Kelso City Zoning Code

The purpose of this chapter is to establish controls to guide the use and development of property in accordance with the provisions of the Kelso comprehensive plan and state and federal laws, in order to:

If there is any question about the status of a lot or the zoning designation, the city shall resolve the question through an administrative code interpretation or legislative action.

Residential Single-Family 5 Zone. The purpose of the residential single-family 5 (RSF-5) zone is to maintain neighborhoods where existing development patterns and the availability of infrastructure support smaller lots and higher density single-family residential development.

Residential Single-Family 10 Zone. The purpose of the residential single-family 10 (RSF-10) zone is to promote the establishment of neighborhoods where existing development patterns, topography, or the limited availability of infrastructure warrant larger lots, and lower densities of single-family residential development.

Residential Multifamily Zone. The purpose of the residential multifamily (RMF) zone is to provide areas for the highest density of residential development and to support mixed-use development.

Residential Mixed Density Zone. The purpose of the residential mixed density (RMD) zone is to promote diverse housing options in new and existing neighborhoods, high quality design, reinvestment in existing buildings and properties, and the revitalization of existing residential neighborhoods.

Neighborhood Commercial Zone. The purpose of the neighborhood commercial (NC) zone is to provide areas for neighborhood-scale commercial and service activities which are compatible with the character of the surrounding residential neighborhood.

General Commercial Zone. The purpose of the general commercial (GC) zone is to support business activities and mixed-use developments designed primarily to serve the local community.

Regional Commercial Zone. The purpose of the regional commercial (RC) zone is to accommodate larger-scale commercial retail stores, shopping centers, and freeway oriented commercial uses that are designed to serve the commercial needs of the city, the surrounding region, and travelers.

Light Industrial Zone. The purpose of the light industrial (LI) zone is to provide opportunities for industrial activities involving manufacturing, processing, assembling, repairing, servicing or storage of goods or products as well as professional services and mixed-use development in a business park setting.

General Industrial Zone. The purpose of the general industrial (GI) zone is to provide opportunities for industrial activities that require larger sites, access to the Columbia River, and/or a master planned industrial park.

Open Space Zone. The purpose of the open space (OPN) zone is to ensure that certain areas of the city be preserved for the most part in their undisturbed and/or natural state. Areas appropriate for the OPN zoning district are characterized by public and/ or private land that is not suitable for or permanently protected from development. These areas may include, but are not limited to, forested areas; wetlands and associated buffers; creek, stream or river corridors; ravines; bluffs; landslide hazards and/or other geological hazardous areas; environmentally sensitive area tracts; dikes and other rights-of-way; dedicated open space; public parks; and conservation areas.

Airport Safety Overlay. The airport safety overlay is intended to regulate or control the various types of air space obstructions and other hazards that may interfere with the safety of aircraft operations near the Kelso-Longview Airport.

Adult Oriented Business Overlay. The purpose of the adult oriented business overlay is to regulate the location, permitting and operation of sexually oriented businesses and marijuana retail businesses in order to promote the health, safety and welfare of all city of Kelso citizens and in order to preserve and protect the quality of, and the quality of life in and around, all city of Kelso neighborhoods through effective land use planning and reasonable regulation in light of the findings adopted by the city council and to regulate the display of adult materials by other commercial establishments.

West Main Pedestrian Overlay. The purpose of this overlay is to facilitate the implementation of the West Kelso subarea plan by providing standards unique to designated areas in West Kelso that support a high quality pedestrian oriented design element along West Main Street.

West Kelso Overlay. The purpose of this overlay is to facilitate the implementation of the West Kelso subarea plan by providing design standards unique to West Kelso to guide new multifamily development.

Only those uses identified with a P (permitted), C (permitted only through the issuance of a conditional use permit), or T (permitted only through a temporary use permit) may be approved. Those uses identified with a blank cell are not permitted in that zone.

Uses identified as permissible (P, C, or T) shall comply with all other applicable standards.

The following footnotes can be found in the Table of Permitted Uses, Table 17.16.040: