Casa Grande, AZ Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)
Key Facts
- Small home day care
- Under 5 unrelated persons: no permit needed
- Day care center threshold
- 5+ unrelated children or adults for pay
- Permit required
- Conditional use permit, Planning and Zoning Commission
- Play space standard
- 50 sq ft fenced play area per child
- Lot area standard
- 250 sq ft of lot area per child
- Violation penalty
- $50-$750 fine, up to 4 months, Class 2 misdemeanor
Summary
In the City of Casa Grande, caring for fewer than five unrelated children or adults in a private home is classified simply as 'day care,' not a regulated land use requiring a permit. Once a home or facility cares for five or more unrelated children or adults for compensation, the zoning code reclassifies it as a 'day care center,' triggering conditional-use review by the Planning and Zoning Commission.
“Day care” means the care, supervision and guidance of a child or children, or an adult or adults, unaccompanied by parent, guardian or custodian, on a regular basis for periods of less than twenty-four hours per day, in a place other than the child's or children's, or an adult’s or adults’, own home or homes. ... “Day care center” means any facility in which day care is regularly provided for compensation for five or more children or adults not related to the proprietor. ... ... 5. Day care center. ... a. Day care centers involved in the care of minor children shall provide the following: i. A minimum of fifty square feet of fenced-in play space per child shall be provided; ii. Fenced-in outdoor play space shall not include driveways, parking areas or land unsuited, by virtue of other usage or natural features, for children's play space; and iii. At least two hundred fifty square feet of lot area per child shall be provided.
Full Breakdown
The Casa Grande Municipal Code separates two categories at Section 17.12.400 and 17.12.410. 'Day care' covers the care of a child or children, or an adult or adults, unaccompanied by a parent, guardian or custodian, for regular periods under twenty-four hours, away from their own home; this covers a small in-home arrangement and carries no permit trigger. It becomes a 'day care center' only when day care is 'regularly provided for compensation for five or more children or adults not related to the proprietor.' Table 17.16.030A lists day care centers as a conditionally permitted use across the city's residential zones (R-1, R-1a, R-2, R-3, RM, Urban Ranch and others), meaning an operator must obtain a conditional use permit from the Planning and Zoning Commission before opening at five or more unrelated clients.
The Commission's review under Section 17.68.120 requires a public hearing with notice under Section 17.66.020, and Section 17.68.120(D)(5) imposes mandatory physical standards on any day care center caring for minor children: a minimum of fifty square feet of fenced-in play space per child, excluding driveways, parking areas or unsuited land, plus at least two hundred fifty square feet of total lot area per child. The Planning and Development Department administers these standards, and the zoning administrator can order corrections under Section 17.72.020 if a home daycare grows past the five-person threshold without first securing Commission approval.
Violations & Fines
Running a day care center, meaning five or more unrelated children or adults cared for regularly for compensation, without an approved conditional use permit is a zoning violation under Section 17.72.010. The zoning administrator issues a written correction order under Section 17.72.020, appealable to the board of adjustment under Section 17.72.030. Section 17.72.050 makes noncompliance a Class 2 misdemeanor punishable by a fine of fifty to seven hundred fifty dollars, up to four months imprisonment, with each day the violation continues charged as a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I babysit or run a small daycare from my Casa Grande home without a permit?
What makes my home daycare become a 'day care center' under the code?
What physical standards apply once I need a conditional use permit?
What happens if I operate an unpermitted day care center in Casa Grande?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Casa Grande
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