Portsmouth, VA Parking Rules: Preferential Parking Districts (2026)

1 authorizes the city manager to designate, expand, or reduce residential parking districts by order, rule, or regulation, upon a written finding of need, in order to reduce congestion, protect residents' access to their homes, and preserve safety and property values on streets zoned for residential use. The order establishing a district sets its own parking conditions and may authorize permits for residents, their guests, and others lawfully engaged in activities in the district; a permit runs for a term the city manager deems appropriate but never longer than one year, and it can be renewed on a showing of continued eligibility or expires automatically once the resident no longer qualifies.

Before enforcement begins, the city manager must post signs on the district's streets giving notice of the restriction, written clearly enough that any ordinarily observant person understands the rule. Anywhere metered parking already operates inside a new district, those metered spaces can stay exempt from the district rules as long as the meters remain in use. 1 itself, punishable under the general parking-penalty procedure of § 22-578. Districts created before this section's 2007 adoption remain valid and can still be expanded or reduced by the city manager under the same authority.