Hesperia | Zoning districts

Hesperia, California Zoning Districts: the One-Map System, R1, RR, A1, A2 and R3, Housing in C2 and the Corridor Plan Zones

Zoning is the set of city rules that says what may be built on each lot. Hesperia writes its zoning rules in Title 16 of the Municipal Code, the Development Code, and ties them to the land use designations of its General Plan, the City's long-range plan for land. Most of the city is designated for one house per lot on large lots. Apartments are allowed in the R3 designation, in the C2 commercial designation and in parts of the Main Street and Freeway Corridor Specific Plan. This page explains each designation and how many homes it allows. The Hesperia overview has the summary.

One Map for the Plan and the Zoning

Many cities keep two maps, a General Plan map and a zoning map. Hesperia keeps one. Section 16.16.020 says the boundaries of the designations are shown on the "official general plan land use map," and that this map "incorporates specific plans, including the Main Street and Freeway Corridor Specific Plan." Section 16.16.035 then declares the Development Code rules "to be in effect upon all land included within the boundaries of each and every designation shown upon the general plan land use map."

The City's adopted Housing Element explains the reason. The 2010 General Plan update set a goal "to convert the plan to a one-map system where all land uses will be designated on the General Plan map, eliminating the zoning map and any remaining inconsistencies." For a lot owner this means the designation printed on the land use map is the zone. The City's Zoning page says "To search what zone your property or a parcel is within, you may utilize the Public Viewer," an online map.

Section 16.16.010 lists the designations the Development Code applies to: "R1, R1-4500, or R1-18000" for single-family residence, R3 for multiple-family residence, "RR-20000, RR-1, RR-2½, or RR (SD)" for rural residential, "A1 or A1-2½" for limited agricultural, A2 for general agricultural, then the office, commercial, industrial and public designations.

The Five Residential Designations

Density is the number of homes per acre of land. The General Plan sets a density range for each designation, and Section 16.16.115 says "Densities in the general plan are calculated using gross lot area," the whole lot including land for streets. The ranges below are from Table LU-6 of the 2025 Land Use Element, which the City Council adopted on July 15, 2025 according to the City's General Plan page.

Sources: Hesperia Municipal Code 16.16.010, 16.16.075, 16.16.085 and 16.16.130 (Supplement 24 Update 2); 2025 Land Use Element, Table LU-6.

• R1. Section 16.16.075 says R1 "is intended for single-family residences characterized by a more suburban setting" and "is intended to generally limit equestrian uses and other animals."
• R3. R3 is "for multiple-family uses in an urban setting. Housing types may include townhouses, condominiums, duplexes, triplexes, apartments, or manufactured housing developments." The same paragraph adds "Sewer will be required for all new dwelling units developing within this density."
• RR. Rural Residential "is intended for detached single-family residential uses" in rural areas "and is intended to protect animal keeping."
• A1. Limited Agricultural "is intended to continue the current rural lifestyle" and "to support limited agricultural uses."
• A2. General Agricultural fits areas with "large lot sizes, varying topography, proximity to the Mojave River, or distance from public services such as sewer."

Reading the Lot Size From the Map

The Development Code prints no single lot size for R1, RR, A1 or A2. The table in Section 16.16.120 says "The minimum lot area is identified on the General Plan Land Use Map," and note 5 gives the reading rule: the lot area is "designated by a number following the designation symbol," where "numbers less than one hundred (100) shall indicate acres, and numbers more than one hundred (100) shall indicate minimum square feet of area required per lot." R1-18000 is 18,000 square feet. RR-2½ is 2½ acres. R1-4500 is 4,500 square feet, the label used for small lot subdivisions.

Section 16.16.115 says which area counts. "Net lot area shall be used in the R1 and R3 designations and for properties below one acre in the RR designation; and gross lot area shall be used in the A1 and A2 designations and for properties one acre or more in the RR designation." Net lot area leaves out land for proposed public streets and alleys. The lot size and subdivisions page has the widths and depths.

What the Use Table Allows

Section 16.16.085 is a table with one row per use and one column per designation. P means a permitted use, A an accessory use (a use that serves the main one), S a use that "Requires a Site Plan Review," CUP a use that needs a conditional use permit, and NP not permitted.

