-service laundries), shoe repair shops, tanning salons, psychic readers, therapeutic (nonsexual) massage services, acupuncture, body piercing, tattooing, electrolysis. These uses may also include accessory retail sales of products related to the services provided. Pet Shops (land use). Includes grooming or selling of dogs, cats, and similar small animals. Typical uses include dog bathing and clipping salons, pet grooming shops, and pet stores. Pharmaceuticals. The production or development of federally licensed medications. Pipelines and Utility Lines (land use). Transportation facilities for the conveyance of crude petroleum; refined petroleum products including gasoline and fuel oils; natural gas; mixed, manufactured, or liquefied petroleum gas; or the pipeline transmission of other commodities. Also includes pipeline surface and terminal facilities, including pump stations, bulk stations, surge and storage tanks. Power transmission includes facilities for the transmission of electrical energy for sale, including transmission lines for a public utility company. Also includes telephone, telegraph, cable television, and other communications transmission facilities utilizing direct physical conduits. Does not include offices or service centers (classified under "Offices"),
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Supplement contains local legislation current through: Codified Resolution No. 53-26, adopted 7-14-26 and Ordinance No. 2622, adopted 6-2-26).
Full Breakdown
Chico Municipal Code § 19.04.020 defines "Personal Services" land use to expressly include body piercing, tattooing, and electrolysis alongside barbershops and massage services. Table 4-6 under § 19.44.020 lists Personal Services as a permitted (P) use, no discretionary permit required, in all eight commercial zoning districts (OR, OC, CN, CC, DN, DS, CS, CR). Parking is set separately: Table 5-4 under § 19.70.040 requires one space per employee plus one per service chair for "tattoo studios, massage therapy, and body piercing," the same standard applied to barber and beauty shops.
Violations & Fines
Operating a tattoo or piercing studio outside a zone where Personal Services is allowed, or without providing the required parking, is a zoning code violation enforceable as an infraction.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a special zoning permit to open a tattoo shop in Chico?
How much parking does a Chico tattoo studio need?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Chico
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