Pismo Beach, CA Parking Rules: Driveway Rules (2026)

The City of Pismo Beach, California prints two zoning codes under Title 17, and this page quotes the operative sentences from each without saying where either one applies. Read the citation on any number before relying on it, because the two codes are not blended here.

1983 Zoning Ordinance, § 17.108.030(A): residential driveway and access to parking spaces must be not less than ten feet wide for up to three units, and all spaces must sit on the same lot as the dwelling they serve. For four or more units the code requires two-way driveway access at least twenty-four feet wide. Parking spaces may not be located in yard setback areas for conforming lots. Residential driveways may not exceed a twenty percent slope, and residential garage entrances fronting on the lot line must be set back not less than twenty percent of the depth of the lot, not to exceed twenty feet.

1998 Zoning Code, § 17.34.070(H): all driveway, parking and maneuvering areas are paved with concrete in compliance with ASTMC-143, or with asphalt compacted to a minimum thickness of two inches over a base of crushed rock, gravel or similar material compacted to a minimum thickness of four inches, unless the city engineer requires or approves something else. Section 17.34.090(C)(2) sets the minimum length of a single-family driveway at twenty feet, measured from back of the sidewalk to the front of the garage, so a car can park in the driveway without blocking the sidewalk. Where garage or parking access is perpendicular to the driveway, a twenty-four-foot deep unobstructed back-out area is required. Section 17.34.070(A)(4) sets residential garage entrances back a minimum of twenty feet from any public or private street right-of-way.

Other 1998 Zoning Code driveway standards in § 17.34.090: one driveway access point per ownership unless the city engineer decides more are needed, an encroachment permit for all access from private property to a public street, and driveway and parking lot slopes not exceeding twenty percent. The nearest edge of a driveway curb cut must be at least three feet from the nearest property line, except for an approved shared driveway.

Pismo Beach uses two adopted zoning codes. The city's Zoning and Land Use page states that properties inside the Coastal Zone are regulated by the 1983 Zoning Code, and properties outside the Coastal Zone are regulated by the 1998 Zoning Code.