Business Assistance Program

The City of Carlsbad has developed a Business Assistance Program for qualified businesses.  This program is aimed at assisting new and expanding businesses obtain all necessary land use approvals and permits in a timely manner. It includes early meetings with elected officials and city staff, project concept meetings, preliminary project reviews, expedited processing, and is designed to give applicants information and early feedback on city standards and project design.

Planned Industrial Permit

Areas suitable for siting research and development, manufacturing, and similar uses have a General Plan designation of Planned Industrial (PI). All business parks require individual Specific Plans, and most require a Planned Industrial Permit (PIP) for new structures. Within Carlsbad Research Center, no PIP is required prior to obtaining a building permit. Planned Industrial Permits are approved administratively within 30 to 60 days of submitting a complete application. The city will make every effort to expedite the processing of PIPs', and concurrent processing of minor grading and building permits can be considered. Some business parks may require Site Development Plans which require Planning Commission approval. As with PIPs', the city will make every effort to expedite the processing of Site Development Plans.

All business parks have architectural guidelines and other requirements which must be complied with in order to maintain a consistent image of high quality development. The city's development standards are one of the factors which have lead to Carlsbad's growing popularity as a desirable location for new and expanding businesses. Whenever building a new facility, the city encourages applicants to take advantage of the city's Business Assistance Program.

Development fees

The exact amount of development fees related to any particular structure may vary widely depending on the size, type of use, exact location, and impact on municipal and utility services. The city's fee structure has been designed to ensure that each building pays its share of the public facility costs necessary to serve the project. Project fee estimates are available to provide applicants with an idea of the cost related to any specific project at a given location.