Chowchilla — Parking

Last reviewed: July 1, 2026

Overview

Chowchilla's parking rules are collected primarily in Chapter 18.54 of the zoning ordinance; the chapter states the purpose and applicability for off‑street parking, loading, and bicycle/low‑emission vehicle parking and ties district compliance back to that chapter (§ 18.54.010, § 18.54.020) . For practical project design you must follow the quantity table, dimensional standards, location rules, loading rules, and landscaping/screening rules in Chapter 18.54, and then the district‑level placement rules (setbacks, driveway location, whether parking can be in front yards) in each zone chapter (e.g., § 18.12.140, § 18.26.100) . For design, cross‑check the city parking standards with the city's Chowchilla Development Standards and routing/driveway guidance in each chapter; bicycle and low‑emission vehicle stalls reference the state code in the California Building Standards Code as adopted locally (§ 18.54.170) .

Important internal links you may need while working the rules: Chowchilla Zoning (where the parking rules live), Chowchilla Land Use (use table), Chowchilla Design Review, Chowchilla Overlay Districts, Chowchilla ADUs, and Chowchilla Landscaping and Screening.

How the code is organized (quick orientation)

• The city-wide standards for required counts, dimensions, loading, compact allowances, common/joint parking, landscaping of parking lots, replacement, and exceptions are concentrated in Chapter 18.54 (look for § 18.54.040, § 18.54.090–§ 18.54.130, § 18.54.160–§ 18.54.180) .
• Each zoning chapter (for example: Neighborhood Commercial (C‑N) at § 18.20, Downtown Mixed Use (MX‑D) at § 18.26, Highway Commercial (C‑H) at § 18.24, residential zones at § 18.10–§ 18.16, Public Facilities § 18.36, Open Space § 18.38) contains local placement and setback rules and restates that off‑street parking must meet Chapter 18.54 (see the zone‑specific “Off‑street parking” subsections) .

District‑by‑district breakdown (selection of the city’s districts)

Note: every district below repeats the same requirement to follow Chapter 18.54 for counts/dimensions; I cite the district page that ties local placement/setback rules to the citywide parking chapter. For permitted uses consult the land‑use table at § 18.08.030 (land use table text not reproduced here) .

R‑L (Residential Low)

• Purpose and where this chapter applies: see § 18.10 (zone chapter headings and general rules for the R‑L zone) .
• Typical permitted uses: See the land‑use table at § 18.08.030 (Not found in retrieved materials in full; verify with the jurisdiction) .
• Key dimensional/parking notes:
  • Off‑street parking required per § 18.54.040 (citywide parking schedule); locally, the R‑L chapter says “Off‑street parking and off‑street loading facilities shall be provided on the site for each use as prescribed in Chapter 18.54” and forbids required parking within any setback (§ 18.10.150, § 18.10.160) .
  • Driveways and additional parking must be to the side or rear; no parking in front/street side setback except permitted driveways (§ 18.10.150) .

R‑M (Residential Medium)

• Purpose and scope: see § 18.12 (residential medium density chapter) .
• Typical permitted uses: See § 18.08.030 (land‑use table) — verify with the jurisdiction.
• Key dimensional/parking notes:
  • Off‑street parking required per Chapter 18.54; the R‑M chapter explicitly requires single‑family dwellings to provide at least one covered and one uncovered parking space (§ 18.12.140(B)) and prohibits required parking in setbacks (§ 18.12.140(C)) .
  • Landscaping and driveway width controls that restrict converting landscaped setback area to parking are in § 18.12.160 .

R‑MH (Residential Mobilehome)

• Purpose and scope: chapter and permitted uses set in the R‑MH chapter (refer to § 18.14 for medium‑high density residential and similar; the code cross‑references apply) — specific R‑MH permitted‑use table entries are in § 18.08.030 (land‑use table — verify) .
• Key parking notes: Off‑street parking must follow Chapter 18.54 and the district reiterates that required spaces may not be located in building setback areas (example: § 18.38.110 and other district versions that repeat the same rule) .

R‑H (Residential High)

• Purpose and scope: see § 18.16 (R‑H rules include parking references) .
• Key parking notes:
  • Off‑street parking per Chapter 18.54; minimum space dimensions and the prohibition on parking in setbacks are restated in § 18.16.130 (minimum space dimensions 9' × 18.5') .
  • Garage/carport conversion rules interact with parking minimums (see § 18.54.180) .

