City Departments

Planning Department

The City of Artesia Planning Department is responsible for current planning, advance planning and the development of the City. This is accomplished through the review and process of land use development proposals and applications for new construction, and proposed improvements and modifications to existing commercial, industrial, or residential developments. The Planning Department is responsible for maintaining the City's Zoning Code to be in compliance with the City's General Plan. The Planning Department also acts as a Staff liaison to the Planning Commission and City Council.

OFFICE and COUNTER HOURS

Planning Department Office Hours

Planning Department Counter Hours

Hours for Building Permits

General Plan Update

Artesia Boulevard Corridor Specific Plan

Planning Department Projects

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

If you have a question that is not answered here, please contact the Planning Department at (562) 865-6262, extension 224.

Zoning Information

Zoning is the division of land into districts where each district identifies the type of uses and development standards applicable to each zone. The purpose of zoning is to separate land uses and ensure that the uses developed within each zone are compatible with one another. The Planning Department maintains a zoning map that identifies the zoning designation for each property located in the City. To verify the zoning on a particular parcel of property in the City, contact the Planning Department and provide the address of the property for which you would like to receive zoning verification.

 

The following is a summary of land use zones in the City of Artesia.

 

Zone Classification Type of Use
A-1
 Agricultural-Single Family Residential Single-family residential and limited agricultural uses
R-1 Single Family Residential Single-family residential uses
M-R Multiple Family Residential Single-family and multiple family residential uses
C-G Commercial General Commercial retail
C-S-P Commercial Service & Professional Service and professional business offices
C-P-D Commercial Planned Development Commercial retail and service and professional business offices
C-T Commercial Transition Retail, Service, Light Manufacturing
M-1 Light Industrial and Manufacturing Light industrial manufacturing uses and limited commercial and services uses
M-2 Heavy Industrial and Manufacturing Manufacturing and warehouse uses
C-O Condominium Condominiums
O-S-R Open Space and Recreation Parks, recreational uses, and public facilities

 

Fence/Block Wall Procedure

Are you thinking of installing a new fence/block wall any time soon?  If so, you must attain City of Artesia Planning and Building Department approval.  Please follow instructions below.

WHAT TO BRING

  1. Plot Plan
    1. Identify the location of all new and existing fencing
    2. Identify the height and type of fencing
    3. Identify size of lot with dimensions
    4. Identify all existing structures on property (exterior building footprint)
    5. Make sure that the drawing is to scale
  2. Structural Plan
    1. See building specifications
  3. Perimeter Block Wall Agreement
    1. Notarized (original)
    2. Property owner signatures
  4. $30 Planning Fee

Please note the Artesia Building Department only issues building permits between the hours 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Monday through Thursday.  Building permits are also issued every other Friday between 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m.

Parking Requirements for Buildings

 

Type of Use Parking Spaces Required
Single-Family Residence Minimum two-car (2) garage for 3 bedroom (or rooms that may be used as bedrooms), depending on number of bedrooms within the residence -- verify with Planning Department.
Retail Businesses One (1) parking space for each 250 square feet of building floor area.
Offices, Business and Professional One (1) parking space for each 300 square feet of building floor area.
Restaurants The requirements have changed.  New requirements will be posted soon.

 

*Note: To obtain further information regarding parking requirements, please refer to Article 11 (Off Street Parking and Loading) of the Artesia Municipal Code, or contact the Planning Department at (562) 865-6262.

Tree Planting Requirements

City of Artesia Master Street Tree List

 

CATEGORY I (30-40 INCH PARKWAYS)

