How Miramar Handles Parking Rules: A Practical Guide

Miramar maintains 135 local ordinances across all categories, and 8 of those deal specifically with parking rules. Here is a breakdown of what the city actually requires, what is prohibited, and where Miramar falls on the strict-to-permissive spectrum compared to other cities.

Driveway Rules

Miramar bars parking any commercial or passenger vehicle on private property, including the lawn area, except in a driveway, carport, or garage, under City Code § 20-49(h). Passenger cars may park in the swale abutting a residential lot only with the abutting property owner's consent, and unlicensed vehicles are barred outright regardless of location.

Key details: Approved parking areas: Driveway, carport, or garage only. Lawn parking: Prohibited for all vehicles. Swale parking: Passenger cars only, with owner consent. Standard fine: $30 per violation. Governing section: City Code § 20-49(h).

Parking on the lawn, in a side yard, or on any unpaved area other than the driveway, carport, or garage is a Chapter 20 violation subject to the standard $30 fine under § 20-52(b), with the vehicle's owner and the property owner jointly liable under § 20-52(a). As with other parking violations, tickets can be contested within ten days before the Clerk of the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit acting as hearing officer under § 20-53.

EV Charging

New construction in Miramar, other than single-family homes, duplexes, triplexes and communities under 10 units, must build in electric vehicle charging infrastructure under LDC Section 808.7: at least 1 reserved EV space once 20 parking spaces are required, rising to 4 charging spaces plus added EV-ready spots once a site needs 75 or more.

Key details: Reserved EV spaces at 20+ required spaces: at least 1. Reserved EV spaces at 75+ required spaces: at least 4, each charged. EV-Ready share: 3% of spaces, 40A/240V circuit. EV-Capable share: 15% of required spaces. Minimum charging level: AC Level 2.

A site plan that omits the required reserved, EV-ready or EV-capable spaces fails Community and Economic Development Department review and will not receive a building permit. Parking a gas-powered vehicle in a designated EV charging space is separately unlawful under Florida Statutes Section 366.94, as cross-referenced in Section 808.7.1. General noncompliance with the Land Development Code is enforced under the city's general penalty, Code of Ordinances Section 1-13, up to a $500 fine or 60 days' imprisonment.

RV & Boat Parking

Miramar caps residential lots to one trailer, one RV, or one boat unless extras sit inside a fully enclosed garage, under City Code § 20-49(c). Boats are limited to 25 feet in length and 7 feet in beam, and boats, trailers, and RVs must be kept on a driveway, in an enclosed garage or carport, or in the side, rear, or fenced rear yard.

Key details: Unit limit: 1 trailer, 1 RV, or 1 boat. Max boat length/beam: 25 ft length / 7 ft beam. RV storage location: Driveway, garage/carport, or fenced rear yard. Boat trailer requirement: Current license plate required. Extra units require: Fully enclosed, roofed & walled structure.

Exceeding the one-trailer/RV/boat limit, parking oversized boats or unlicensed trailers, or storing recreational equipment outside the permitted driveway, garage, carport, or fenced/side/rear-yard locations is enforced as a Chapter 20 parking violation. Owners and property owners are jointly liable under § 20-52(a), the standard fine is $30 under § 20-52(b), and tickets can be contested within ten days before the hearing officer under § 20-53.

Loading Zones

Miramar requires every retail, industrial, hotel and institutional building to provide its own off-street loading space sized at least 10 feet wide, 25 feet long and 14 feet of vertical clearance, with the number of spaces set on a sliding scale by gross floor area under LDC Section 808.5.

Key details: Minimum space size: 10 ft wide x 25 ft long. Vertical clearance required: 14 feet. Retail up to 25,000 sq ft: 1 loading space. Retail over 100,000 sq ft: 4 loading spaces. Hotel or motel: 1 space per building.

Loading requirements are enforced at site plan and building permit review by the Community and Economic Development Department; plans that omit the required space, dimensions or clearance are not approved and a certificate of occupancy will not issue. An owner who later eliminates a required loading space without city approval is in violation of the Land Development Code and subject to the city's general penalty, Code of Ordinances Section 1-13: up to a $500 fine, up to 60 days' imprisonment, or both, with each day counted separately.

