Local Rules Near Downtown Tacoma

Tacoma bars non-emergency construction and demolition work between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m. on weekdays (9 a.m. on weekends/holidays) and requires mufflers on construction devices when commonly available, under TMC § 8.122.070.

Tacoma caps how much a continuous sound can raise noise above the existing ambient level at a neighboring property: 10 dBA/6 dBC outdoors by day, tightening to 5 dBA/3 dBC overnight.

Yelling, shouting or singing near a Tacoma street between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. is flagged as a public disturbance noise on its own, no decibel meter needed, just an unreasonable disruption of a neighbor's peace.

Tacoma bans motor vehicle compression ('Jake') brakes citywide except in genuine emergencies, and separately caps vehicle stereo volume at whatever is audible beyond 50 feet under the traffic code.

Tacoma's noise ordinance exempts aircraft operations outright: helicopter and airplane noise isn't subject to the city's decibel or time-of-day limits under TMC § 8.122.140(F).

Tacoma parks require a permit for public address systems and musical acts; permitted bands and performers are capped at 90 decibels measured 50 feet away and at the park boundary under TMC § 8.27.050.

Tacoma requires short-term rentals that rent individual guest rooms to keep a chronological guest register with names, dates, and photo ID, and to retain those records for three years.

Tacoma requires the property owner to live in either the main house or the ADU before either one can be used as a short-term rental.

For room-share short-term rentals, Tacoma requires the owner of record to live in the dwelling during the rental term.

Tacoma sets a flat $75 annual license fee for transient accommodations, including short-term rentals renting individual guest rooms; the reviewed code adds no separate nightly occupancy tax.

Tacoma's zoning code sets no separate headcount for short-term rentals: maximum occupancy follows the Minimum Building and Structures Code.

Tacoma requires smoke alarms in every bedroom, hallway outside sleeping areas, and each story of existing Group R and I-1 buildings, battery-backed against power loss.

Tacoma bans the sale, transportation, discharge, storage, and use of consumer fireworks citywide, every day of the year, with no seasonal exception around July 4th, unless a narrow permit exemption applies.

Tacoma's Fire Code amendment bans storing liquefied petroleum gas in containers or tanks citywide unless the installation holds less than 125 gallons of water capacity or sits in an Industrial District.

Tacoma requires a Fire Department Bonfire Permit for any outdoor fire whose fuel bed exceeds three feet in diameter or two feet in height; smaller recreational fires need no permit.

Tacoma caps vehicle parking on single-family lots: up to 4 vehicles or 60% of the paved area in front or side/rear yards, with stored or inoperable RVs, boats, and trailers barred from front yards entirely.

Tacoma caps use of a marked loading zone at 30 minutes for freight loading and 3 minutes for passenger pickup or drop-off, with a minimum $30 fine for going over.

Tacoma requires front-yard vehicle parking on single-family lots to sit on a prepared all-weather surface like concrete, asphalt, or gravel, capped at 60% of the yard, under the city's nuisance code.

Tacoma bars leaving any vehicle, boat trailer, recreation trailer, or camper on a public street or alley for more than seven calendar days, backed by a $35 minimum fine under TMC § 11.05.230.

Tacoma treats damaged, inoperable, or abandoned vehicles on public or private property as a public nuisance, with notice-and-abatement procedures and City-ordered removal for landowners who don't comply.

Tacoma lets residents petition for a 'Residential Parking Zone' restricting on-street parking to permit holders, their visitors, and service vehicles, run under a City Manager-administered program in TMC § 11.05.235.

Tacoma has no blanket overnight parking ban. The City Traffic Engineer designates restrictions street by street under TMC § 11.05.250, including 'No Parking Anytime' zones marked with posted signs.

Tacoma enforces the state Model Traffic Ordinance's on-street parking bans, blocking a driveway, double parking, stopping near a hydrant or crosswalk, with a local $35 fine schedule set in TMC § 11.05.605.

Barbed wire, razor wire, and electrified fencing are banned on Tacoma residential properties, and chain link is restricted at street-facing yards and required screening.

Tacoma exempts retaining walls up to 4 feet high from a building permit, unless the wall supports a surcharge or holds back hazardous liquids, which triggers the permit regardless of height.