Common Name

Botanical Name

River Wattle

Acacia Subporosa
King Palm Archontophoenix Cunninghamiana
Queen (Cocos) Palm Arecastrum Romanzoffianum
Guadalupe Palm Brahea Edulis
Western Redbud Cercis Occidentalis
Bronze Loquat Eriobotrya Deflexa
Crape Myrtle Lagerstroemia Indica ‘Tuscarora’ or Cherokee’
Windmill Palm Trachycarpus Fortunei
Water Gum Tristania Laurina
Mexican Fan Palm Washingtonia Robusta
CATEGORY II (41-60 INCH PARKWAYS)
Common Name Botanical Name
Evergreen Maple Acer Oblongum
Gold Medallion Tree Cassia Leptophylla
Chinese Fringe Tree Chionanthus Retusus
Cryptocarya Cryptocarya Rubra
Nichol’s Willow Leafed Peppermint Eucalyptus Nicholii
Flooded Gum Eucalyptus Rudis
Coral Gum Eucalyptus Torquata
Chinese Parasol Tree Firmiana Simplex
Australian Willow Geijera Parviflora
Maidenhair Tree Ginkgo Biloba (Male)
Sweetshade Hymenosporum Flavum
Southern Magnolia Magnolia Grandiflora ‘Cultivars’
New Zealand Christmas Tree Metrosideros Excelsus
Willow Pittosporum Pittosporum Phillyraeoides
Cape Pittosporum Pittosporum Viridiflorum
Chinese Pistache Pistacia Chinensis
London Plane Tree Plantanus Acerfolia
Yew Pine Podocarpus Macrophyllus
African Sumac Rhus Lancea
Japanese Pagoda Tree Sophora Japonica
Firewheel Tree Stenocarpus Sinuatus
Pink Trumpet Tree Tabebuia Avellanedae
Brisbane Box Tristania Conferta
CATEGORY III (61 + INCH PARKWAYS)
Common Name Botanical Name
Pink Cedar Acrocarpus Fraxinifolius
River Birch Betula Nigra ‘Heritage’
Toog Bischofia Javanica
Flame Tree Brachychiton Acerifolius
Cape Chestnut Calodendrum Capense
Camphor Tree Cinnamomum Camphora
Lemon Scented Gum Eucalyptus Citriodora
Cider Gum Eucalyptus Gunnii
White Ironbark Eucalyptus Leucoxylon
Red Ironbark Eucalyptus Sideroxylon
Jacaranda Jacaranda Mimosifolia
Chinese Flame Tree Koelreuteria Bipinnata
American Sweet Gum Liquidambar Styraciflua
Southern Magnolia Magnolia Grandiflora
Flaxleaf Paperbark Melaleuca Linariifolia
Cajeput Tree Melalleuca Quinquenervia
Calabrian Pine Pinus Brutia
Canary Island Pine Pinus Caneriensis
Fern Pine Podocarpus Gracilior
Holly Oak Quercus Ilex
Cork Oak Quercus Suber
Tipu Tree Tipuana Tipu
Tree Planting in Landscaped Parkways
Tree Planting in Tree Well
 

 

 

Signage Requirements

Temporary Banner Requirements

A temporary banner is a sign that is temporarily attached to the wall of a commercial or industrial business unit to advertise events such as a grand opening or sale.

A temporary banner must comply with the following requirements:

  1. Only one (1) temporary banner per business is permitted.
  2. A temporary banner can be on display for up to thirty (30) days within a consecutive 180 day period.
  3. A temporary banner must be attached to the building wall.
  4. A banner can measure up to one (1) square foot in size for each one (1) lineal foot of business frontage.
Requirements for Filing a Temporary Banner Permit Application:
  1. Complete a Temporary Banner Permit Application form. Applications are available on-line or may be obtained at City Hall.
  2. Prepare an elevation plan (sample) of the proposed banner identifying the following information (the applicant may super-impose the size of the temporary banner on a digital photo):
    1. Exact location of the proposed banner on the building
    2. Dimensions of the proposed banner
    3. Text, design, and colors of the proposed banner
    4. Frontage of the wall on which the banner will be placed.
  3. Submit a Temporary Banner Permit Application with one (1) copy of an elevation plan to the Planning Department prior to installing the proposed banner. There is no fee involved for processing a Temporary Banner Permit application.
Window Signage Requirements

A window sign is identified by Artesia Municipal Code Section 9-2.1204 as any sign picture, symbol, decoration, or combination thereof, designed to communicate information about an activity, business, commodity, event, sale or service or to celebrate a holiday and which is:

Window signage must comply with the following requirements:

Window signs shall not obstruct more than twenty-five percent (25%) percent of the total window area on which the window signs are located, except during the period from December 1 through January 2 of the succeeding year and any additional two (2) week period within a calendar year, when window signs may obstruct up to fifty percent (50%) of the total window area. For purposes of this section, "window area" is defined as the entire area composed of one or more individual window panes and frames that abut each other and which are not separated from other windows or frames by other surfaces of a building. For purposes of this section, the area of a window sign shall be calculated by the rectangular area that encloses the extreme limits of the writing, picture, symbol or decoration.

