Benton County, AR Parking Rules: Loading Zones (2026)
Key Facts
- Minimum dock size
- 10 ft by 25 ft
- Access rule
- No backing across public road
- Near homes
- Screening plus noise walls required
- Governing section
- Ch. VI § 6.5(5)
- Approval stage
- Required for site plan approval
Summary
Any Benton County development that needs site plan review must design loading docks to be entered from the public road without backing across it, keep them off the public way, and build them at least 10 feet by 25 feet. Docks near homes must be screened and located to cut noise and light nuisance.
Loading spaces or docks should be designed in a manner where they can be accessed from a public road without backing or maneuvering on public road. All loading spaces must be located off the public way, and be of sufficient length. Locating loading docks that require a backing maneuver to or from an arterial and/or collector street should be avoided. Similarly, loading docks shall be located as far away from the residential use as possible to prevent noise and lighting nuisance and shall be adequately screened. In situations where loading areas are located in proximity to residential or sensitive land uses, noise abatement measures such as noise attenuation walls designed and constructed to Industry standards may be required. Loading space sizes shall be minimum 10 feet by 25 feet. Loading spaces shall be required on-sites based on the proposed activity/land use.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: the cited page had not changed since it was quoted.
Full Breakdown
Chapter VI's site plan design standards set the loading requirements Benton County applies to commercial and industrial developments that trigger site plan review. ' Every loading space must meet a minimum size of '10 feet by 25 feet,' and the number of required spaces is set by the specific activity or land use proposed, not a flat county-wide count. ' The Planning Board can go further and require 'noise attenuation walls designed and constructed to Industry standards' when a loading area sits close to residential or sensitive uses.
These standards apply during Planning Board site plan review, meaning a project cannot get its site plan approved, and therefore cannot get a building permit, without meeting the loading dock design and screening requirements.
Violations & Fines
A development that skips these loading dock standards will not clear Planning Board site plan review, which under Section 6.1 must be approved before the county issues a Building Permit. Proceeding with construction anyway is unlawful under Section 1.2 and exposes the owner to the general penalties in Section 1-9 of the Benton County Code of Ordinances via Section 2.6, plus the cost of retrofitting screening or noise walls the Board can order after the fact.
Frequently Asked Questions
How big must a loading dock be under Benton County's site plan rules?
Can a loading dock back out onto a county road?
What happens if a loading dock sits near a house?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Benton County
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