Charleston Parking Requirements
| USE | NUMBER OF SPACES REQUIRED |
|---|---|
| One (1) family detached dwelling | 2 per unit |
| One (1) family attached dwelling & mobile home | 2 per unit |
| Two (2) family dwelling | 2 per unit |
| Multiple (3 or more) dwellings or dwellings (one or more) within commercial bldgs. | 1½ per unit, except that the minimum requirement shall be 1 per unit within the MU-1 and MU-2 districts |
| Boarding house | 1 per 2 bedrooms |
| Dormitory, sorority or fraternity house | 1 per 2 beds |
| Nursing home, homeless shelter, orphanage, sanitarium, boarding home for sheltered care; where above uses are communal living with central dining room | 1 per 6 beds |
| Special needs housing; housing restricted by funding agencies, public housing agencies, or other such organizations, to elderly, handicaped individuals or families, or low income occupants based on current income limits established by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development | 1 per 3 dwelling units |
| Affordable housing | 1 per 4 dwelling units |
| Accommodations uses, except for bed and breaskfasts and short term rentals | 2 per 3 sleeping units |
| RV parks | 1 per trailer accommodation or "hook-up" |
| High schools (grades 9-12) | 1 per each 4 seats in the main assembly hall plus 1 for each classroom |
| Preschool, kindergarten, elementary and junior high schools (grades preschool through 8) | 2 spaces for each employee |
| Day care centers | 2 per employee |
| Church, synagogue, place of worship (other than on the peninsula) | 1 per 4 seats design capacity of the principal place of worship; 80 percent of the required spaces may be provided at an off-site public or private parking lot which is accessory to another use not open or operating during the time of weekend services and within 400 feet of the place of worship. Written permission from owner of lot indicating times parking is to be permitted shall be submitted to zoning administrator prior to approval. |
| Church, synagogue, place of worship (on the peninsula) | 1 per 8 seats design capacity of the principal of the principal place of worship with off-site parking allowed same as above. |
| Funeral home, mortuary, crematorium | 1 per 4 seats in sanctuary or 1 per 2 employees whichever is greater. |
| Health care facility; | 1 per 2 beds |
| Health care facility; | 1 per employee plus 1.5 per outpatient treatment room. |
| Laboratory, research facility | 1 per 2 employees |
| Place of public assembly auditorium, stadium, community center, theater | 1 per 6 seats or patrons (based on maximum occupancy etc. as allowed by Building Code) |
| Trade School, College, Institution of higher learning and accessory uses to such facility except dormitory, sorority, and fraternity housing | 1 per 100 square feet of total classroom space |
| Library | 3 per 1000 square feet of interior floor area. |
| Art gallery (non-retail), museum (on the peninsula) | 1 per 600 square feet (excluding storage) |
| Art gallery (non-retail), museum (all other areas) | 1 per 400 square feet (excluding storage) |
| Automobile repair garage | 1 per 2 employees at maximum employment on a single shift plus 1 per 150 square feet of automobile repair space. |
| Office, professional and public buildings bank (on the peninsula) | 1 per 500 square feet (excluding halls, stairwells, storage/elevator shafts and bathrooms) |
| Office, professional and public buildings, bank (all other areas) | 1 per 240 square feet (excluding halls, stairwells, storage/elevator shafts and bathrooms) |
| Eating and drinking places; sit down establishments serving food and beverage (on the peninsula) | 1 per 100 square feet of inside patron use area (excluding bathrooms) except that for a lot with this use that is more than 150 away from any lot with a residential zoning designation, measured closest point of the lot to closest point of the lot, the number of spaces required for inside patron use area shall be 1 per 150 square feet (excluding bathrooms), and 1 per 130 square feet of outside patron use area . |
| Eating and drinking places; sit down establishments serving food and beverage (all other areas) | 1 per 90 square feet of inside patron use area (excluding bathrooms), and 1 per 200 square feet of outside patron use area . |
