Elk Grove, CA Right to Farm: Agricultural Zoning Protection (2026)
Key Facts
- AG-80 minimum lot size
- 80 gross acres
- AG-20 minimum lot size
- 20 gross acres
- Allowed uses
- Crop production, stables, animal keeping
- Zoning administrator
- Community Development Director
- Violation classification
- Public nuisance
- Related protection
- Ch. 14.05 Right-to-Farm
Summary
Elk Grove zones its farmland under two agricultural base districts set by Municipal Code Section 23.24.020(B): AG-80 requires an eighty gross-acre minimum parcel and AG-20 requires twenty gross acres, both allowing crop production, riding academies and stables, animal keeping, and agricultural labor housing alongside very low-density housing.
Agricultural (AG-20, AG-80): The AG districts are applied to areas of the City for viable agricultural use and very low density residential use. The agricultural zoning districts allow for a wide range of agricultural uses on large parcels of land. These uses may include crop production, commercial riding academies and stables, animal keeping, agricultural labor housing, and compatible accessory uses. The zoning district number associated with the AG districts corresponds to the minimum lot size in such district. AG-80. The AG-80 zone is applied to areas of the City to accommodate a wide range of agricultural uses on parcels of land a minimum of eighty (80) gross acres in size. AG-20. The AG-20 zone is applied to areas of the City to accommodate agricultural use on parcels a minimum of twenty (20) gross acres in size.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4937385; v2 updated 2026-05-13; through 05-13-2026).
Full Breakdown
020 sorts every parcel in the City into a base zoning district, and subsection (B) groups the agricultural tier into AG districts for commercial farming and AR districts for rural residential living with accessory agriculture. The AG-80 and AG-20 designations are named for their minimum lot size, so an AG-80 parcel cannot be created or used below eighty gross acres and an AG-20 parcel cannot go below twenty, a structure meant to keep large-scale farming, stables, and agricultural labor housing viable rather than getting parceled into estates.
Adjoining Agricultural Residential districts, numbered AR-10 down to AR-1 for their acre minimums, implement the General Plan's estate and rural residential designations while still permitting agricultural and accessory uses on a smaller footprint. 18. 05, which shield established farming on this same land from nuisance claims by newer residential neighbors.
Violations & Fines
Using AG-zoned land for a use not allowed in the district, or building below the eighty- or twenty-acre minimum lot size, is a public nuisance under Section 23.12.060(C). Code Enforcement investigates the complaint, notifies the owner to show cause, and can pursue administrative citation and abatement under EGMC Section 1.04.040 and Chapters 1.11, 1.12, and 16.18; permits tied to the violation can also be revoked under Chapter 23.20.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the minimum parcel size in Elk Grove's agricultural zones?
Can I keep animals or run a stable on AG-zoned land in Elk Grove?
What happens if I use AG land for a use the zoning doesn't allow?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Elk Grove
California rules heatmap·Compare Elk Grove to another location·View the California right to farm overview
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Agricultural Zoning Protection in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Sacramento County handle agricultural zoning protection.