Moving to Shreveport, LA? Here Are the Local Rules You Should Know

Shreveport is a mid-sized city in Caddo Parish, Louisiana, with about 188000 residents. Like most cities its size, it has a set of local rules that may differ significantly from neighboring municipalities. Here is an overview of 152 ordinances across 41 categories that affect daily life in Shreveport.

Environmental Rules

Erosion Control: Shreveport requires an erosion and sedimentation control permit from the Department of Engineering and Environmental Services before clearing, grading, excavating or filling anywhere in the city or the Cross Lake watershed, with only narrow exemptions..

Also covered: Flood Elevation Requirements (moderate), Flood Zones (moderate), Boat Dock Permits (moderate). See the full environmental rules guide for Shreveport for details.

Public Conduct

Loitering Rules: Willfully blocking a sidewalk, street, alley, or the entrance to a public building in Shreveport is a crime under Code of Ordinances Sec. 50-140.

Also covered: Jaywalking (moderate), Public Urination (moderate), Public Marijuana Use (moderate). See the full public conduct guide for Shreveport for details.

Swimming Pools & Spas

Pool Permits: Shreveport requires a building permit before installing or altering any swimming pool, and Chapter 22 imposes an unusually hard rule during construction: an in-ground pool excavation must be fenced and locked from the moment it is dug..

Also covered: Fencing & Safety Requirements (moderate). See the full swimming pools & spas guide for Shreveport for details.

Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors

Vending Zones: Shreveport food trucks may only operate where a permanent business already holds a certificate of occupancy, in zoning districts the Use Matrix allows. Vacant lots and single-family or two-family residential property are off limits..

Also covered: Food Truck Permits (moderate), Sidewalk & Mobile Vending (restrictive). See the full food trucks & mobile vendors guide for Shreveport for details.

Soliciting & Door-to-Door

Solicitor Permits: Door-to-door solicitation in Shreveport requires an annual permit for both the company and each individual solicitor, costing $100.00 and backed by a criminal background report. Sex-offender and recent violent-crime registrants are barred..

Also covered: No-Knock Registry (moderate). See the full soliciting & door-to-door guide for Shreveport for details.

Fire Regulations

Fireworks: Discharging, selling or igniting fireworks anywhere in Shreveport is illegal year-round except inside three windows set by Sec. 30-91: noon June 16 to 10 p.m.

Also covered: Wildfire Zones (permissive), Smoke Detectors (moderate). See the full fire regulations guide for Shreveport for details.

Short-Term Rentals

Noise Rules: Shreveport doesn't set a decibel limit for short-term rentals; instead it bans the events that cause noise complaints outright. Weddings, corporate functions, and other large gatherings likely to disturb the neighborhood are prohibited at both Type A and Type B properties..

Also covered: Taxes & Fees (moderate), Extended Home Share (moderate), Short-Term Rental Parking Rules (moderate). See the full short-term rentals guide for Shreveport for details.

Noise from Specific Sources

Delivery Truck Noise: Shreveport doesn't give delivery and pick-up trucks their own noise rule; Sec. 58-28(a) folds them into the general noise ordinance, which caps sound at 55 dBA daytime and 50 dBA nighttime at residential property, 60 dBA at commercial property, measured at the receiving property line..

Also covered: Bar & Nightclub Noise (moderate). See the full noise from specific sources guide for Shreveport for details.

Public Health Rules

Rodent Control: New business buildings, curb markets and farmers' markets in Shreveport must be built ratproof under chapter 58's rodent control article. The health officer can inspect any business building without notice for rat infestation, and can order an owner to install rat-stoppage measures within at least 15 days once one is found..

Also covered: Syringe Disposal (permissive). See the full public health rules guide for Shreveport for details.

Noise Ordinances

Amplified Music & Outdoor Sound: Shreveport rewrote its noise law in November 2023 with hard decibel limits by property type. Any loudspeaker used out of doors or on a vehicle requires a city permit, and enforcement runs through a designated police noise enforcement officer..

Also covered: Vehicle Noise (moderate), Decibel Limits (moderate), Quiet Hours (moderate). See the full noise ordinances guide for Shreveport for details.

