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Subjects › Public Safety › Off-Street Parking
Updated 06/2011

Off-Street Parking

Introduction

Local zoning ordinances regulate the number of off-street parking and loading spaces that must be provided when establishing or expanding land uses. Off-street parking provisions reflect best practices and parking standards for different land uses, and are intended to be consistent with policies related to land use, transportation, and environmental sustainability.

About Off-Street Parking

The ordinance provisions on this page are presented as samples representing various sized communities in urban and rural settings. Recent thinking regarding off-street parking requirements recommends that communities look at their own individual parking needs rather than copy those of other jurisdictions or use published standards. Newer off-street parking ordinances recognize both the necessity of parking and the need to reduce dependence on the automobile by encouraging transit and other alternative transportation modes. Some communities establish standards that specify the maximum number of off-street parking spaces that may be provided associated with specific uses. Some jurisdictions provide alternatives and incentives to reduce parking needs through flexible parking arrangements, such as shared parking, and the use of transportation demand management (TDM) strategies. See MRSC's related page on Parking Management Reference Tools for information on off-street parking policy issues and guides and standards.

Off-Street Parking Provisions

  • Arlington Land Use Code Ch. 20.72 - Parking
  • Bainbridge Island Municipal Code Sec. 18.81.030 - Spaces Required
  • Bellevue Municipal Code Sec. 20.20.590 - Parking, Circulation and Walkway Requirements
  • Bothell Municipal Code Sec. 12.16.030 - Computation of Required Off-Street Parking Spaces
  • Brewster Municipal Code Ch. 17.32 - Parking Requirements
  • Kelso Municipal Code Sec. 17.40.060 - Spaces Required
  • King County Code Ch. 21A.18 (Adobe Acrobat Document) - Development Standards - Parking and Circulation
  • Lacey Municipal Code Ch. 16.72 - Off Street Parking and Loading
  • Liberty Lake Development Code Article 10-3D (Adobe Acrobat Document) - Vehicle and Bicycle Parking
  • Olympia Municipal Code Chapter 18.38.100 - Vehicular and Bicycle Parking Standards
  • Port Townsend Municipal Code Ch. 17.72.080 - Vehicular and Bicycle Parking Standards
  • Redmond Municipal Code Ch. 21.40 - Parking Standards
  • Sequim Municipal Code Ch. 18.48 (Adobe Acrobat Document) - Off Street Parking
  • Shoreline Municipal Code Ch. 20.50 - General Development Standards, Subchapter 6. Parking, Access and Circulation, Section 20.50.380 through .440
  • Skagit County Code Sec. 14.16.800 - Parking
  • Snohomish County Code Ch. 30.26 (Adobe Acrobat Document) - General Development Code - Parking
  • Vancouver Municipal Code Ch. 20.945.070 - Minimum Off-Street Parking Requirements
  • Washougal Municipal Code Ch. 18.52.040 (Adobe Acrobat Document) - Minimum Number of Off-Street Parking Places Required
  • Wenatchee Municipal Code Sec. 10.60.080 - Off-Street Parking Requirements.