Street Parking Limits

Miramar's parking code bans facing oncoming traffic, blocking driveways, and stopping in a way that impedes traffic flow on any city street, right-of-way, or swale. City Code § 20-48 also bars parking within 15 feet of a fire hydrant, within 25 feet of a crosswalk, and within 30 feet of a stop or yield sign. Police and code enforcement ticket violations under a set fine schedule.

Key details: Governing section: City Code § 20-48. Standard fine: $30 per violation. Fire hydrant clearance: 15 feet minimum. Crosswalk/intersection clearance: 25 feet minimum. Contest deadline: 10 days from ticket date.

Most § 20-48 violations, including blocking a driveway, facing oncoming traffic, and impeding traffic flow, carry a $30 fine under § 20-52(b)'s schedule; parking near a fire hydrant or in a fire lane draws a $100 fine, and disabled-parking violations draw $250. Unpaid tickets add a $12 late fee after ten business days. Contested tickets go to a hearing officer within 30 days under § 20-53, who may impose up to $100, or $250 for disabled-parking violations.

Commercial & Oversized Vehicles

Commercial motor vehicles cannot stop, stand, or park in Miramar's residential zoning districts under City Code § 20-49(b), with narrow exceptions for short deliveries, active permitted construction work, one-ton pickup and panel trucks, and vehicles kept entirely inside a garage or carport. A parallel rule bars unrelated truck storage in commercial and industrial zones.

Key details: Governing section: City Code § 20-49(b). Delivery/pickup exception: Up to 2 hours. Exempt truck size: 1 ton or less (pickup/panel). Construction exception: Requires current valid permit. Standard fine: $30 per violation.

Violating § 20-49(b)'s commercial-vehicle restriction is cited like other Chapter 20 parking offenses: police or code enforcement can ticket the vehicle owner, with joint liability for the property owner where it's parked, under § 20-52(a). The standard fine is $30 per § 20-52(b)'s schedule, with a $12 late fee if the ticket isn't paid or appealed within ten business days, and contests go before the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit's hearing officer under § 20-53.

Abandoned Vehicles

Miramar bars parking an inoperable or derelict vehicle in residential zones under City Code § 20-49(a), subjecting it to towing at the owner's expense under § 20-51. A separate abandoned-property article, §§ 10-46 and 10-47, lets enforcement officers post a 72-hour removal notice on a derelict vehicle before it is presumed abandoned and towed.

Key details: Removal notice period: 72 hours after posting. Towing authority: Police dept./code enforcement, § 20-51. Nonresidential exception: Licensed vehicle-dealing businesses, § 20-50(a). Admin fee to city: $25 or 10% of salvage value. Junk accumulation penalty: Misdemeanor under § 10-49(d).

Towing and storage costs for an inoperable, derelict, or abandoned vehicle fall on the registered owner under §§ 20-51 and 10-47. Owners who fail to remove a posted vehicle within the 72-hour notice period lose it to removal and destruction as presumed-abandoned property. Separately, letting junk vehicles or parts accumulate on a property in a way that creates a fire or safety hazard is a misdemeanor under § 10-49(d), punishable as provided in § 1-13.

Preferential Parking Districts

Miramar's parking code lets the police chief, with the city manager's concurrence, designate specific streets or areas as restricted parking zones to protect resident safety, then mark them with signage under City Code § 20-48(q). The city has no separate residential parking-permit program; restricted areas are created case by case through this administrative designation, not a citywide sticker system.

Key details: Designating authority: Police chief with city manager's concurrence. Governing section: City Code § 20-48(q). Required marking: Posted signs at designated area. Standard fine for violation: $30 per ticket. No residency-permit program: Sign-based, not sticker-based.

Parking in a posted restricted area designated under § 20-48(q) is enforced as a "no parking zone" violation under § 20-48(n), which carries the standard $30 fine set in § 20-52(b)'s schedule (the disabled-parking and fire-hydrant/fire-lane categories carry higher $250 and $100 fines but do not apply here). Tickets can be contested within ten days before the Clerk of the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, Broward County, acting as hearing officer under § 20-53.

The Bottom Line

Miramar's parking rules rules are a mixed bag. Some areas are strict, others are relaxed, and the details matter. The best approach is to check the specific rule that applies to your situation rather than assuming Miramar is broadly strict or permissive.

This guide is based on Miramar's current municipal code. Local rules can and do change, so check the individual ordinance pages for the latest details, penalties, and FAQs.