Yakima's Parking Rules: The Rules That Matter

Every city handles parking rules a little differently. In Yakima, Washington, there are 11 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.

EV Charging

Yakima Municipal Code § 15.06.035 allows electric vehicle charging stations as an accessory use to an approved principal use in eleven zoning districts, from the B-1 professional business district through the M-2 heavy industrial district. Stations in public parking lots or on-street public parking areas need a right-of-way use permit instead, and none are allowed on resource lands or in critical areas.

Key details: Governing section: YMC § 15.06.035. Allowed districts: B-1, B-2, HB, SCC, LCC, CBD, GC, M-1, M-2, RD, AS. Accessory use only: Must accompany an approved principal use. Public/on-street parking: Requires right-of-way use permit, YMC Ch. 8.20. Excluded areas: Resource lands and critical areas.

Code compliance officers, along with law enforcement officers, their manager and supervisor, are authorized to enforce Title 15 under YMC § 1.48.026(A)(3). A charging station built as an accessory use without the development permit required by YMC § 15.06.020 is an unpermitted parking-facility modification; one built in the right-of-way without the Chapter 8.20 permit is an unlawful private use of public right-of-way. Either can trigger a stop-work or correction order, with appeal rights running through YMC Chapter 16.08.

Loading Zones

Yakima requires businesses with frequent truck loading to provide off-street loading docks at least 12 feet wide and 25 feet long, with 52 feet of on-site maneuvering space.

Key details: Minimum dock size: 12 ft wide, 25 ft long. Maneuvering space: 52 feet minimum. Permit required: Development permit, § 15.06.020. Governing section: YMC § 15.06.130.

Installing or modifying a loading space without a development permit, or building one that projects into the right-of-way or falls short of the 12-by-25-foot minimum, violates YMC §§ 15.06.020 and 15.06.130.

Abandoned Vehicles

Yakima treats any junk vehicle on public or private property as a public nuisance: YMC § 9.47.030 lets the code administration and planning manager order it towed, bills or liens the registered or property owner, but exempts a vehicle fully enclosed in a building or screened by a six-foot fence.

Key details: Hearing request window: 15 days from mailed notice. Hearing scheduled: 10 to 30 days after request. Exemption: 6-ft fence screen or full enclosure. Appeal route: Yakima County district court. Unpaid costs: Recorded lien like a mechanic's lien.

Owners who ignore the Notice of Intention to Abate and skip the 15-day hearing window lose the right to contest removal and become liable for abatement costs; the city can foreclose its recorded lien the same way a mechanic's lien is foreclosed under RCW Chapter 60.04. A vehicle can still be saved from abatement at any point before pickup by enclosing it in a building or behind a six-foot screening fence under § 9.47.030(G)(1).

Compared to other cities, Yakima takes a harder line on abandoned vehicles. The enforcement and penalty structure reflects that.

RV & Boat Parking

Yakima exempts recreational vehicles from its public-camping ban only while parked on a residential street for 24 hours or less, bars using an RV as an accessory dwelling without a city permit, and still requires compliance with Chapter 9.50 parking rules.

Key details: Time limit: 24 hours on residential streets. ADU use: barred without city permit. Also governed by: Chapter 9.50 parking rules. Penalty: misdemeanor, up to $1,000.

A violation of Chapter 6.91, including exceeding the 24-hour RV limit, is a misdemeanor under § 6.91.090: up to a $1,000 fine, up to 90 days in jail, or both.

Street Parking Limits

Yakima bars parking in residential alleys that blocks a driveway entrance or leaves less than ten feet of roadway open for traffic.

Key details: Minimum alley clearance: 10 feet of roadway. Fine: $50 per violation. Exception: Active loading/unloading only. Applies to: Residential district alleys.

Parking in a residential alley that blocks a driveway or narrows the roadway below ten feet is a fifty-dollar parking infraction under the city's penalty schedule, YMC § 9.60.030.

Overnight Parking

Yakima prohibits parking between the sidewalk and the curb or paved roadway edge from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m., a narrow overnight rule rather than a citywide overnight parking ban.

