Arvada, CO Home Business: Zoning & Home Occupation Permits (2026)

A sets the threshold: a home occupation is allowed only when it is accessory and subordinate to the residential use of the dwelling, meaning it cannot become the dominant use of the property. Subsection B then lists twelve categories of business that cannot operate as a home occupation no matter how the operator tries to meet the accessory-use standard: veterinary offices, clinics, animal hospitals or kennels; equipment rental; funeral homes or mortuaries; medical or dental clinics; repair or painting of automobiles, motorcycles, trailers or boats; repair of large appliances such as stoves, refrigerators, washers and dryers; repair of power equipment or small engines such as lawn mowers, snow blowers, chain saws and generators; restaurants; vehicle sales; welding or metal fabrication shops; dispatching of vehicles to and from the residence, which covers taxi and towing services; and on-site retail sales, except incidental retail sales tied to a service the business already provides.

The code's own definition, in the Land Development Code's definitions article, describes a home occupation as an activity occurring within a dwelling by the dwelling's full-time residents where the use is incidental and subordinate to the residence. Because the prohibited list is absolute rather than a factor a Community Development reviewer weighs case by case, a resident cannot obtain a variance to run a welding shop or an auto body repair business from home, even on a large residential lot.