Royal Oak, MI Parking Rules: Overnight Parking (2026)

City Code § 692-2A bars overnight street parking of any "trailer coach," defined in § 692-1 as a vehicle built or converted for use as a dwelling or sleeping place and lacking a permanent foundation, which covers travel trailers and similarly equipped RVs. A property owner facing practical difficulty can appeal to the Zoning Board of Appeals the same way as a Chapter 770 zoning variance, but the Board may not grant a right-of-way storage variance unless three minimum conditions are met: the space between curb and sidewalk must be wide enough for the coach to sit parallel to the sidewalk at least 10 feet from the curbline without blocking the sidewalk, the parked coach must stay at least 25 feet from any street intersection and 10 feet from any neighboring driveway, and the parking surface must be hard-surfaced rather than grass or gravel.

These conditions were added by Ordinance No. 71-12 in 1971 and apply on top of, not instead of, the underlying overnight ban. Enforcement runs through § 692-9: a first violation is a municipal civil infraction carrying a civil fine of at least $50 plus costs, a second offense raises the minimum fine to $100, a third to $150, and a fourth or subsequent violation becomes a misdemeanor punishable by up to $500 and 90 days in jail. The chapter, adopted in 1958, is administered under the Zoning Board of Appeals process rather than by a simple citation-only scheme, so a resident who wants to keep a trailer coach on the street overnight must apply for a formal variance rather than simply request an exception from an officer.