Mission Viejo, CA Parking Rules: Driveway Rules (2026)

Mission Viejo Municipal Code Sec. 015(h) states that all permanent parking shall occur on paved areas only, and adds that in residential zones there shall be no parking of vehicles in the front yard other than on a city-approved driveway. Subsection (i) allows temporary parking on unpaved areas only if the property owner first obtains a special event permit or temporary use permit from the city, so an ordinary homeowner cannot simply park on the lawn or a gravel strip. These general regulations apply to every use citywide under Sec.

010, meaning any new or altered residential use must permanently maintain its off-street parking under this chapter. Sec. 015(e) separately requires a garage with a garage door for each dwelling in a residential zone, to be permanently maintained, with only limited exceptions for apartments and affordable housing determined by the planning commission; a small decorative window is allowed with director approval, but the garage itself cannot be converted away from parking use under subsection (j). The same section prohibits any charge for required parking (subsection l) and requires guest parking in residential zones to be reserved for guest use (subsection g).

Fractional space counts round up to the next whole space under subsection (f). Taken together, this chapter is designed, per its stated purpose in Sec. 005, to keep off-street parking accessible, attractive, and screened while protecting neighborhoods from vehicle noise and congestion generated by adjoining uses.