Commercial Real Estate in Contra Costa County: Districts, Urban Limit Line and Transfer Taxes

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

Contra Costa County’s commercial property spans three areas. The I-680 office and retail corridor runs through Walnut Creek, Concord and San Ramon. The industrial and refinery shoreline stretches from Richmond to Martinez and Pittsburg. East County is growing around Antioch, Brentwood and Oakley. Each of the 19 cities zones its own land. The county governs unincorporated communities such as Contra Costa Centre, Bay Point, Rodeo, Crockett, North Richmond, El Sobrante, Alamo and Discovery Bay. Its zoning code dates to 1947 and is now being comprehensively rewritten, so confirm the current rules for any parcel before you commit.

Who controls the parcel

Area	Regulator	Notes	Our guide
Richmond	City of Richmond	City transfer tax, $7 to $30 per $1,000 in tiers	Richmond
El Cerrito	City of El Cerrito	City transfer tax, $12 per $1,000	El Cerrito
Walnut Creek, Concord, Pleasant Hill, Martinez, Lafayette, Orinda, Moraga	Each city	Central county office, retail and BART-area sites	Walnut Creek · Concord · Pleasant Hill · Martinez · Lafayette · Orinda · Moraga
San Ramon, Danville	Each city	Tri-Valley office parks and town centers	San Ramon · Danville
Antioch, Pittsburg, Brentwood, Oakley, Clayton	Each city	East and north county retail and industrial	Antioch · Pittsburg · Brentwood · Oakley · Clayton
San Pablo, Pinole, Hercules	Each city	West county I-80 corridor	San Pablo · Pinole · Hercules
Unincorporated communities	Contra Costa County Department of Conservation and Development	County zoning, P-1 planned unit codes and specific plans	Bay Point · Rodeo · Crockett · El Sobrante · Pacheco · Alamo · Discovery Bay · Byron

The county adopted its 2045 General Plan on November 5, 2024. The county’s zoning code update page calls the rewrite the first comprehensive update of the code since it was first adopted in 1947. Until the new code is adopted, the existing districts below apply.

Unincorporated Contra Costa County zoning for commercial and industrial use

Districts come from Division 84 of the County Ordinance Code.

District	Intended uses	Notes
O-1 Limited Office / A-O Administrative Office	Office uses	Separate chapters 84-44 and 84-46
N-B Neighborhood Business	Groceries, drugstores, bakeries, barbers, cleaners, professional and real estate offices	50 ft. 3,500 sq ft minimum lot. 25 ft setback from public roads. Service stations and 3+ unit apartments need a land use permit
R-B Retail Business	Retail inside enclosed buildings, hotels and motels	Outdoor retail, auto body, contractor yards, SROs and cannabis need a land use permit
C General Commercial	Wholesale, warehouses, truck yards, lumberyards, auto repair, contractor yards, plus N-B and R-B uses	Hotels, motels, transit-mix plants and cannabis need a land use permit
C-B Community Business	Community-scale business	Chapter 84-49
C-M Controlled Manufacturing	Manufacturing with controls	Chapter 84-56
L-I Light Industrial	Industry not needing steam power or extensive loading docks	Breweries, wineries, food processing and other nuisance-prone uses need a land use permit
W-3 / H-I Heavy Industrial	Heavy and controlled heavy industry	Chapters 84-60 and 84-62, along the industrial shoreline
P-1 Planned Unit	Custom standards by adopted development plan	Many communities have their own P-1 zoning code

Specific plans, BART areas and development sites

Many unincorporated communities are governed by a specific plan or a community P-1 code, not base zoning. The county lists them under its Codes and Plans page. Some examples:

Bay Point. The county prepared the Pittsburg/Bay Point BART Station Area Specific Plan, which started with a 1998 EIR notice on CEQAnet. The county’s development opportunities page describes several Bay Point sites near the BART station and Highway 4 as suited to high-density mixed-use transit-oriented development.
Rodeo. The county prepared a Rodeo Waterfront/Downtown Specific Plan, with a draft EIR filed in 1995 on CEQAnet. The county has included Rodeo and North Richmond sites in a developer request for qualifications.
Contra Costa Centre. This is the unincorporated office and transit village at Pleasant Hill BART. It sits inside a cannabis exclusion area (below).

