Parking

Parking requirements are codified in AMC 21.45.080.  Except in the downtown B-2 districts, each land use must be provided with off-street parking - that is, the parking area must be entirely on private property.  See our Parking Requirement list to see the requirements for each land use.

If there is not enough room on a lot for all the required parking, parking may be provided on an adjoining lot under a parking agreement between the property owners and the municipality.  Depending on the driveway location, an access agreement may also be needed.

Design of parking spaces and lots is set in municipal code at AMC 21.45.080X.  Most ordinary parking spaces must be 9 feet wide (10 feet if there is a post, wall or other obstruction to opening the vehicle doors) by 20 feet long.

Accessible spaces are required for all commercial, industrial, public and institutional uses.  At least one van-accessible space must be provided.  The design standards for car- and van-accessible spaces are given in AMC 21.45.080.W.8.

Driveways and parking areas in urban and suburban zoning districts must be paved "with a concrete or asphalt compound to standards prescribed by the traffic engineer."  In rural districts, "a layer of crushed rock of no more than one inch in diameter to a minimum depth of three inches" is permitted. 

Questions on the design of driveways and parking lots should be directed to the Traffic Department at 343-8406.

The company that publishes the municipal code, MuniCode.com, has a searchable version of the code on its website.  Try searching on "October 26" for more information (if you search on "21.45.080" you will have to wade through 19 extraneous hits before you get to the parking regulations.)  Please note that recent amendments may not have been published yet. Land Use Enforcement will be happy to verify the current code language for you.