St. George's Parking Rules: The Rules That Matter

Every city handles parking rules a little differently. In St. George, Utah, there are 9 distinct rules that residents and property owners should be aware of. Some are stricter than what neighboring cities enforce, and others are more relaxed. Here is what you need to know.

Curb Color Rules

St. George paints curbs red to ban stopping, standing or parking entirely, at any time, reserving the space for emergency vehicles only.

Key details: Who sets zones: City engineer. Red curb meaning: No stopping/standing/parking, any time. Exception: Emergency vehicles only. Base fine: $25, rising with delay.

General parking violations run $25, rising to $35 after 5 days and $45 after 10 days ($25/month penalty accrues thereafter); police may also relocate an illegally parked vehicle.

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

Abandoned Vehicles

St. George bars keeping any inoperable vehicle or vessel on property, with a narrow exception for one covered vehicle in a residential front yard while it's being worked on.

Key details: Governing section: City Code § 4-10-3. Front-yard limit: 1 vehicle, covered, no tarps. Extra inoperable vehicles: must be fully enclosed. Covers: vehicles and vessels alike. Home occupations: exception does not apply.

Property owners, possessors, or those in charge of the property are liable; the city's neighborhood services/code enforcement division cites violations as municipal ordinance offenses under the general penalty schedule in City Code § 1-4-1.

Overnight Parking

St. George bars parking any vehicle or trailer on a city street or alley for more than 96 consecutive hours, enforced as a civil parking infraction with escalating fines.

Key details: Time limit: 96 consecutive hours. Applies to: Any street or alley. Base fine: $25, rising to $45. Process: Civil infraction, not criminal. Late penalty: $25/month after 15 days.

Civil parking infraction: $25 if paid/contested within 5 days, $35 within 6-10 days, $45 within 11-15 days, plus $25/month added after 15 days unpaid.

Commercial & Oversized Vehicles

St. George prohibits parking semi-trucks or trailers on any public road, street, alley or municipal property, with only a 4-hour window for active commercial loading or delivery.

Key details: Governs: Semi-trucks and trailers on public streets/alleys. Time limit: 4 hours, commercial loading only. Enforcement: Police-ordered tow and impound. Fine: $25, rising to $45 after 10 days.

Unlawful to park/leave standing a semi-truck or trailer on public roads, streets, alleys or municipal property beyond the 4-hour commercial-loading exception; police may tow and impound, with costs charged to the owner, plus the standard parking-fine schedule.

This is not one of those rules that cities tend to ignore. St. George actively enforces its commercial & oversized vehicles requirements.

Loading Zones

New or expanded commercial buildings in St. George must provide dedicated on-site loading and unloading space, separate from required parking and access aisles.

Key details: Governing section: City Code § 10-20-6. Applies to: Manufacturing, retail, hotel, hospital uses. Trigger: New construction or capacity increase. Loading space: Cannot double as required parking. Effective date: Since Ord. 2019-10-002, Oct. 10, 2019.

Building without adequate on-site loading space, or double-counting loading area as required parking, is a zoning code violation addressed through the city's site plan review and permitting process rather than a standalone fine schedule.

EV Charging

New parking areas in St. George, including multi-family developments, must rough in electrical capacity for EV charging at 1% of required spaces.

Key details: EV rough-in requirement: 1% of required parking spaces. Applies to: All new parking areas, incl. multi-family. What's required: Electrical capacity + conduit, not live chargers. Governing chapter: Title 10, Chapter 19, Off-Street Parking.

A new multi-family parking area built without the 1% electrical capacity and conduit rough-in fails development standards review under title 10, chapter 19, and can be held up at plan check or certificate of occupancy by the city's Community Development Department until corrected.

Street Parking Limits

St. George bans stopping or parking in front of driveways, on sidewalks, within intersections, near fire hydrants, and requires parking parallel within 12 inches of the curb citywide.

Key details: Curb distance: within 12 inches, parallel. Driveway blocking: prohibited citywide. Fire hydrant buffer: 15 feet. Crosswalk buffer: 20 feet at intersections. Max time on street: 96 consecutive hours.

Violations are parking infractions under Title 6; vehicles blocking driveways, hydrants, or intersections are subject to citation and may be towed at the owner's expense.

Driveway Rules

St. George requires driveways to be paved with concrete, asphalt, or approved pavers, though homes in the RE-20, RE-37.5, A-0.5, and A-1 zones may use a gravel surface behind five feet of paving.

Key details: Paving required: Concrete, asphalt, or approved pavers. Gravel exception: RE-20, RE-37.5, A-0.5, A-1 zones only. Max driveways: Two per residential lot. Max width: 50 feet or 50% of frontage. Min driveway separation: 12 feet apart, 6 feet from lot line.

Unpaved or gravel-only driveways outside the four excepted zones violate the city's design standards; the applicant must replace unused curb cuts with standard curb, gutter, sidewalk, and pavement before occupancy is granted.

RV & Boat Parking

St. George prohibits parking RVs, trailers, or boats on front lawns, sidewalks, or required landscape area; the vehicle must sit on a paved front-setback driveway or gravel side setback instead.

Key details: Front lawn/landscape parking: Prohibited. Front setback parking: Allowed if paved. Side setback parking: Allowed on gravel. Covers: RVs, trailers, boats (any vehicle).

St. George code enforcement can order an improperly parked RV, trailer, or boat off the lawn and cite the property owner for a zoning violation until it's moved to a compliant surface.

The Bottom Line

St. George is tougher than many cities when it comes to parking rules. Out of the 9 rules covered here, 2 are rated strict. If you are a homeowner, renter, or business owner in St. George, take the time to understand these requirements before they become a problem. Most violations come with fines, and some repeat violations can escalate.

These rules come from St. George's publicly available municipal code. For complete penalty schedules, exemption details, and answers to common questions, see the individual ordinance pages throughout this guide.