Simi Valley, CA Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Vending Zones (2026)
Key Facts
- Allowed zones
- CPD, CN, CO, CR, AI, LI, GI, CI, BP, SR, RCC
- Site requirement
- Existing PD Permit or CUP on the parcel
- Restaurant buffer
- 300 feet for Type 4 facilities
- Vendor cap
- One per site up to 150,000 sq ft GFA
- Second vendor
- Allowed only above 150,000 sq ft GFA
Summary
Mobile food vending in Simi Valley is limited to specific commercial and industrial zoning districts under Municipal Code Section 9-52.080(I)(9)(b): CPD, CN, CO, CR, AI, LI, GI, CI, BP, SR, and RCC. The site also needs an existing Planned Development Permit or Conditional Use Permit, and a food truck cannot set up within 300 feet of a restaurant or coffee shop.
a....A dimensioned site plan showing the proposed display area and surrounding site layout within 300 feet of the display area must be submitted with the TUP application.b.Allowed locations. CPD, CN, CO, CR, AI, LI, GI, CI, BP, SR, and RCC zoning districts. The location must have an approved Planned Development Permit or Conditional Use Permit for the primary structure(s) on the site, and Type 4 Mobile Food Facilities must be setback at least 300 feet away from any restaurant, or coffee shop. One mobile food vendor may be allowed for developments up to 150,000 square feet of gross floor area on private non-residential property. One additional mobile food vendor may be allowed for developments that exceed 150,000 square feet of gross floor area.
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
080(I)(9)(b) confines mobile food vending to eleven zoning districts: CPD, CN, CO, CR, AI, LI, GI, CI, BP, SR, and RCC. A vendor cannot simply pick any parcel in those zones either; the underlying property must already carry an approved Planned Development Permit or Conditional Use Permit for its primary structure before a mobile food Temporary Use Permit can be layered on top. The code singles out Type 4 Mobile Food Facilities for an added distance rule: they must set up at least 300 feet from any restaurant or coffee shop, protecting existing brick-and-mortar food businesses from direct competition at the curb.
Site capacity is tied to the size of the development: one mobile food vendor is allowed for properties with up to 150,000 square feet of gross floor area, and a second vendor becomes allowable only once the development exceeds that 150,000-square-foot threshold. Subsection (a) reinforces the zoning-location standards with a site-plan requirement: applicants must submit a dimensioned site plan showing the proposed display area and the surrounding site layout within 300 feet of that display area, which is how the City confirms the distance-from-restaurant rule and the underlying parking and access requirements are actually met before signing off on a location.
Violations & Fines
Setting up a mobile food operation in a zoning district outside the eleven listed, on a parcel without an underlying Planned Development or Conditional Use Permit, or within 300 feet of a restaurant or coffee shop as a Type 4 facility, puts the vendor outside Section 9-52.080(I)(9)(b) regardless of whether a Temporary Use Permit was otherwise issued. A second vendor operating at a site under the 150,000-square-foot gross floor area threshold exceeds the one-vendor cap and is a permit violation subject to Director review and revocation.
Frequently Asked Questions
What zones allow food trucks in Simi Valley?
How close can a food truck park to an existing restaurant?
Can a shopping center host more than one food truck?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Simi Valley
California rules heatmap·Compare Simi Valley to another location·View the California food trucks & mobile vendors overview
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Vending Zones in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Ventura County handle vending zones.