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

The BARRO zone, adopted by Ordinance No. 986 in 2012, covers the older commercial core generally abutting Rocklin Road and Pacific Street from Midas Avenue to Farron Street and lets a property owner choose between the underlying zone's standard rules or this chapter's streamlined path. Rocklin Municipal Code Section 17.59.060(B) gives the community development director authority to exercise wide latitude in deciding if, when, and how to apply the Rocklin Downtown Revitalization Plan and Design Guidelines and the Design Review Guidelines to a specific site, judged against the character of neighboring properties.

Section 17.59.050 sets the process: the director acts as the approving authority for design review and conditional use permits inside the overlay, without a formally noticed public hearing for design review alone. Notice is instead posted on the project site and the city website, with a ten-day public comment window before the director acts. Fees are capped under Section 17.59.050(D) at $3,500 for design review, $2,000 for a conditional use permit, and $3,000 for environmental review, billed on staff's fully loaded hourly rate up to those maximums.

The director may elevate any BARRO project to the planning commission if it could affect surrounding uses through traffic, noise, or safety impacts, and may impose added fees for that elevated review. Section 17.59.090 lets anyone dissatisfied with the director's design review decision appeal to the planning commission under Chapter 17.86. Properties in the overlay are also exempted from several standard nonconforming-use and sign-permit provisions of Chapters 17.62 and 17.75 to ease reinvestment in older, smaller lots.