C‑N (Neighborhood Commercial)

• Purpose: the C‑N zone is intended for businesses that serve nearby residential neighborhoods (§ 18.20.010) .
• Key parking notes:
  • Off‑street parking required per Chapter 18.54; C‑N chapter re‑states that parking areas should be located behind or to the side of buildings where possible and that required parking cannot be inside required setbacks (§ 18.20.100, § 18.20.120) .

C‑H (Highway Commercial)

• Purpose: § 18.24.010 states the C‑H purpose to serve the traveling public; parking rules are in the chapter and refer back to Chapter 18.54 (§ 18.24.100) .
• Key parking notes:
  • Parking areas shall not be closer than 5 feet to any front or street side lot line in many commercial chapters (see the C‑H specific requirement at § 18.24.100(B)) .
  • Downtown exceptions and in‑lieu fee options apply only in the Downtown Mixed Use district (see MX‑D below) — the C‑H chapter does not replace citywide standards (§ 18.54.080 for in‑lieu; Downtown exceptions appear in § 18.54.050/§ 18.54.080) .

MX‑D (Downtown Mixed Use)

• Purpose: the MX‑D zone is intended to provide a dynamic mix of uses in downtown (§ 18.26.010) .
• Key parking notes:
  • The MX‑D chapter allows special handling: required parking may be located up to 600 feet from the use (measured by shortest pedestrian route) instead of on site, and the city may accept an in‑lieu parking fee for uses within the Downtown Mixed Use zone (§ 18.54.090(A), § 18.54.080) .
  • Small changes and enlargements under 1,000 sq ft in the Downtown Mixed Use zone may not trigger additional parking (§ 18.54.050(A)) — useful for downtown remodels .

O (Office), PF (Public Facilities), OS (Open Space)

• Purpose: each chapter sets out the purpose (PF: institutional and public uses at § 18.36.010; OS: conservation/open space at § 18.38.010) and each re‑requires off‑street parking per Chapter 18.54 and places limits on parking inside setbacks (§ 18.36.110, § 18.38.110) .
• Key parking notes: PF and OS require that parking be outside setback areas; PF and other non‑residential zones must meet the landscaped parking interior and buffering rules of § 18.54.160 when applicable .

I‑L & I‑H (Industrial: Light & Heavy)

• Purpose and where it applies: industrial chapters restate the Chapter 18.54 requirements and allow certain long‑term storage surfacing exceptions for large industrial yards (see surfacing note in § 18.54.100(H) and related pavement rules) .
• Key parking notes:
  • Off‑street loading and surfacing rules for long‑term storage may be modified in C‑S, I‑L, I‑H districts (the code allows rock/gravel for long‑term storage in those zones) — see § 18.54.100(H) and § 18.54.110 for dimensions and surfacing requirements .

Quick reference table — most decision‑relevant parking standards

Checklist — what an applicant must satisfy for parking plans

• Provide the number of off‑street spaces required by § 18.54.040 (use the table to compute spaces by use and unit type) .
• Dimension spaces to 9' × 18.5' (or mark compact 8' × 16' where allowed) per § 18.54.110 .
• Show any off‑street loading berth(s) required (≥ 10,000 sq ft uses) and conform to § 18.54.120–§ 18.54.130 for width, clearance, turning, paving, and lighting; mark that loading is not in front setbacks (§ 18.54.130(G)) .
• Parking location: show parking behind the front setback and outside street‑side setbacks unless the district expressly allows otherwise (Downtown Mixed Use 600 ft allowance: § 18.54.090(A)) .
• Landscaping and screening: meet interior 5% landscaping, 1 tree per 4 spaces, and perimeter buffer rules per § 18.54.160 (also see Chowchilla Landscaping and Screening) .
• Bicycle and EV/low‑emission vehicle charging stalls: provide per the latest adopted California Building Standards Code as required by § 18.54.170; show details on plans .
• If proposing shared/joint parking, include a draft parking covenant/recordable agreement and show distance to shared lot (≤ 200 ft) and operating hours analysis as required by § 18.54.060 .
• If in Downtown Mixed Use, confirm whether an in‑lieu fee will be required or accepted (§ 18.54.080) and whether a waiver for loading may apply (§ 18.54.120) .
• If converting a garage to living space, follow the garage conversion rules in § 18.54.180 (owner‑occupancy, minimum remaining parking, design buffering) and secure the administrative permit if required .