Animal Ordinances

Exotic Pets: Shreveport Code § 14-6 lists tigers, wolves, primates, venomous snakes, alligators and dozens of other wild or exotic species and bans keeping any of them as a pet, for display, or for sale. A grandfather clause protects only animals acquired before May 23, 1989; anything newer triggers a dual state and city citation..

Also covered: Microchipping (moderate), Cat Rules (limited), Pet Limits (moderate). See the full animal ordinances guide for Shreveport for details.

Business Licensing & Operations

Auto Repair on Residential Property: Shreveport flatly bars repairing or servicing vehicles or heavy machinery as a home-based business. The UDC also blocks storing tractor trailers, semi-trucks, or commercial construction equipment at a residence, closing off home auto-repair shops and residential equipment yards alike..

Also covered: Pawnbrokers (moderate), Secondhand Dealers (moderate), Tobacco Retail License (restrictive). See the full business licensing & operations guide for Shreveport for details.

Landscaping Rules

Weed Ordinances: Shreveport caps grass, weeds and wild growth at 12 inches on every occupied, vacant, residential and nonresidential property. Fines escalate from $150 to $350, and city abatement adds a $500 administrative charge secured by a lien on the property..

Also covered: Tree Trimming (moderate), Composting (moderate), Rainwater Harvesting (permissive). See the full landscaping rules guide for Shreveport for details.

Sign Regulations

Digital Billboards: Shreveport allows new electronic billboards only in C-2, C-3, C-4, I-1 and I-2 districts or within 660 feet of an interstate or primary highway on commercial or industrial land, and only after an old sign is torn down. Once up, messages must hold for eight seconds and brightness is capped by daylight and night limits..

Also covered: Holiday Displays (permissive), Garage Sale Signs (moderate), Political Signs (moderate). See the full sign regulations guide for Shreveport for details.

Parking Rules

Abandoned Vehicles: Shreveport gives wrecked or inoperable vehicles 48 hours on private property before they become an abatable nuisance. Inoperable vehicles must be fully enclosed in a garage.

Also covered: Loading Zones (moderate), Curb Color Rules (moderate), Preferential Parking Districts (moderate). See the full parking rules guide for Shreveport for details.

Special Events & Permits

Parklets: Shreveport has no ordinance for parklets built in parking spaces, but downtown restaurants can occupy adjoining sidewalk space under the sidewalk cafe and bistro permit in section 78-139(b). Permits run through a joint committee of the downtown development authority, MPC, police and public works, cost $200.00 the first year and $100.00 to renew, and expire every December 31..

Also covered: Parade Permits (restrictive), Park Event Permits (restrictive). See the full special events & permits guide for Shreveport for details.

Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules

Encroachment Permits: Anyone wanting to build, place or extend something over, under or into a Shreveport street, alley, sidewalk or public right-of-way needs an encroachment permit, authorized by city council ordinance and signed by the mayor. The city engineer sets the application rules, and the permit carries a one-time $50.00 fee on top of a separate $1,500.00 processing fee..

Also covered: Obstruction Rules (moderate). See the full sidewalk & pedestrian rules guide for Shreveport for details.

Trash & Recycling

Illegal Dumping: Shreveport bans dumping dirt, rubbish or any waste, liquid or solid, on any public way, in any river, canal, drain or sewer, or anywhere it could wash into one, under Code of Ordinances section 58-132(a). Violators face a fine up to $1,000.00 or ten days in jail under section 58-118, enforced by public works and the police department..

Also covered: Dumpster Rules (moderate), Yard Waste Collection (moderate), Pickup Rules & Schedules (moderate). See the full trash & recycling guide for Shreveport for details.

Building Safety

Plumbing Permits: Shreveport enforces the Louisiana State Plumbing Code, incorporated by reference through Sec. 22-26, and Sec.

Also covered: Fire Sprinkler Requirements (moderate), Electrical Permits (restrictive), Building Permits (moderate). See the full building safety guide for Shreveport for details.

Outdoor Cooking

BBQ & Propane Rules: Shreveport's Property Standards Code bars propane cooking devices from use inside any dwelling or dwelling unit, effectively pushing propane grills and camp stoves onto the patio or balcony. Section 38-15 makes one narrow exception for food trays or salvers warmed by a candle or alcohol lamp that already carry the required approvals.