Tacoma doesn't require a building permit for a fence up to 7 feet tall, but zoning still limits height near the street regardless of permit status.

Along a public street, Tacoma caps free-standing fences, walls and hedges at 3 feet under TMC § 13.06.090K; Urban Residential districts allow up to 7 feet if the upper portion is at least 50 percent transparent and backed by a planted buffer strip.

Feeding, molesting, or offering tobacco, drink, or other harmful substances to wildlife in a Tacoma park is banned unless the Metro Parks Director authorizes it.

Tacoma caps hives at four per lot under 10,000 square feet and requires a 75-foot setback from property lines unless hives sit behind a six-foot fence or hedge, per Chapter 5.24 of the Tacoma Municipal Code.

Tacoma allows up to 6 adult poultry and 6 pigeons per parcel, bans roosters citywide, and requires coops to sit at least 12 feet from any neighboring residence, per TMC § 5.30.010.

Tacoma bans keeping lions, tigers, bears, wolves, venomous reptiles, and other dangerous wild animals anywhere zoned residential; outside residential zones, the City Manager can permit them under TMC § 5.23.025.

In Tacoma parks, dogs and cats must stay on a leash no longer than eight feet outside a designated off-leash area, per TMC § 8.27.120: the citywide running-at-large rule sits separately in Title 17.

New automatic in-ground irrigation systems in Tacoma must include an automatic clock, leak-detecting flow sensors, backflow-protected valves, and a rain-sensing shutoff under TMC § 2.06.120's water conservation standard.

Tacoma treats grass, weeds, or brush over one foot tall on any lot as a public nuisance the property owner must correct, with limited exceptions for erosion control or critical areas.

Tacoma requires all plants used to meet landscaping code requirements to be climate-adapted and explicitly permits native species anywhere; UR-1 and UR-2 development must make at least half of non-tree plantings regionally native, rising to 100 percent inside Open Space Corridors, per TMC § 13.06.090B.3.d.

Tacoma's zoning code lets rain barrels, tanks and cisterns encroach into a required yard setback, with size and clearance limits that scale up for larger catchment tanks.

Tacoma requires tree branches to clear at least 8 feet above sidewalks and 14 feet above streets. Vegetation that doesn't meet these heights is a public nuisance the abutting property owner must trim back.

Tacoma exempts a backyard compost pile from its vegetation-waste nuisance rule as long as it stays under two cubic yards, giving residents a lawful way to dispose of grass clippings and yard trimmings on-site.

Removing a tree of 6 inches DBH or larger in Tacoma triggers a Canopy Loss Fee under TMC § 13.06.090B.3.e(3)(e), calculated per inch of canopy lost minus the caliper inches of any replacement trees planted, funding the city's Urban Forestry Program.

Tacoma allows on-premises sales at a home-based Residential Business only if customer visits are scheduled by appointment, not walk-in traffic.

Family day care homes and child care centers are permitted outright in every Tacoma residential zoning district under Title 13, needing only the state day care license: no separate city zoning permit required.

Tacoma lets residents run home businesses by right in every zoning district under specific "Residential Business" standards: no outdoor storage, no exterior changes, and public hours capped at 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Tacoma caps home-based business signage at one non-illuminated nameplate under one and one-half square feet, mounted flat against the building, under the city's Residential Business standards.

Tacoma exempts small prefabricated above-ground pools from a building permit, under 24 inches deep and 5,000 gallons, but bigger or in-ground pools need one.

Tacoma requires a five-foot fence with a lockable, self-closing, self-latching gate around every outdoor public or semipublic swimming pool. Gate latches must sit at least 42 inches up, and no fence gap may exceed four inches. Private single-family backyard pools are exempt.

Tacoma normally requires manufactured homes built as two sections at least 12 by 36 feet each, but structures meeting IRC Appendix Q tiny-home standards skip that minimum-size rule.

Tacoma allows two accessory dwelling units per residential lot, each capped at 1,000 square feet of habitable area, with no parking required.

Tacoma caps accessory buildings like sheds at 1,000 square feet, or 15% of lot area, and requires they sit behind the main house and out of side-yard setbacks.

Tacoma allows homeowners to convert an existing garage or other accessory structure into a legal dwelling unit without meeting current setback, height or location standards, as long as it meets Building Code.