Risks & Ambiguities

Plain‑English summary

Chowchilla requires off‑street parking, loading, and bicycle/low‑emission vehicle parking following a citywide schedule in Chapter 18.54 (counts, dimensions, loading, landscaping, and downtown exceptions); each zoning chapter then explains where on the lot parking can go and adds local placement/setback rules — always check the district chapter for placement and the state building code for bike/EV stall details (verify with the City when in doubt) .

Source References

• § 18.54.010–§ 18.54.020 (Purpose and application of parking chapter)
• § 18.54.040 (Table of required parking spaces by use)
• § 18.54.090 (Location of parking spaces; Downtown Mixed Use 600 ft allowance)
• § 18.54.100–§ 18.54.110 (Standards and parking space dimensions, compact allowances)
• § 18.54.120–§ 18.54.130 (Off‑street loading required and standards)
• § 18.54.050–§ 18.54.080 (Exceptions, joint parking rules, in‑lieu fees for Downtown)
• § 18.54.160–§ 18.54.170 (Parking lot landscaping; bicycle & low‑emission vehicle parking; reference to California Building Standards Code)
• District examples: § 18.10 (R‑L rules, parking in setbacks) ; § 18.12.140 (R‑M parking statement; single‑family covered/uncovered) ; § 18.16.130 (R‑H parking min dimensions) ; § 18.20.100 (C‑N off‑street parking) ; § 18.24.100 (C‑H off‑street parking) ; § 18.26.010 (MX‑D purpose) ; § 18.36.010 (PF purpose) ; § 18.38.010 (OS purpose) .
• For bicycle/EV stall technical details, refer to the locally adopted edition of the California Building Standards Code (city defers to the CBC in § 18.54.170) .

Retrieved passages

• Chowchilla Zoning Code (§ 2) High relevance show source text
• CBC § 2 (§ 2) High relevance show source text
• Chowchilla Zoning Code (Chapter 18.54.) High relevance show source text
• Chowchilla Zoning Code (chapter for) High relevance show source text
• Chowchilla Zoning Code (§ 2) High relevance show source text
• CBC § 2 (§ 2) High relevance show source text
• Chowchilla Zoning Code (title to) High relevance show source text
• CBC § 2 (§ 2) High relevance show source text
• Chowchilla Zoning Code (§ 2) Medium relevance show source text
• Chowchilla Zoning Code (§ 2) Medium relevance show source text
• Chowchilla Zoning Code (Chapter 18.02) Medium relevance show source text
• Chowchilla Zoning Code (§ 2) Medium relevance show source text
• Chowchilla Zoning Code (§ 2) Medium relevance show source text
• Chowchilla Zoning Code (§ 2) Medium relevance show source text
• Chowchilla Zoning Code (§ 2) Medium relevance show source text
• Chowchilla Zoning Code (Section 65852.21) Medium relevance show source text

Cited sections

• **§ 18.54.010–§ 18.54.020** (Purpose and application of parking chapter) (§ 18.54.010)
• **§ 18.54.040** (Table of required parking spaces by use) (§ 18.54.040)
• **§ 18.54.090** (Location of parking spaces; Downtown Mixed Use 600 ft allowance) (§ 18.54.090)
• **§ 18.54.100–§ 18.54.110** (Standards and parking space dimensions, compact allowances) (§ 18.54.100)
• **§ 18.54.120–§ 18.54.130** (Off‑street loading required and standards) (§ 18.54.120)
• **§ 18.54.050–§ 18.54.080** (Exceptions, joint parking rules, in‑lieu fees for Downtown) (§ 18.54.050)
• **§ 18.54.160–§ 18.54.170** (Parking lot landscaping; bicycle & low‑emission vehicle parking; reference to California Building Standards Code) (§ 18.54.160)
• District examples: **§ 18.10** (R‑L rules, parking in setbacks) ; **§ 18.12.140** (R‑M parking statement; single‑family covered/uncovered) ; **§ 18.16.130** (R‑H parking min dimensions) ; **§ 18.20.100** (C‑N off‑street parking) ; **§ 18.24.100** (C‑H off‑street parking) ; **§ 18.26.010** (MX‑D purpose) ; **§ 18.36.010** (PF purpose) ; **§ 18.38.010** (OS purpose) . (§ 18.10)
• For bicycle/EV stall technical details, refer to the locally adopted edition of the California Building Standards Code (city defers to the CBC in **§ 18.54.170**) . (§ 18.54.170)
• Chowchilla_ZoningCode.md

• Official Chowchilla code library