Rental Property Rules

Repairs & Habitability: Every rental dwelling in Shreveport has to meet the maintenance floor set out in section 38-12 of the Property Standards Code. Owners must keep foundations, exterior walls, roofs, stairs, plumbing, hot and cold water, heat and electrical systems safe and functioning before they lease or sublease a unit, and for as long as anyone occupies it.

Also covered: Rent Control (permissive), Just Cause Eviction (permissive), Rental Registration (permissive). See the full rental property rules guide for Shreveport for details.

Code Violation Reporting

Response Times: When someone complains about an inoperable vehicle sitting on a Shreveport property, the department of property standards doesn't just issue a warning and move on. Section 38-31(c) requires it to serve written notice of the violation and gives the person in possession of the vehicle, or the property owner, exactly ten days from receipt to bring it into compliance, with an appeal right to the environmental court..

Also covered: How to Report (limited). See the full code violation reporting guide for Shreveport for details.

Fence Regulations

Fence Permit Requirements: Every fence in Shreveport, new construction or a repair to an existing one, needs a building permit under the UDC's general fence requirements. No principal building has to exist first, but the fence must stay in good repair and any damaged section has to be fixed, removed, or replaced..

Also covered: Material Restrictions (moderate), Retaining Walls (moderate), Height Limits (moderate). See the full fence regulations guide for Shreveport for details.

Home Business

Signage Rules: Shreveport bans any sign, display, or activity that shows from outside a house that it's being used for a home-based business. The UDC's home occupation standard requires the use to be completely invisible from the street, so there is no allowance for even a small identification sign..

Also covered: Zoning & Home Occupation Permits (moderate), Cottage Food Operations (moderate), Home Daycare (moderate). See the full home business guide for Shreveport for details.

Right to Farm

Agricultural Zoning Protection: Shreveport's Unified Development Code creates the R-A Rural Agricultural Zoning District specifically to permit single-family homes within agricultural areas while protecting farming activity. Under UDC Section 4.2.A.1, new residences in R-A must be compatible with surrounding agricultural operations, and the district's regulations are structured to maintain and preserve those operations rather than let subdivisions crowd them out..

Zoning Overlays & Bonuses

Downtown Design Guide: Shreveport's D-1 Downtown Zoning District applies Table 4-6 design standards to new construction and major facade rehabilitation across six downtown sub-districts. UDC Section 4.4.D.1 bars long blank walls, requires distinctive entrances, and imposes ground-floor transparency minimums, tailoring the rules to the Core, Entertainment, Commercial Mixed-Use, Residential Mixed-Use, Arts and Culture, and Heavy Commercial areas..

Data Centers & Crypto Mining

Data Center Zoning & Siting: Shreveport's UDC treats data centers as a zoning use limited by size and distance to housing. Section 6.1.L requires a special use permit for any data center within 200 feet of a residential district, caps size at 40,000 square feet in the C-3 and C-4 commercial districts and 80,000 square feet in the I-MU and OR districts, and requires all cooling and power equipment to be fully enclosed..

Accessory Structures

Garage Conversions: The space above a Shreveport detached garage's parking spaces cannot include a kitchen or sleeping area under the UDC, only an office or recreation room, unless it is approved as an accessory dwelling unit through an administrative special use permit. Only one detached garage is allowed per lot..

Also covered: ADU Rules (moderate), Tiny Homes (moderate), Shed & Carport Rules (moderate). See the full accessory structures guide for Shreveport for details.

Outdoor Lighting

Billboard Lighting: Billboard lighting in Shreveport is tightly numeric. UDC Section 9.8.E requires every electronic billboard to run a dimmer and a photocell that reads ambient light automatically, and it caps brightness at 6,000 nits in daylight and 500 nits from dusk to dawn, measured straight off the sign face..

Also covered: Light Trespass & Shielding (moderate), Dark Sky Rules (moderate). See the full outdoor lighting guide for Shreveport for details.

Drone Rules

Recreational Drones: Recreational drone flying in Shreveport is governed by FAA rules, not a city ordinance, because Louisiana preempts local drone regulation. The one live local rule is that model aircraft may fly in city parks only where the recreation director designates..

