Charleston, SC Parking Rules: Preferential Parking Districts (2026)

Division 3 of Article VIII lets a residential neighborhood petition its way into a permit parking district. Under § 19-269, the department of traffic and transportation surveys the area after a petition signed by more than fifty percent of residents of a contiguous area, or on the director's own initiative if he determines the area is sufficiently impacted. The block-by-block survey must find more than seventy-five percent of spaces occupied, with at least fifty percent of those vehicles not owned or regularly operated by area residents, before the director certifies the district to City Council, which designates it by ordinance after a public hearing under § 19-268.

Once designated, § 19-278 directs the director of traffic and transportation to post signs restricting all on-street parking beyond the time stated on the signs except for permit holders. Decals are issued under § 19-270: no more than two residential decals per residential unit and no more than six permits per Charleston County TMS parcel number, valid for one calendar year for property owners and split into January-June and July-December terms for tenants. Section 19-272 layers in special permits, including health-care permits, three books of thirty one-day permits per homeowner per year, fourteen one-day visitor permits per leasehold tenant every six months, and one construction permit per building permit.

Ten districts are currently mapped under § 19-277, covering neighborhoods including the French Quarter, Charlestowne, Harleston Village, Radcliffeborough, Ansonborough, the Garden District, Gadsden Green, Cannonborough/Elliotsborough, the Eastside, and Hampton Park Terrace. A permit does not excuse parking on yellow lines, in bus stops, loading zones, or at fire hydrants under § 19-279, and misuse of a decal, false applications, reproduction, unauthorized transfer, or displaying an unauthorized decal carries a flat $100 penalty under § 19-280.