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

Article 5 of Chapter 7 in the Modesto Code of Ordinances replaced the old Downtown Core zoning with a form-based code effective June 25, 2015, under Ordinance No. S. 505 divides downtown into six zones, Central Downtown, Transition Downtown, Urban General Downtown, Main Street Downtown, East Neighborhood Downtown, and Traditional Neighborhood Downtown, each with its own intensity and building envelope. Central Downtown is meant to hold the most intensive, large-scale but human-scaled development and contains Historic Preservation sites on the General Plan's landmark list; Transition Downtown is a step down in scale and includes the site of a planned passenger rail station.

512's nine Building Types, Bungalow Court, Commercial Block, Courtyard, Du-Tri-Quadplex, Front Yard House, Live Work, Mansion Apartment, Row House, and Stacked Flats, plus frontage types and use types in the sections that follow. 5-foot streetscreen, rooftop utilities must be screened within penthouses or attics, and relocating or demolishing a National Register, California Register, or local Landmark Preservation building is barred except under Title 9, Chapter 10. Subsection (d)(1) folds in the City of Modesto Design Guidelines for Commercial and Industrial Development as a binding standard for all downtown development where applicable, on top of the form-based zone rules themselves.