Orange / Central Orange County
Daycare and Education Space in Orange
The verified operators sit on the city's main commercial streets rather than in one cluster: Happy Face on North Tustin Street, Clever Endeavors on East Chapman Avenue and Sylvan Learning on East Katella Avenue. Many of the other 30 or so licensed centers in Orange are on church, school district or college sites, so expect few commercial suites that already have a play yard. On zoning, the land use table the City adopted in 2018 lists child day care as a permitted use (with standards) in the C1, CP, CTR, C2 and C3 commercial zones, which can save the time a use permit would take.
Population
138,266
Median HHI
$117,113
Median age
37.2
Homeownership
56.7%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.
Primary retail corridors
Chapman Avenue · Tustin Street · Glassell Street · Katella Avenue · Main Street · La Veta Avenue
Daycare and Education Space operators already in Orange
Existing operators are the most honest comp for whether a use can support Orange rents. These are publicly visible daycare and education space businesses currently trading in the market.
Happy Face Childcare and Preschool
1110 N. Tustin Street, Orange, CA 92867
State-licensed day care center, capacity 57 (45 preschool plus a toddler option), first licensed in 2018 (CDSS facility 304371231). On the Tustin Street corridor.
Clever Endeavors Early Care & Education
5003 E. Chapman Avenue, Orange, CA 92869
State-licensed day care center, capacity 60, ages 2 to 6, first licensed in 2015 (CDSS facility 304371030). On East Chapman Avenue. The same operator holds a second license at 491 N. Hewes Street.
Childtime Children's Center
2839 Villa Real Drive, Orange, CA 92867
State-licensed day care center, capacity 67, ages 2 through 6, first licensed in 1991 (CDSS facility 300610697).
Little Scholars Academy of California
1510 W. Almond Avenue, Orange, CA 92868
State-licensed day care center, capacity 60 (48 preschool plus 12 toddler option), first licensed in 2016 (CDSS facility 304371129). West Orange.
Bright Bubbles Academy
1539 E. Mayfair Avenue, Orange, CA 92867
State-licensed day care center, capacity 60 split between toddler option and preschool, first licensed October 2024 (CDSS facility 304371665). The newest license among those we checked.
Sylvan Learning of Orange
1132 E. Katella Avenue, Suite A16, Orange, CA 92867
Tutoring center in a suite on the Katella Avenue corridor, per Sylvan's own location page. Not a CDSS-licensed use.
What to diligence before LOI
01
Zoning: Table 17.13.030, as adopted by Ordinance 13-18 in 2018, shows Day care, child or elderly as P* (permitted, subject to special use regulations) in CP/C1, CTR, C2 and C3, C (conditional use permit) in OP, not permitted in CR, and C* in the Old Towne Mixed Use zones. The table has been amended since (most recently Ord. 11-25, June 2025), so ask Planning to confirm the current row for your zone.
02
The special use regulation, Section 17.13.040 (Day Care, Child or Elderly), requires a state Department of Social Services license and compliance with licensing rules, including both indoor and outdoor recreation areas. A suite with no place for a yard does not meet it.
03
Tutoring and enrichment: the code calls this Instructional Use (Section 17.04.028 lists tutoring, dance, martial arts and art instruction). It is P*/C+ in the commercial zones. Under 17.13.040 it is permitted only if it is no more parking intensive than the prior permitted use of the same space. If it is, a conditional use permit with a shared-parking or offset-hours parking study is required (Sections 17.10.030(E)(1)(e) and 17.13.050).
04
Parking: Table 17.34.060 requires 1 space per employee, plus 1 per 8 individuals in care, plus 1 loading and unloading space. Section 17.34.180 says loading areas for day care centers and nursery schools should be as close as possible to the main building entrance, so check the drop-off path on the site plan.
05
Section 17.04.023 still defines Day nurseries with a fenced play lot of at least 900 sq ft plus 50 sq ft for each child over nine. Ask Planning whether that definition is applied to your project in addition to the state's 75 sq ft per child.
06
State licensing: 35 sq ft of indoor activity space per child (22 CCR 101238.3), 75 sq ft of fenced outdoor space per child with a fence at least four feet high (22 CCR 101238.2), one toilet and sink per 15 children (22 CCR 101239) and a fire clearance (22 CCR 101171). A 60-child center, the capacity on three of the licenses we checked in Orange, needs about 2,100 sq ft of activity rooms and 4,500 sq ft of yard.
Sources
Zoning, licensing, and demographic figures on this page come from the public records below. Codes and licenses change, so confirm with the city and the licensing agency before you sign.
- City of Orange Ordinance No. 13-18, amending Title 17 and consolidating land use tables (Table 17.13.030), City of Orange document archive
- City of Orange Municipal Code Chapter 17.13, Master Land Use Table, Sections 17.13.030, 17.13.040 and 17.13.050 (Zoneomics copy)
- City of Orange Municipal Code Chapter 17.04, Definitions (Zoneomics copy)
- City of Orange Municipal Code Chapter 17.34, Off-Street Parking and Loading (Zoneomics copy)
- California CDSS Community Care Licensing facility detail, Happy Face Childcare and Preschool Inc. (facility no. 304371231)
- California CDSS Community Care Licensing facility detail, Clever Endeavors Early Care & Education, Inc. (facility no. 304371030)
- California CDSS Community Care Licensing facility detail, Childtime Children's Center Inc. (facility no. 300610697)
- California CDSS Community Care Licensing facility detail, Little Scholars Academy of California (facility no. 304371129)
- California CDSS Community Care Licensing facility detail, Bright Bubbles Academy (facility no. 304371665)
- CDSS Community Care Licensing facility search, day care centers in Orange
- Sylvan Learning of Orange, operator location page
- U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, table DP05, Orange city, California
- 22 CCR 101238.3 (Indoor Activity Space), Cornell LII copy of the California Code of Regulations
- 22 CCR 101238.2 (Outdoor Activity Space)
- 22 CCR 101171 (Fire Clearance)
- 22 CCR 101239 (Fixtures, Furniture, Equipment and Supplies)
- Cushman & Wakefield MarketBeat, Orange County Retail, Q2 2026 (PDF)
- Kidder Mathews Orange County Retail Market Report, Q2 2026 (PDF)