Also covered: Commercial Drones (permissive). See the full drone rules guide for Shreveport for details.

Solar Energy

HOA Restrictions: Louisiana forbids any person or entity from unreasonably restricting a property owner's right to install a solar collector. The protection does not override zoning, servitudes, or building restrictions requiring prior approval, and it does not reach historic districts..

Also covered: Panel Permits (moderate). See the full solar energy guide for Shreveport for details.

Property Maintenance

Property Blight: Shreveport runs blight enforcement through the department of property standards and an administrative environmental court. Inspectors serve notices, hearing officers order abatement and levy fines, and unpaid costs become recorded liens that can end in demolition or sale..

Also covered: Vacant Lot Maintenance (strict), Snow & Sidewalk Clearing (permissive). See the full property maintenance guide for Shreveport for details.

Cannabis Regulations

Dispensary Zoning: Shreveport has no dispensary provisions at all. Neither the Code of Ordinances nor the Unified Development Code mentions marijuana as a land use.

Also covered: Home Cultivation (strict). See the full cannabis regulations guide for Shreveport for details.

Curfew Laws

Juvenile Curfew: Shreveport bars anyone under 18 from public property and public businesses between 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m., with the curfew starting at midnight on Friday and Saturday.

Also covered: Park Curfew (moderate). See the full curfew laws guide for Shreveport for details.

Building Setbacks & Zoning

Setback Rules: Required front, interior side, corner side and rear setbacks in Shreveport come from Unified Development Code Table 4-1 and change district by district. Article 7 then lists which accessory structures and architectural features may encroach into those required setbacks..

Also covered: Structure Height Limits (moderate), Lot Coverage Limits (moderate). See the full building setbacks & zoning guide for Shreveport for details.

Tree Protection

Parkway Planting: Want to plant a tree in the parkway strip between the curb and the sidewalk? Shreveport's UDC requires notifying the Public Works Department or the Parks and Recreation agency, SPAR, first, and the species and placement have to match the standards set out in the Code's landscape article..

Also covered: Heritage & Protected Trees (permissive). See the full tree protection guide for Shreveport for details.

Mobility & Curb Rules

Shared E-Scooter Rules: Shreveport prohibits operating any electric low-speed scooter, defined as a rental or commercial scooter under 100 pounds capable of exceeding five miles per hour, on sidewalks, bicycle paths, rights-of-way, streets or highways citywide. The ban targets dockless rental fleets, not private ownership.

Also covered: Bike Lane Rules (limited), Red-Light Cameras (moderate). See the full mobility & curb rules guide for Shreveport for details.

Hurricane Preparedness

Flood Elevation: Shreveport's director of public works must obtain and record the actual elevation of the lowest habitable floor of every new or substantially improved structure in a flood hazard area under Sec. 34-50, the elevation certificate residents need for accurate National Flood Insurance Program rates.

Local Taxes & Fees

Business Tax Classification: Shreveport classifies most businesses under the state's occupational license tax schedule by direct reference to R.S. 47:341-363, but chain stores get their own local classification: section 86-118 sets an annual per-store license tax that rises in tiers with how many stores the chain operates, from $10.00 for a small chain up to $550.00 for one with 501 or more locations..

Also covered: Vacancy Tax (moderate). See the full local taxes & fees guide for Shreveport for details.

Historic Preservation

Historic-Cultural Monuments: The Caddo Parish Confederate Monument at 501 Texas Street is codified as an individually designated historic property in Shreveport's Local Register, Chapter 37 of the city code. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places since January 29, 2014 (NRHP #13001124), it can be added to or struck from the register only through a city council ordinance after Historic Preservation Commission review..

Garage & Yard Sales

Frequency, Duration & Permits: Shreveport caps garage, yard, estate, lawn, porch, patio, and rummage sales at three events per year per property, with a maximum of three days per event. The rule sits in the Unified Development Code, not the Municipal Code..

What to Do With This Information

This overview covers the big picture, but the details matter. Each ordinance page for Shreveport includes the full text, violation penalties, and frequently asked questions. Use those pages when you need specifics.