• Single-family dwelling. P in R1, R3, RR, A1 and A2.
• Multiple-family dwellings. S in R3 and NP in the other four. Section 16.08.190 defines the term as a building "designed as a residence for two or more families living independently of each other in separate dwelling units," so a duplex counts.
• Accessory dwelling unit. A in all five, under Section 16.12.360. See the ADUs and SB 9 page.
• Guest house. A in R1, RR, A1 and A2 and NP in R3. A table note says a "Guest house shall not exceed a building area of four hundred ninety-nine (499) square feet and shall not include kitchen facilities." Section 16.08.275 adds that it "shall not be rented or otherwise used as a separate dwelling."
• Mobile home parks. S in all five.
• Supportive housing and transitional housing. S in all five.
• Small residential care facilities. Homes "of six or less and licensed by the state" are P in all five.
• Buildings to keep animals. A stable, corral, pen or coop is A in R1, RR, A1 and A2 and NP in R3.

The agricultural table in Section 16.16.095 covers A1 and A2 only. It permits silos, small animal raising and commercial poultry ranches in both, and keeps dairies, hog ranches and hay yards to A2.

R3 and Housing in the C2 Commercial Designation

Section 16.16.130 describes R3 as land for "multi-family housing in a garden setting such as courtyard apartments, condominiums and walk-up townhomes." Its density line gives a range of 15 to 30 homes per gross acre. The history note shows the section was last amended by Ordinance No. 2025-06 on November 4, 2025. The staff report for that ordinance says it updated the code "to reflect that 15-30 dwelling units per acre are allowed in the Multiple Family (R3) zone consistent with the 2025 General Plan Update" and raised the R3 height limit "from 35 feet to 45 feet to accommodate higher density developments."

A new R3 lot needs 5 acres, 300 feet of width and 500 feet of depth, and a table note says those minimums "shall not apply to townhome and condominium units." "Connection to sewer is required." Existing smaller R3 lots may be built on: Section 17.48.030 lets any legally created lot below the standard "be used or built upon."

The same ordinance added housing to the General Commercial designation. Section 16.16.310 now says "Multi-family residential uses are also allowed in the C2 designation as either a standalone development or as part of a mixed-use project." The use table in Section 16.16.320 marks them R, a site plan review, in C2 only. Its note 9 reads: "Permitted residential uses shall consist only of mixed-use development and multi-family development with a density of 20 to 30 units per acre. Single family residential units are not allowed." A note to Section 16.16.350 adds "For Multi-family residential projects, R3 development standards shall be used." The three or more homes page covers the review steps.

The Main Street and Freeway Corridor Specific Plan

A specific plan is a detailed plan for one area that carries its own zoning rules. Hesperia's largest one covers Main Street and the Interstate 15 corridor. The Housing Element describes it as two corridors "approximately 18 miles in length and with a total area of over 16 square miles," adopted in October 2008. Chapter 1 of the plan says "The regulations of this Specific Plan replace those set forth in the planning and zoning provisions of the Hesperia Development Code," and where the two are inconsistent "the standards and regulations of the Specific Plan shall prevail." Anything the plan does not cover is governed by Title 16.

Sources: Main Street and Freeway Corridor Specific Plan, Chapter 7 and Chapter 9, Section B.4.16 (posted copy, amended through July 15, 2021); amendments adopted with Ordinance No. 2025-06.

The plan also has a Rural Residential zone of under 0.5 homes per acre, which uses the Very Low Density standards. In the Medium and High Density zones the plan lists "Multiple family dwellings (2 or more units)" as a permitted use, so a duplex is allowed there. The plan sets a Wash Protection Overlay over the Oro Grande Wash and one unnamed wash "that limits the construction of permanent structures within the washes' right-of-way."

The copy on the City's site carries the line "Amended July 15, 2021." The code's Code Comparative Table shows later plan amendments that the posted copy does not include: a change of low density land to medium density (Ordinance No. 2023-12), a map change (No. 2024-05), a higher floor area ratio in the Regional Commercial zone (No. 2024-08) and the housing changes of Ordinance No. 2025-06. Ask the Planning Division for the current plan text for any lot inside the plan area.

Rural Lots: Animals by Lot Size

Animal keeping rules limit how a rural Hesperia lot may be used, and they affect where a second home can stand. Section 16.20.680 has six tables, A to F, one per group of designations and plan zones.

