Commercial Real Estate in Castro Valley: Castro Valley Boulevard, CC Zoning and the CBD Specific Plan

By Matthew Martinez, Founder, CEO & Managing Broker, Diamond Real Estate Group. California DRE #01869679.

Castro Valley is not a city. It is the largest unincorporated community in Alameda County, so its shops, offices and service businesses are zoned by the county, not by a city hall. Most commercial property lines Castro Valley Boulevard between I-580 and Redwood Road, with more along Redwood Road, Lake Chabot Road and near the Castro Valley BART station. Confirm the parcel’s district and specific plan subarea with Alameda County Planning before you commit to a use.

Who controls the parcel

Alameda County’s Community Development Agency handles planning, zoning and building permits in Castro Valley, with the Board of Supervisors as the final decision-maker. Utilities come from special districts: the Castro Valley Sanitary District (CVSan) for sewer, and East Bay MUD for water. Because "Castro Valley" is a mailing area rather than a city boundary, some addresses near the Hayward and San Leandro edges sit inside a city. Check the county’s Zoning Viewer, linked from the county planning page, before relying on county rules.

Castro Valley has its own Area Plan, the Castro Valley General Plan (the county posts it as a 2012 final document), and its own zoning chapter. That sets it apart from the rest of unincorporated Alameda County, which relies on the generic Title 17 districts.

Castro Valley zoning for commercial, industrial and mixed use

Chapter 17.51 of the County Ordinance Code, adopted by Ordinance 2020-66 on December 15, 2020, sets districts that implement the Castro Valley General Plan’s land use classes:

District	Intended uses	Notes
CC Community Commercial	Community-serving retail, offices and services	45 ft, or 35 ft within 50 ft of a residential district other than RMF or RMX; FAR 1.5
RMX Residential Mixed Density	Mix of single- and multifamily homes near the commercial core	45 ft; up to 29 units/acre
PF Public Facility	Public and nonprofit institutional uses	45 ft; FAR 1.5
CBD Specific Plan land use groups A–D	Intensive retail (A); auto-oriented retail, service, wholesale and light industry (B); offices (C); high-density housing (D)	Apply within the 288-acre plan area in place of base district lists
H-O Hillside overlay	Steep or high fire hazard land	Lot size rises with slope, 5,000 to 10,000 sq ft

CC rules worth knowing. Restaurants and artisan or maker spaces are permitted. Drive-ins and drive-throughs are conditional, needing approval from the Planning Commission sitting as the board of zoning adjustments. On- or off-site alcohol sales are also conditional, except at full-service restaurants. Any CC building of 1,000 square feet or more needs site development review, with a minor-project exception. CC sites of an acre or more must dedicate at least 5% of the site to public open space.

Castro Valley has no mapped heavy industrial district in Chapter 17.51. The closest thing is the CBD plan’s Group B, which takes auto-oriented, wholesale and light industrial uses on parts of the Boulevard.

Castro Valley Boulevard and the CBD Specific Plan

The Castro Valley Central Business District Specific Plan was adopted by the Board of Supervisors on January 7, 1993 (Resolution 93-48, Ordinance 93-04). Its 1992 revision grew the plan area from about 192 acres in 329 parcels to about 288 acres in 763 parcels. It added the homes between I-580 and the Boulevard and parcels on Lake Chabot Road south of Somerset Avenue.

The plan splits the area into eleven subareas, each with its own allowed land use groups and design policies:

Western Entrance (Subarea 1): low-intensity, auto-oriented retail at the community’s western gateway.
Strobridge/Lake Chabot South (Subarea 2): low-intensity retail on the Boulevard frontage, with high-density housing encouraged behind it.
The retail core, from Redwood Road west to San Miguel and Nunes Avenues, is where intensive retail is concentrated. The plan aims to make it walkable and to pool parking so less land goes to parking lots.

The plan also includes a streetscape plan for the Boulevard with left-turn limits and curb bulb-outs. Its policies on housing affect commercial buyers. Residential is not allowed in the intensive retail core. On Boulevard and Redwood Road frontages, homes belong on upper floors or at the rear of larger parcels. The plan noted roughly 350 mobile home spaces in the area at adoption, so mobile home parks are a real land use in the district.

Alcohol, auto uses and county permits

Alcohol. Bars, liquor stores and other alcohol outlets in CC need a conditional use permit; full-service restaurants are the exception.
Drive-throughs need Planning Commission approval in CC.
Auto uses fit best in CBD plan Group B areas, generally toward the Western Entrance.
Design. New construction goes through county site development review. Residential parts of mixed projects are also subject to the county’s Residential Design Standards and Guidelines for the unincorporated West County communities.
Cannabis and other licensed uses are governed by county ordinance, not a city, so check the County Ordinance Code for the current rules.

Transfer tax, business tax and property tax

Because Castro Valley is unincorporated, a sale pays only the county documentary transfer tax of $0.55 per $500 of consideration. The Alameda County Clerk-Recorder lists no city conveyance tax for unincorporated areas. On a $3 million building that is about $3,300, far below what the same sale would pay in neighboring San Leandro ($11 per $1,000) or Hayward ($8.50 per $1,000). Under Proposition 13, a sale generally resets the assessed value. We did not verify a county business license tax for unincorporated businesses.

Due diligence that matters in Castro Valley

Start with our commercial due diligence checklist, then add:

Confirm the parcel is unincorporated and identify its Chapter 17.51 district and CBD plan subarea.
Check whether your use falls in the subarea’s allowed land use group, not just the base CC list.
For alcohol, drive-through or auto uses, get the existing CUP and its conditions.
On a site of an acre or more, plan for the 5% public open space dedication.
If the site is near a residential district, apply the 35-foot height limit within 50 feet.
Ask CVSan about sewer capacity and lateral condition for any change of use or new building.

Questions people ask

Who handles zoning in Castro Valley?

Alameda County Planning, under Chapter 17.51 of the County Ordinance Code and the Castro Valley General Plan. There is no city government.

What is the CBD Specific Plan?

A 1993 county plan covering about 288 acres along Castro Valley Boulevard, divided into eleven subareas with four land use groups: intensive retail, auto-oriented and light industrial, office, and high-density housing.

Can I open a drive-through in Castro Valley?

In the CC district, drive-ins and drive-throughs need conditional approval from the Planning Commission.

Do I need a permit to sell alcohol on Castro Valley Boulevard?

Yes. Alcohol sales are a conditional use in CC, except at full-service restaurants.

Is there a city transfer tax in Castro Valley?

No. Only the county’s $0.55 per $500 applies.

How tall can a commercial building be?

45 feet in CC, dropping to 35 feet within 50 feet of most residential districts.

Does Diamond handle commercial property in Castro Valley?

Contact Matthew Martinez to discuss buying, selling or leasing commercial property in Castro Valley.

Sources & notes

Note: The CBD plan’s subarea text for Subareas 3 to 11 should be read directly for any specific parcel.

This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.

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