How High Point Handles Parking Rules: A Practical Guide

High Point maintains 110 local ordinances across all categories, and 7 of those deal specifically with parking rules. Here is a breakdown of what the city actually requires, what is prohibited, and where High Point falls on the strict-to-permissive spectrum compared to other cities.

Abandoned Vehicles

High Point bans abandoning a motor vehicle on city-owned property or on private property anywhere in the city. The community housing and development director can declare an abandoned or junked vehicle a health or safety hazard, remove it to storage, and sell or destroy it under a set timeline.

Key details: Private-property grace period: 2 hours without owner consent. City-property limit: 24 hours. Public street limit: 7 days. Junked-vehicle value threshold: Over 5 years old, worth under $500. Storage hold before disposal: 30 days.

Abandoning a motor vehicle in violation of § 9-2-165 subjects the offender to civil penalties under § 1-1-4 and G.S. 160A-175, plus injunctions and other equitable remedies authorized by § 9-2-165(l)(1). An unpaid penalty may be recovered by the city as a civil debt if not paid within 15 days after citation, and the city may combine any of these remedies with towing and sale of the vehicle.

This is not one of those rules that cities tend to ignore. High Point actively enforces its abandoned vehicles requirements.

Street Parking Limits

High Point requires parked cars to sit within 12 inches of the curb, facing the correct direction, and bars parking in front of driveways or within 25 feet of an intersection.

Key details: Curb distance: Within 12 inches of curb. Wrong-way parking: Banned on two-way streets, § 10-1-154. Driveway blocking: Prohibited, § 10-1-156(a)(2). Intersection buffer: No parking within 25 feet.

Vehicles parked more than 12 inches from the curb, facing the wrong way, blocking a driveway, or within 25 feet of a corner may be cited and are subject to towing under § 10-1-54.

Overnight Parking

High Point, North Carolina authorizes police to tow and impound any vehicle parked on a public street between 1:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. under City Code Sec. 10-1-54(a)(2), one of eleven impoundment triggers the council adopted for the protection of the public health and to alleviate dangerous traffic congestion. The vehicle's owner pays every towing and storage cost, and the city must mail notice of the tow.

Key details: Governing section: City Code § 10-1-54(a)(2). Restricted hours: 1:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m., all public streets. Consequence: Tow and impoundment by police or city-contracted wrecker. Cost: Owner pays full towing and storage fee. Notice: Mailed to owner under § 10-1-198.

Beyond the towing and storage bill itself, an unpaid overnight-parking ticket is treated like any other parking citation under Sec. 5-1-41(a): a $50 fixed civil penalty due within seven days, rising to an additional $50 late penalty plus court costs if unpaid, or a further $25 if the owner settles after a civil debt action has already been filed but before trial. Removing or erasing an officer's tire chalk mark is a separate violation under Sec. 5-1-41(g).

Loading Zones

High Point, North Carolina bars tractor-trailer trucks from loading or unloading on designated downtown streets during three peak-traffic windows under City Code Sec. 10-1-211: 7:30 to 8:30 a.m., 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., and 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. Separately marked freight and passenger curb loading zones elsewhere in the city cap any stop at 30 minutes once signed by the Director of Transportation.

Key details: Governing section: City Code § 10-1-211. Truck-loading restricted hours: 7:30-8:30a, 11a-2p, 4-6p. Curb loading zone stop limit: 30 minutes maximum, §§ 10-1-214/215. Zones set by: Director of Transportation after engineering study. Ticket penalty: $50 fixed civil penalty, § 5-1-41(a).

Parking in a restricted commercial or passenger loading zone is a specific ticketable offense under Sec. 5-1-42(a)(18)a-b, carrying the $50.00 fixed civil penalty set by Sec. 5-1-41(a), due within seven days before an additional $50.00 late penalty and court costs attach. Sec. 10-1-54(a)(4) separately lists loading-zone parking among the violations that authorize police to tow and impound the vehicle, with the owner responsible for the full towing and storage bill.

Commercial & Oversized Vehicles

High Point's Development Ordinance bars parking any vehicle longer than 24 feet or heavier than 14,000 pounds gross vehicle weight in residential zoning districts under Sec. 4.4.5.S.3. The ban covers commercial trucks and oversized rigs, but carves out temporary loading and unloading, emergency and disaster service, recreational vehicles and travel trailers, vehicles on religious institution or school property, and vehicles needed to run a permitted on-site business.

Key details: Governing section: Development Ordinance § 4.4.5.S.3. Size threshold: Over 24 ft long or 14,000 lbs GVW. Where banned: All residential zoning districts. Exceptions: Loading, emergencies, RVs, church/school lots, business use. Penalty: $50-$500 escalating civil penalty, § 9.9.5.

A violation of Sec. 4.4.5.S.3 is enforced as a Development Ordinance civil penalty under Sec. 9.9.5, which states any violator 'shall be subject to assessment of a civil penalty in the amount of $50.00 for the first violation, $100.00 for the second violation, $200.00 for the third violation, and $500.00 for the fourth and each succeeding violation.' Sec. 9.9.2.E requires a separate written notice for each of the first four violations before penalties can begin accruing daily without further notice.

This is one of the stricter rules in High Point's municipal code. If you are unsure whether your situation complies, it is worth checking with the city before proceeding.

RV & Boat Parking

High Point lets residents keep an RV or travel trailer on a residential lot, but bans living in it there: occupancy is allowed only in an RV park or as a permitted temporary use.

Key details: Parking RV/trailer: Allowed, exempt from size ban. Living in it: Barred outside RV parks, § 4.4.5.S.4. Surface required: Improved surface, § 4.4.5.S.2. Boats: Not separately addressed in the code.

Living in a parked RV, camper, or travel trailer on a residential lot outside a permitted temporary use violates § 4.4.5.S.4 and can draw a zoning enforcement notice from the Planning & Development Department.

Driveway Rules

High Point requires any vehicle parked between a single-family or duplex home and the street to sit on a graveled or paved all-weather surface, not bare yard or dirt, per § 4.4.5(S)(2).

Key details: Surface required: Gravel or paved all-weather. Where it applies: Between house and street. Housing types covered: Single-family and duplex lots. Examples allowed: Asphalt, concrete, brick, stone.

Parking a vehicle on unimproved dirt or grass between the house and the street violates § 4.4.5(S)(2) and can draw a zoning enforcement notice requiring the surface be paved or graveled.

The Bottom Line

High Point is tougher than many cities when it comes to parking rules. Out of the 7 rules covered here, 2 are rated strict. If you are a homeowner, renter, or business owner in High Point, take the time to understand these requirements before they become a problem. Most violations come with fines, and some repeat violations can escalate.

All of the above reflects High Point's municipal code as of our last review. If you need specifics on fines, exemptions, or filing requirements, the detailed ordinance pages linked above have the full breakdown.