Cannabis, wineries and the urban limit line

Cannabis. R-B, C and L-I list commercial cannabis activities as land use permit uses under Chapter 88-28. The -CE Cannabis Exclusion combining district bans them in every zone in nine areas: Acalanes Ridge, Alamo, Bethel Island, Blackhawk, Bollinger Canyon, Contra Costa Centre, Knightsen, Sandmound Slough and Saranap.

Wineries. Under the county’s agritourism winery chapter, a small winery produces up to 50,000 gallons a year. Tasting and sales space can total no more than 30% of the production floor area. At least 25% of the fruit must be grown on site and 50% in the county. Food served at tastings must be incidental. That matters for the Brentwood, Byron and Knightsen wine areas.

Urban limit line. The Envision Contra Costa page explains that Measure C (1990) set the urban limit line, which restricts where urban land uses can be designated. The Board voted to put a renewal on the June 2, 2026 ballot. Commercial projects outside the line face sharp limits, so confirm the line’s current status with the county.

Transfer tax, business tax and property tax

The Contra Costa Clerk-Recorder charges a county documentary transfer tax of $0.55 per $500 of value, excluding remaining liens. It also collects two city taxes on full value. Richmond charges $7 per $1,000 under $1 million, $12.50 from $1 million to $3 million, $25 from $3 million to $10 million, and $30 above $10 million. El Cerrito charges a flat $12 per $1,000. A large Richmond industrial sale can therefore carry a city tax many times the county tax. A sale is generally a Proposition 13 change of ownership. Business license taxes are set by each city, and we did not verify a county business license for unincorporated areas.

Due diligence that matters in Contra Costa County

Start with our commercial due diligence checklist, then add:

Confirm city or county jurisdiction. Many "Martinez," "Pittsburg" and "Walnut Creek" addresses are unincorporated.
Check for a P-1 community code or specific plan, and ask whether the zoning code rewrite will change the district.
For cannabis, confirm the site is outside every -CE exclusion area.
For a winery or tasting room, check the production cap, the 30% tasting area limit and fruit sourcing rules.
In Richmond and El Cerrito, price the city transfer tax on full value.
Confirm the urban limit line status for any edge parcel.

Questions people ask

Which Contra Costa cities charge a transfer tax?

The Clerk-Recorder collects city taxes for Richmond (tiered, $7 to $30 per $1,000) and El Cerrito ($12 per $1,000), on top of the county tax.

Who approves a business in Contra Costa Centre or Bay Point?

Contra Costa County’s Department of Conservation and Development, under county zoning and any specific plan or P-1 code.

Where is cannabis banned in unincorporated Contra Costa?

In every zone in the nine -CE areas: Acalanes Ridge, Alamo, Bethel Island, Blackhawk, Bollinger Canyon, Contra Costa Centre, Knightsen, Sandmound Slough and Saranap.

Can I open a tasting room at a small winery in East County?

Agritourism rules allow tasting at wineries, but tasting and sales space is capped at 30% of production floor area, and fruit sourcing rules apply.

Is the county rewriting its zoning code?

Yes. The county describes it as the first comprehensive update since 1947, following the 2045 General Plan adopted in November 2024.

What is the urban limit line?

A boundary set by Measure C in 1990 that limits where urban land uses can be designated in the county.

Does Diamond handle commercial property in Contra Costa County?

Contact Matthew Martinez to discuss buying, selling or leasing commercial property anywhere in Contra Costa County.

Sources & notes

Contra Costa County Ordinance Code, Division 84 Land Use Districts (GoCodebook), with Chapters 84-50, 84-52, 84-54, 84-58 and 84-86 linked above
Chapter 824-6, Wineries and Olive Oil Mills
Contra Costa County, Envision Contra Costa / 2045 General Plan and Comprehensive Zoning Code Update
Contra Costa County, Codes and Plans and Development Opportunities
CEQAnet, Pittsburg/Bay Point BART Station Area Specific Plan and Rodeo Waterfront Specific Plan
Contra Costa Clerk-Recorder, Documentary Transfer Tax, Richmond and El Cerrito

Note: We did not confirm the June 2026 urban limit line election result or the zoning rewrite’s adoption status.

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

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