Paulding County, GA Parking Rules: Loading Zones (2026)

Under UDO Section 260-40, any building erected after the ordinance's adoption and used for manufacturing, processing, storage, warehousing, wholesaling, retailing, or related uses involving vehicle delivery or pickup of goods must provide and maintain adequate on-site standing, loading, and unloading space so the public's use of the sidewalk, street, or alley is not disrupted. The size of that space scales with the building: for floor area over 7,000 square feet, the county requires a 12-foot by 25-foot loading space with 14 feet of overhead clearance for every 20,000 square feet (or fraction) of floor area in excess of that 7,000-square-foot threshold.

02 instead requires an off-street loading space or spaces of sufficient dimensions and size to allow normal loading and unloading operations appropriate to the property served. 03 bars locating any loading berth or loading space so that it hinders free movement of vehicles and pedestrians over a street, sidewalk, alley, or access route to or from an off-street parking area, meaning a loading dock cannot be positioned to force trucks to block a public right-of-way while they work. 04 adds a lighting condition: any light used to illuminate a parking or loading area must be arranged to reflect light away from adjoining premises located in a residential district, protecting nearby homes from glare generated by commercial loading operations that may run into evening hours.

These standards sit in Chapter 260 (Off-Street Parking) of Title 2 (Zoning) of the county's Unified Development Ordinance, adopted as Ordinance No. 2022-01 on March 8, 2022 and subsequently amended, and they apply countywide in the unincorporated area administered by the community development department during land use permitting and site plan review.