Requirements for Filing a Window Sign Permit Application:
  1. Complete a Window Sign Permit Application form.
  2. Prepare an elevation plan (sample) of the proposed window signage identifying the following information:
    1. Exact location of the proposed window signage on the building
    2. Dimensions of the existing windows and proposed window signs
    3. Text, design, and colors of the proposed window signs
  3. Submit the Window Sign Permit Application and one copy of the Elevation Plan to the Planning Department prior to installing the proposed window sign. There is no fee involved for processing a Window Sign Permit application.
Requirements for Permanent Wall Signs in Commercial Zones

Permanent wall signs are intended to allow adequate identification of businesses in our community. Part of the visual appeal of a City comes from tasteful, well-designed signs that identify local businesses while preserving the visual quality of the City. As you plan signage for your business, keep in mind the following:

  1. Review your preliminary sign plans with the Planning Department before having them fabricated and installed.
  2. A Building Permit will be required for new signage as well as face change to existing signage.
  3. Design signs that are consistent with the color and style with your building and other signs existing on the property.
  4. If your business is located within a shopping center, contact the Planning Department to verify if a Comprehensive Sign Program exists for that particular shopping center. There may be additional sign criteria previously approved by the City that you may need to be aware of.
  5. When you are ready to apply for a building permit for signage, you will need to submit three copies of sign plans to the Planning Department. The proposed sign plans must provide an elevation of the wall on which signage is proposed, length of business frontage, specific location, dimensions, colors and materials of the proposed signage. All signage shall be designed to comply with the sign standards of the Artesia Municipal Code or a previously approved sign program.
Development Standards for Wall Signs

Minor Wall Signs: A "minor wall sign" is defined by the Artesia Municipal Code as any wall sign measuring less than fifty (50) square feet in area. Any wall sign less than fifty (50) square feet in area shall be deemed to be a minor wall sign and shall be subject to administrative review and approval by the Planning Director, provided no other wall signs exist or are proposed for the subject businesses exterior.

Major Wall Signs: A "major wall sign" is defined by the Artesia Municipal Code as a wall sign which measures is fifty (50) square feet or more in sign area. A Design Review Approval application must be filed with the Planning Department.

Standards applicable to all wall signs:
  1. No sign shall project more than twelve (12) inches from the wall face.
  2. The maximum sign area for a business shall not exceed one (1) square foot of area for each lineal foot of business frontage, provided that no individual sign shall exceed one hundred (100) square feet.
  3. No wall sign shall have more than two (2) rows or columns of letters or characters.
  4. Maximum letter height for wall signs shall conform to the following table:
    Business Frontage (in linear feet)
     
    0-29
    30-39
    40-49
    50-59
    60-69
    70-79
    80-89
    190+1
    36 inches
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    30 inches
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    24 inches
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    22 inches
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    20 inches
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    18 inches
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    X
    Note: For purposes of calculating letter heights, business frontages shall be rounded to the nearest whole number of feet and to the next lowest whole number when the distance between two whole numbers is exactly one-half foot.
  5. All conduits, raceways, transformers, junction boxes, and openings in the buildings shall be completely concealed. If canopy architecture prohibits concealing hardware, it shall be enclosed in a manner consistent with quality fabrication practices, and painted to match the adjacent wall color. The method of installation shall be approved by the Planning Department.
  6. All exposed exterior signs shall be mounted directly onto the building face and shall be completely sealed in a watertight enclosure. All bolts, fastenings, and clips uses shall be of hot-dipped galvanized iron, stainless steal, or other non-corrosive material.
  7. All signs intended to be illuminated, shall be illuminated internally.
  8. No labels or other identification will be permitted on the exposed surface of the sign except those required by local ordinance.
  9. Cabinet sign backgrounds shall be of a non-reflective material, and if illumination is used, the sign copy shall be illuminated.
  10. Individual channel or reverse channel letters are encouraged for use in al retail commercial project based upon their legibility and visual effect.

Downloadable Applications and Forms

Fee Schedule

Please see the .pdf below for the updated Fee Schedule

Fee Schedule (revised 11-9-09)