Key details: Restricted hours: 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.. Restricted area: Between sidewalk and curb/roadway edge. Violation type: Parking infraction. Enforcing agency: Yakima Police Department.

Parking a vehicle between the sidewalk and curb/roadway edge from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. is a parking infraction, cited by Yakima police under YMC Chapter 9.60 enforcement procedures.

Commercial & Oversized Vehicles

Yakima caps how long a large truck can sit on a residential street: YMC § 9.50.100 bars parking any vehicle over 20 feet long in a residential district for more than one continuous hour, except while it's actively being loaded or unloaded.

Key details: Length threshold: Over 20 feet. Time limit: 1 continuous hour. Exception: Active, expeditious loading/unloading only. Applies to: Residential districts only. Default penalty: Up to $500 / 90 days, general Title 9.

Because § 9.50.100 isn't one of the flat-fee violations itemized in YMC § 9.60.030's parking-infraction table, an oversized-truck violation defaults to that section's general Title 9 penalty: a fine of up to $500, up to 90 days in jail, or both, for anyone convicted of violating any provision of the traffic title. Officers ticket under the same parking-infraction-notice procedure in YMC § 9.60.040, which adds a $5 late penalty if unpaid within seven days and $15 if unpaid after 30 days.

Driveway Rules

Yakima bars parking utility, recreational, or motor vehicles and trailers in the front yard unless the vehicle sits on an improved driveway surface, with narrow exceptions for the county fair and licensed vehicle businesses.

Key details: Rule: Front-yard parking needs improved surface. Improved surface: Gravel, cement, pavers, asphalt, brick. Exception: State Fair / July 4th area. Exception: Licensed vehicle businesses.

Parking a vehicle or trailer on bare dirt or grass in the front yard without an improved driveway surface is a Property Maintenance Code violation subject to notice and code enforcement action.

Preferential Parking Districts

Yakima issues residential parking permits for a defined central business district zone, letting qualifying residents park exempt from posted time limits within a quarter mile of home.

Key details: Permits per unit: Two maximum. Zone: Downtown CBD, excludes core district. Range: Quarter mile from residence. Issuing office: Director of finance and budget. Term: One year, renewable.

Displaying a permit on a wrong vehicle or giving false information to obtain one is unlawful under YMC § 9.50.200(D)(6); the director can also decline or revoke permits.

Curb Color Rules

Yakima's city traffic engineer, not property owners or businesses, decides where curbs get painted and what the color means: YMC § 9.15.110 lets the engineer replace or supplement signs with stenciled curb markings, and sets a color code where yellow means loading/no-parking and blue means handicapped parking.

Key details: Yellow curb: Loading zones and no-parking zones. Blue curb: Handicapped parking only. Who authorizes marking: City traffic engineer only. Marking style: Words stenciled directly on curb. General parking fine: $20 base, per YMC § 9.60.030.

Parking against a properly painted curb (blocking a marked yellow loading zone or blue handicapped space) is enforced the same as any other posted parking restriction: YMC § 9.60.030 sets the base parking-infraction penalty at $20, rising by a $5 late fee if unpaid within seven days and $15 if it remains unpaid after 30 days under YMC § 9.60.040. Unauthorized curb painting by a non-city party isn't a listed infraction, but altering a public curb without authority can be charged under Title 9's general misdemeanor penalty: up to $500 and 90 days in jail under YMC § 9.60.030.

Snow Removal Parking Rules

During a declared snow alert, Yakima bans parking on posted snow routes until snowfall stops and plowing finishes, with violators subject to citation, towing, and relocation fees.

Key details: Snow alert trigger: 3+ inches accumulation. Who declares alert: City manager or designee. Max penalty: $50 per day. Enforcement: Citation, relocation, or towing.

Parking on a posted snow route during a snow alert is a civil infraction with a penalty up to $50 per day under YMC § 8.88.030, and the vehicle may be relocated or towed at the owner's expense.

The Bottom Line

Yakima'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 Yakima is broadly strict or permissive.

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