Santa Cruz County, CA Special Events & Permits: Sidewalk Dining & Cafés (2026)

332(E)(3), part of the Commercial Uses Chart's Use Conditions, sets the permit tier for outdoor dining and seating added to a commercial use in unincorporated Santa Cruz County. 10 SCCC, with an AUP requiring public notice that an MUP does not. The provision reaches more than restaurant patios: it covers outdoor dining, seating in common plaza areas, and outdoor exercise equipment tied to a fitness facility. Conditions of approval must protect public health and safety, including compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and adequate alternate parking if spaces are lost to the new seating, and the county requires operators to secure any permits other agencies need for the same use, naming the County Department of Public Works, County Health Services Agency, County Department of Parks, Open Space and Cultural Services, the Sheriff's Office, County Fire Districts, the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, and the California DMV as examples.

Restaurants adding beer and wine service within 200 feet of a school site or a residential district need a separate AUP under the Commercial Uses Chart's dining-establishment row, and a full bar needs a CUP; those alcohol permits sit on top of, not instead of, the outdoor-seating permit. 616. Where a restaurant sits in the Coastal Zone, the outdoor seating approval is separate from any Coastal Development Permit the site's development also requires.