West Covina, CA Parking Rules: Loading Zones (2026)

Section 26-94 of the Development Code sets the city's off-street loading standards for nonresidential development. The requirement applies to all industrial, commercial, office, and similar land uses, but buildings or tenant spaces smaller than 10,000 square feet are exempt entirely. Above that threshold, Table 3-6 sets the ratio: commercial uses need one loading space for the first 10,000 square feet and one more for each additional 35,000 square feet; industrial uses need one space for the first 10,000 square feet and one more for each additional 20,000 square feet; and office uses need one space per building of 10,000 square feet or more.

Where a lot holds two or more uses, the loading-space counts for each use are added together. Each loading space, whether a dock or a striped paved area, must be at least 10 feet wide and 35 feet long with 14 feet of vertical clearance, except office-use spaces, which drop to 25 feet in length. Loading and maneuvering surfaces must be hard-surfaced unless the City requires a permeable surface to manage runoff, and every loading area has to meet the Development Code's screening standards under Division 4.

The section also lets passenger vehicles park temporarily in an off-street loading area, but only if specific time limits are posted there to keep the space clear for actual loading and unloading, and those passenger spaces do not count toward the project's separate parking-space requirement. Projects of 25,000 square feet or more carry an added obligation under subsection (b): a designated passenger loading area sized for at least half a percent of the required parking, positioned at the main pedestrian entrance so waiting rideshare vehicles do not block circulation.