• A1 and A2. Horses, mules, donkeys and llamas at 4 per acre, cattle at 4 per acre and small livestock at 12 per acre on lots of one acre or more. Totals are combined across those animal types.
• RR. Horses, mules, donkeys and llamas at "1 per 10,000 sq. ft." on lots of all sizes. Small livestock at 1 per 5,000 square feet. Cattle at 4 per acre on one acre or more. Hogs and large pigs are not permitted.
• R1. Horses, mules, donkeys and llamas need a lot "Over 20,000 sq. ft.," at one per 10,000 square feet and no more than six. Small livestock and cattle are not permitted. Dogs and cats are limited to two of each on lots under 18,000 square feet.
• R3 and the MDR, HDR and MU plan zones. "One dog and one cat, 2 dogs, or 2 cats," and no horses or livestock.

Distance rules apply in addition to the counts. Section 16.16.110 requires buildings for fowl and livestock to stand "a minimum of seventy (70) feet from any other place used for human habitation, public park or school, on adjoining properties." Section 16.20.050 sets the same 70 feet for open animal enclosures. The ADU section protects both sides: "The construction of an accessory dwelling unit shall not be considered when calculating minimum distance requirements for animal uses on the subject lot or on adjacent lots." A neighbor's new ADU does not force an owner to move a corral.

Oak Hills and Hillside Land

Two sets of rules change the standards for some lots. In the Oak Hills Community Plan area, Section 16.20.450 gives R-1 and RR lots a height of 35 feet, a minimum lot of 7,200 square feet that a map suffix may change, 40 percent building coverage, a 25-foot front yard and side yards of 10 and 5 feet. Section 16.20.430 says these standards apply "in lieu of similar standards within the city's development code."

Chapter 16.40 covers hillsides. "Hillside areas include all those areas which have a slope of twenty (20) percent or greater." A table then lowers the number of homes by slope class: 100 percent of the General Plan density on slopes of 19 percent or less, 40 percent on slopes of 20 to 29 percent, 10 percent on slopes of 30 to 39 percent and none at 40 percent or more, where "Development and grading is prohibited." The chapter does not apply where a specific plan has been adopted.

Measure N

The 2025 Land Use Element records a voter measure that has passed and has not yet taken effect. "On November 3, 2020, Hesperia voters passed a ballot measure (Measure N)." Its provisions "include reducing the maximum density for new single-family developments from 8 homes per acre to 3 homes per acre," raising the minimum lot size to 14,520 square feet, and reducing multi-family density "from 25 units per acre to 8 units per acre." The element says these changes "would not take effect until allowed by State law, which is currently January 1, 2030," and that the City must first make sure the new rules comply with state housing law. A buyer who plans to subdivide or build apartments after that date should ask the Planning Division how Measure N will be applied.

Where the Documents Differ

• R3 density. Section 16.16.130 gives 15 to 30 homes per acre. The 2025 Land Use Element gives "8.1-30.0 dwelling units per acre." The 2023 Housing Element, written earlier, lists R3 at 8.1 to 15.0. The code section is the most recent of the three and is the zoning rule; ask the Planning Division whether a project under 15 homes per acre is accepted in R3.
• Regional Commercial density. The posted Specific Plan allows 15 to 25 homes per acre for housing in the Regional Commercial zone. The exhibit to Ordinance No. 2025-06 changes that to 30 and adds stand-alone housing east of Interstate 15. The ordinance controls.
• The name of C1. The table in Section 16.16.010 calls C1 "Neighborhood commercial." Section 16.16.310 calls it "Convenience Commercial (C1)." The uses are the same.
• Two cross-references. The standards table in Section 16.16.120 points to "Section 16.16.095" for signs, and that section is the agricultural use table. Section 16.20.700 points to "Section 16.16.105" for animal buildings, and those rules are in Section 16.16.110.
• The City handouts. The City's Summary of General Plan Land Use Designations says, for A-1, "Second dwelling units are subject to approval of a second dwelling unit permit." The code now treats an ADU as an accessory use approved by staff under Section 16.12.360. The handout's file name carries the date 4-17-14, and the code controls.

The code text on this page is Municode's Supplement 24 Update 2, which its preface says is current "through Ord. No. 2025-09, passed December 5, 2025." The City has started a full rewrite of Title 16 and the zoning map. Its Development Code Update page lists community workshops from September to November 2026, so designations and standards may change after this guide.

Where to Go Next

Related on VanPlex: the Hesperia overview, the SB 9 page and the duplex to fourplex guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Official sources (checked October 2026)