| Eating places; fast food, drive-thru, take-out and/or express prepared food delivery only | 1 per 75 square feet of inside patron use area, plus 1 per 200 square feet of outside patron use area. |
| Eating places; drive-thru with no use area | 1 per employee at maximum shift inside patron plus 1 per delivery vehicle plus 1 per 200 square feet of outside patron use area. |
| Catering kitchen with no on-site food sales | 1 per 500 square feet of gross floor area |
| Retail and personal service establishments not including food stores (on the peninsula) | 1 per 400 square feet of gross floor area. |
| Retail and personal service establishments not including food stores (all other areas) | 1 per 200 square feet of gross floor area |
| Gas stations with convenience stores | In addition to one space for each pump facility, one per 400 square feet of floor area |
| Food stores (off-peninsula) | 1 per 300 square feet of floor area |
| Food stores (on-peninsula) | 1 per 400 square feet of floor area |
| Car wash (full service) | 2 per bay/stall plus 1 space per employee |
| Car wash (self serve) | 1 per washing module |
| Retail specialty stores selling only furniture, or large appliances, or carpet, or lumber, or or plants, or other specific types of household furnishings | 1 per 400 square feet of total floor area excluding storage areas plus 1 per store delivery vehicle. |
| Shopping center - a commercial development which includes one or more retail type uses listed in this table. The total floor area must equal 20,000 square feet or more, in one or more buildings, on one or more lots which are designed and laid out to function as an interrelated development, as evidenced by both shared driveways and parking. | 1 per 200 square feet leasable floor area for the first 20,000 total square feet. 1 per 250 square feet for 20,001 to 140,000 total leasable square feet. 1 per 300 square feet for total leasable square feet over 140,001. |
| Mini warehouse, self storage warehouse facility | 1 space per 6,000 square feet of net leaseable square footage of warehouse space, or fraction thereof, with up to half the required spaces and associated driveway areas permitted to remain unmarked for trucks and other large vehicles to park and maneuver. |
| Dry cleaners, laundry services | 1 per 300 square feet of customer use area plus 2 per 3 employees at maximum employment on a single shift. |
| Private club, fraternal lodges, country clubs | 1 per 3 persons allowed by Building Code in the main assembly room or auditorium. |
| Manufacturing, wholesale, or other industrial establishments not catering to retail trade | 1 per 2 employees at maximum employment on employment on a single shift plus 1 per company vehicle. |
| Recreational facilities (on the peninsula) | 1 per 8 patrons based on occupancy limit as determined by Building Code or based on design capacity. |
| Recreational facilities (other areas) | 1 per 4 patrons based on occupancy limit as determined by Building Code or based on design capacity. |
| Marinas | 1 per 4 dry slips 1 per 2 wet slips |
| Driving range | 1 per tee plus 1 per employee at maximum employment on a single shift. |
| Golf Course | 2 per tee plus 1 per employee at maximum employment on a single shift. |
| Bowling alleys | 5 per alley |
| Health club | 1 per 400 square feet of total floor area. |
Charleston, South Carolina - Zoning ARTICLE 3 - SITE REGULATIONS PART 4 - OFF-STREET PARKING REQUIREMENTS Sec. 54-317. - Required number of off-street parking spaces by land use. TABLE 3.3: OFF-STREET PARKING REQUIREMENTS
Charleston Bike Parking Requirements
| Land use | Number of spaces required |
|---|---|
| College dormitory | 1 per 3 beds |
| Schools (grade 3 through high school) | 3 per classroom |
| Library | 2 per 10,000 square feet of interior floor area |
| Food stores of at least 10,000 square feet | 5 per 10,000 square feet |
| Shopping centers as defined in Table 3.3 | 1 per 10,000 square feet |
TABLE 3.4: BICYCLE PARKING REQUIREMENTS
The parking requirements shown here are the typical required parking standards for the city of Charleston. Variance or exclusions to the parking count requirements could be allowed by the code for a specific project. The city of Charleston parking requirements are for general information. The Charleston standard parking requirements for an area can be modified by zoning overlays or other Charleston parking code requirements specific to each project.