Santa Maria Zoning Intelligence

Clear Zone (CZ, 148 acres), Airport Approach Zone (AA, 33 acres), and Airport Service zones (AS-I, AS-III) impose height limits, use restrictions, and noise compatibility requirements on large areas surrounding Santa Maria Public Airport. The CZ designation effectively prohibits most occupied structures. Developers considering parcels in or near these designations must consult the Airport Land Use Compatibility Plan to determine what uses and building heights are permitted in each compatibility zone - approval from the Airport Land Use Commission may also be required.

The PD prefix appears in combination with nearly every base zone type in Santa Maria and functions as a discretionary review overlay requiring a separate planned development approval rather than straight code compliance. This means the city retains significant control over project design, phasing, and mix in PD-zoned areas. Developers should expect a negotiated entitlement process and should review any existing PD approvals or master development agreements on a target site, as these may already govern what can be built.

Commercial Manufacturing (CM at 138 acres) and Heavy Manufacturing (M-2 at 100 acres) serve as the primary industrial districts, with additional capacity in PD/CM (297 acres), PD/CM-AG (247 acres - a commercial manufacturing with agricultural overlay combination), and PD/M-1 (1,163 acres of Planned Development with Light Manufacturing). Together these designations reflect a substantial industrial land base oriented toward agribusiness processing, distribution, and light to heavy manufacturing - consistent with Santa Maria's role as a regional agricultural hub.

Residential zones are not separately listed in the zone codes visible in this dataset, suggesting that residential land in Santa Maria is largely governed by Planned Development designations rather than standard zone types. The Open Space (OS) designation at 2,356 acres includes significant undeveloped land. Developers pursuing residential projects in Santa Maria should expect that most large-scale residential development will proceed through a planned development or specific plan process, with California ADU and density bonus laws applicable to existing residential parcels throughout the city.

CPO (Commercial and Professional Office, 36 acres) and its planned development variant PD/CPO (244 acres, with a 4-acre historic overlay variant at PD/CPO-H) accommodate professional services, medical offices, and related commercial uses. The 244-acre PD/CPO designation is the second-largest commercial-type zone after PD/C-2 (631 acres), suggesting that office and professional uses represent a significant share of commercial development activity. CPO zones typically sit along major arterials connecting residential areas to commercial centers.