In Tacoma's city parks, open fires are banned except in Director-installed picnic stoves or portable barbecues, which may burn only propane or charcoal briquettes.

Tacoma requires a recorded Notice on Title for any property with land in the 100-year floodplain or Riparian Buffer zone, and City review before any development in a flood hazard area, even projects that skip a building permit.

Tacoma requires new critical facilities built in the mapped 100-year floodplain to elevate their lowest floor at least three feet above base flood elevation, or to the 500-year flood height, whichever is higher.

Tacoma requires a Construction SWPPP for projects adding 2,000 square feet of impervious surface or disturbing 7,000 square feet of land, plus a certified erosion-control lead above 500 cubic yards of grading.

Tacoma requires everyone discharging stormwater or pollutants into the municipal stormwater system or receiving waters to comply with TMC Chapter 12.08D, the City's NPDES municipal stormwater permit, and its Stormwater Management Program.

Any pier, wharf, dock or marina built in Tacoma falls under the city's Waterfront Structures and Marina Code, which layers fire-protection and construction standards on top of the Building Code and Shoreline Management Act.

Tacoma cannabis retailers must sit at least 1,000 feet from elementary and secondary schools, playgrounds, recreation centers, child-care centers, public parks, public transit centers, and libraries unless a reduced buffer applies under state rules.

Tacoma has not opted out of marijuana retail: stores are zoned into all downtown districts and M-1/M-2 industrial areas, capped citywide at 16.

Tacoma's zoning code lets rooftop solar panels exceed the district height limit by up to 12 inches above the roof surface, and pitched-roof panels can't rise above the ridgeline: no height variance needed.

Tacoma exempts window signs from sign permits, but they can't cover more than 25% of the window area in commercial and mixed-use zones.

Seasonal decorations displayed on private property are exempt from Tacoma's sign permit requirements under TMC § 13.06.090.I.3.b(7), so homeowners can put up holiday lights and lawn displays without a sign permit.

Tacoma bans off-premises digital billboards outright as a prohibited sign type, while allowing smaller on-site electronic message signs under separate brightness, size, and curfew standards.

Tacoma treats political signs as temporary signs: capped at two per issue, 4 square feet per side, 3 feet tall, and must come down within 14 days of the event or after six months, whichever is sooner.

Tacoma property owners and occupants must clear snow and ice from the public sidewalk along their premises within 24 hours of it falling or forming, under TMC § 9.16.050.

Tacoma declares any building scoring 50 or more violation points a public nuisance under its Minimum Building Code, triggering mandatory repair deadlines, civil penalties, and possible demolition.

Owners of undeveloped Tacoma parcels over one acre can satisfy the city's overgrown-vegetation nuisance rule by clearing only a 20-foot buffer along abutting improved property and rights-of-way instead of the whole lot.

Lighting on non-residential sites in Tacoma cannot exceed 3 lux at the property line of any adjacent residential parcel, measured at the brightest light source visible from that boundary.

Tacoma bans internally illuminated and flashing billboards and requires all billboard lighting to shut off between midnight and 5 a.m.

Outdoor light fixtures within 100 feet of a residential district in Tacoma must use full cutoff luminaires meeting the Illuminating Engineering Society's cutoff distribution spec to control glare.

Every Tacoma rental must maintain heat to 70°F when it's 20°F outside, plus working kitchens, plumbing, and electrical systems: inspectors score violations under the city's Minimum Building and Structures Code and can classify noncompliant units as substandard.

Tacoma does not license rentals upfront; a provisional rental property license kicks in only after code violations exceed 24 points, hit derelict status, or breach fire code.

Tacoma cannot adopt traditional rent control because Washington state law RCW 35.21.830 preempts cities and counties from regulating the amount of rent on private residential property.

Tacoma treats a recycling or yard waste cart contaminated with garbage as ordinary trash, billing it as an extra reload and pulling repeat-offender recycling carts from service.

Tacoma bars storing goods, wares, or containers on a public sidewalk, alley, or street, but carves out an exception letting garbage and trash containers sit out for a reasonable time needed for pickup.

Tacoma requires customers to separate yard and food waste from other solid waste and keep it separated for curbside pickup, under Tacoma Municipal Code § 12.09.210.J of the city's solid waste and recycling ordinance.

