Cathedral City, CA Zoning Overlays & Bonuses: Downtown Design Guide (2026)

Two downtown districts in Cathedral City carry the guideline requirement. The DRN (Downtown Residential Neighborhood) district in Chapter 9.25 exists for residential dwellings at a medium to high range of population density, and § 9.25.065 requires the standards in the downtown development guidelines for all residential development in the DRN zone. The MXC (Mixed Use Commercial) district in Chapter 9.31 handles setbacks through § 9.31.060: they must meet the intent of the downtown design guidelines, with no minimum street/alley setback and an interior setback of none, or a minimum of 8 feet but not to exceed 15 feet. Properties along East Palm Canyon Drive, West Buddy Rogers Avenue or fronting Town Square have zero interior setbacks except for public passageways. The corner of a corner building can be set back at a diagonal of no more than 6 feet, measured at a 45 degree angle from the corner. Special architectural features described in the guidelines can project no more than 3 feet over property lines into the public right-of-way, must sit at least 12 feet above the highest point in the right-of-way beneath them, and are subject to design review.

The code surrounds the guidelines with hard numbers. DRN height is capped at 36 feet, 26 feet for single-family residential, and no more than 48 feet overall for buildings constructed above parking (§ 9.25.080). DRN street/alley setbacks average 15 feet (§ 9.25.070). MXC buildings cannot exceed 55 feet or be under 20 feet, with a 68-foot exception on certain corner parcels (§ 9.31.070). Design review applications in DRN are processed under Chapter 9.78 (§ 9.25.130). When one development mixes MXC and DRN parcels, the provisions of either zone apply to the entire project area (§ 9.31.040).