Dumping litter or waste on public or private property in Tacoma is a civil infraction for small amounts and escalates to misdemeanor or gross-misdemeanor charges plus cleanup restitution for larger dumps.

Tacoma defines yard waste as ordinary yard-maintenance vegetation and gives residents two free 90-gallon carts for it, but plastic and biodegradable bags don't count as an approved container.

Placing a trash dumpster, storage container, or construction trailer in a Tacoma street or sidewalk right-of-way requires specific approval from the Director of Public Works before it goes down.

Tacoma collects residential solid waste once every two weeks through mandatory, compulsory city-run service: residents can't opt out or switch to a private hauler within city limits.

Tacoma single-family and duplex ratepayers get two free Call-2-Haul bulk pickups a year, capped at three large items plus 15 bags of household junk.

Tacoma bars overloading trash and recycling carts beyond their rated capacity when it would damage trucks, create litter, or block pickup, and charges extra for waste over capacity.

Flying a drone, UAS, or UAV in a Tacoma park is unlawful unless the area is specifically designated for it or the Metro Parks Director authorizes it.

Operating a food truck on Tacoma's public ways requires a $225 City license, health department plan approval, fire inspection, and $1M liability coverage.

Tacoma limits food truck vending to City-approved public-way locations in commercial zones, clear of driveways, crosswalks, hydrants, and six-foot walkways.

Tacoma licenses long-term sidewalk vending carts in commercial zones, capping cart height at 5 feet and length at 96 inches with a required six-foot walkway.

Door-to-door sales in Tacoma require a $90, six-month license, a photo ID card, and fingerprint-based background checks before any solicitor knocks.

Minors under 18 in Tacoma cannot be in any public place or business establishment between 12:01 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. Parents who knowingly permit it, and operators who facilitate it, are separately liable.

Tacoma parks close a half hour after sunset and open a half hour before sunrise; being there when closed is criminal trespass, not just a fine.

In Tacoma's R-4 and R-5 Multiple-Unit Dwelling Districts, main buildings are capped at 60 and 150 feet respectively, with accessory buildings limited to 15 feet under the zoning code.

Tacoma caps total building coverage at 65% of lot area in its R-4 and R-5 multi-unit districts; single-family UR-zoned lots use floor-area-ratio limits instead.

Tacoma's Urban Residential zones set minimum yard setbacks in TMC § 13.06.020F.1: a 15-foot front and rear setback in UR-1, dropping to 10 feet in UR-2 and UR-3, with a 5-foot side setback that grows to 8 feet where a unit's entrance faces that yard.

Tacoma requires a City street tree permit before anyone plants a tree in the planting strip or other public right-of-way, under the 2023 Urban Forestry code, TMC § 9.20.230.

Tacoma's Heritage Tree Program lets a property owner, or a resident with the owner's consent, nominate an exceptionally large, old, or historic tree for City designation. Qualifying trees need a trunk at least 30 inches in diameter, or 65 percent of the state record for that species.

Inside Tacoma's designated Biodiversity Areas, a conifer over 30 inches DBH or a madrone over 12 inches DBH counts as an 'exceptional tree' that development must retain; removing one requires replacement planting at double the normal mitigation ratio.

Tacoma caps garage sales at twice per calendar year per dwelling and bans back-to-back or repeated sales that add up to a running business.

Filming motion pictures or TV anywhere in Tacoma outside a studio requires a permit from the Film Production Coordinator, $1,000,000 liability insurance, and a signed indemnification agreement: private, news, court, and charitable filming are exempt.

Tacoma incorporates the Uniform Plumbing Code, as already adopted by the State Building Code, as the City of Tacoma Plumbing Code under TMC § 2.06.010, deleting UPC fee provisions in favor of the City's own fee schedule.

Tacoma requires day care buildings classified Group E to install panic hardware on exit doors serving 50 or more occupants, per the city's Minimum Building and Structures Code.

Tacoma's Building Official inspects flagged properties against three violation tables to classify buildings as non-standard, substandard, derelict, or unfit, kicking off the notice, repair-schedule, and penalty process under the Minimum Building and Structures Code.

Tacoma's building code bars using lead-based paint or asbestos when repairing an existing single-family, duplex, or townhouse structure, listing both as hazardous materials no longer permitted under the City's amended repair standards.

Tacoma's minimum building code requires every elevator in a building to be kept in compliance with the state Building Code as part of the city's baseline property maintenance standards for heating and mechanical equipment.

Tacoma's Building Code amendment lists exactly what work is exempt from a permit: everything else, including most construction and alteration work, requires one before it starts.

Tacoma requires an automatic residential fire sprinkler system in every new townhouse unit, a local amendment to the state-adopted residential code, with an exception only for additions to existing townhouses that were never sprinklered.

Tacoma's Minimum Building and Structures Code bans keyed interior deadbolts, requires exit doors to open without a key, and lets low-occupancy doors use thumb-turn locks instead.

Tacoma requires carbon monoxide alarms in every existing apartment, condo, hotel, motel, and single-family home, installed to the Fire Code's technical standard.

Tacoma requires a paid Electrical Permit from Tacoma Power before any electrical wiring, device, or equipment is installed, altered, or repaired, enforcing the current National Electrical Code as amended by state rule.

Tacoma requires a written Right-of-Way Occupancy Permit before operating a sidewalk cafe on a public sidewalk, but the City Council waives the standard application and use fees entirely for sidewalk cafes to encourage business-district vitality.

Parades and organized marches of 50+ people on Tacoma streets need a special event permit filed 60 days ahead (7 days for protected speech), with insurance, route review, and Permitting Authority approval.

Tacoma block parties still need a special event permit, but a small, non-commercial, resident-sponsored one-block closure with no sales or admission fee is exempt from the chapter's $1,000,000 insurance requirement.

Organized entertainment, demonstrations, or public gatherings in a Tacoma park need the Metro Parks Director's written permission, applied for at least a month ahead.

Only vendors the event organizer authorizes may sell goods, food, or beverages at a Tacoma street fair or festival, and only from an approved building, tent, or booth under the special event permit.

Tacoma bans storing goods, wares, or merchandise on sidewalks and streets, though ground-floor shops may display items within 18 inches of their storefront and loading briefly is allowed.

Once Tacoma's City Council formally finds a sidewalk unsafe and orders it fixed, the duty and cost of construction or reconstruction falls on the directly abutting property owner, capped at half the property's assessed value, under TMC § 10.18.020.

Tacoma requires written City permission before any private use of the public right-of-way, from fences and retaining walls to sidewalk features, under the Right-of-Way Occupancy Permit program in TMC Chapter 9.08.

A stereo or speaker whose bass carries 50 feet past its own property line breaks Tacoma's noise code: even without a decibel reading, plainly audible rhythmic bass alone is enough to cite.

Tacoma exempts portable and stand-by generators from its noise code entirely while running during a genuine power outage or natural disaster, under TMC § 8.122.140(O).

Tacoma caps commercial establishment music at a 6 dB(A)/dB(C) rise indoors nearby and bars audibility beyond 100 feet from the property line, under TMC § 8.122.080.

Tacoma tenants can trigger a City code inspection of their rental by filing a complaint, verbally, in writing, or anonymously, but must first exhaust the remedies available to them under Washington's Residential Landlord-Tenant Act.

Tacoma requires a provisional rental property license, backed by a paid certificate of inspection, once a rental property racks up serious code, derelict, or fire violations.

Tacoma's Building Official scores rental and commercial properties against a 51-item point table, yard debris, mold, vermin, and failed heating or smoke alarms are common violations, and 50 or more points classifies the building 'Substandard,' a declared nuisance.

Anyone can report a suspected building or property code violation to the City of Tacoma, no residency or ownership requirement, and the complaint can be filed verbally, in writing, or completely anonymously to trigger a Building Official inspection.

Tacoma bars noxious weeds rated Class A, B, or C by the Pierce County Noxious Weed Control Board from any required landscaped area, and invasive species identified in the city's Urban Forest Manual don't count toward a project's required plantings, under TMC § 13.06.090B.3.d(1).

Tacoma zoning treats agricultural uses as a conditional use in every residential district, requiring a conditional use permit, at least 20,000 square feet of land, and no livestock.

Tacoma prohibits using city-owned property for civil immigration enforcement staging or surveillance absent City Manager authorization, while preserving lawful judicial warrants and criminal arrests.

Tacoma bans intentionally blocking sidewalks or streets by walking, standing, sitting, or lying in a way that forces others to take evasive action, punishable as pedestrian interference.

Tacoma bans camping and storing belongings on public property within set distances of shelters, schools, parks, libraries, and protected waterways citywide.

Tacoma runs automated red-light, railroad-crossing, and school and hospital speed-zone cameras under Chapter 11.60, authorized by state law, with signs posted at every camera location and a standard $145 civil infraction fine.

Tacoma lets electric scooters, including shared dockless models, ride on roadways, sidewalks, bike lanes, and paved paths, but bars them from streets posted above 25 mph unless a bike facility is present.

Tacoma bars stopping, standing, or parking any vehicle in a way that blocks a designated bike lane, path, or trail, with no exception for a quick stop; violators face a parking infraction of at least $30.

Tacoma requires downtown buildings to meet ground-level facade, articulation, and construction-scale design standards under TMC § 13.06.100D, with compliance thresholds scaled to alteration size.

Tacoma's Urban Residential districts let middle-housing projects build more units and taller structures in exchange for providing affordable units or preserving an existing building on the lot.

Tacoma requires every basement, wall, dock, warehouse, and residence to be built or repaired to keep rats out, and all stored food kept rat-proof, under Chapter 5.38's Rat Prevention ordinance.

Tacoma bars used needles and other home sharps from ordinary recycling bins and, where curbside sharps pickup exists, from trash cans too: sharps must go into a dedicated sharps waste container under TMC § 5.04.045.

Tacoma levies a combined 7% special excise tax on hotel, motel, and lodging charges for facilities with 25 or more rooms, stacking three separate excise levies under TMC Chapter 6A.80.

Tacoma lists eligible properties on its Register of Historic Places once a property turns 40 and retains its historic integrity, triggering Landmarks Preservation Commission design review under Title 13.

Tacoma requires a City business license for every massage business and bars them from serving customers between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. daily, city-wide.

Tacoma requires anyone pawnbroking or dealing in secondhand goods to hold a City license, keep detailed transaction records, and report daily to police.

Tacoma licenses anyone buying, selling, or consigning secondhand goods, requiring a $100 license, daily police reporting, and a 30-day hold on consigned items.

Tacoma requires every retailer of cigarettes or other tobacco products to hold a valid annual license from the licensing authority for each sales location before selling, under TMC § 5.15.070.

Tacoma requires its contracted tow operator to mail an impounded vehicle's owner a first-class notice within 24 hours, detailing the impoundment, redemption steps, and the right to a hearing.

Tacoma requires adult entertainment establishments, managers, and entertainers to hold separate City licenses, with a $2,400 first-year establishment fee plus $150 manager and entertainer fees.

Opening or possessing an opened container of liquor, or drinking it, in any Tacoma public place is a civil infraction carrying a flat $100 fine under city law.

Opening a marijuana package or smoking in view of the public is unlawful in Tacoma, which folds the state's public-display penalty directly into its own narcotics chapter.

Tacoma bans smoking or vaping any nicotine product anywhere in a city or Metropolitan Park District park, with a narrow exception for FDA-approved cessation aids like patches or gum, under TMC § 8.27.085.

Tacoma's public disturbance noise law bans sound from social gatherings, band sessions, or audio equipment that unreasonably disturbs neighbors' peace, with real misdemeanor penalties for hosts.

Tacoma bans soliciting within 15 feet of ATMs, doorways, pay phones, fuel pumps, and transit stops, plus after dark, and separately outlaws coercive panhandling city-wide.

Tacoma outlaws loitering anywhere in public that shows intent to engage in drug activity, weighing factors like acting as a lookout, fleeing police, or displaying paraphernalia.

Tacoma makes it a misdemeanor to intentionally urinate or defecate anywhere in public where the act could be observed, punishable by a real fine and possible jail time.

Tacoma bans negligent skateboarding, scooter riding, and skating on any roadway, sidewalk, or public property, and requires riders to yield to pedestrians and people using assistive mobility devices.

Tacoma's business and occupation tax splits gross receipts into distinct classifications, extracting, manufacturing, wholesaling, retailing, retail services, printing and publishing, and a catch-all service category, each taxed at its own rate under city code.