Alexandria, VA Parking Rules: RV & Boat Parking (2026)

Section 7-1101 prohibits parking a trailer in any zone in the city, carving out only four exceptions: one trailer stored inside a lawful enclosed garage with no living quarters or business use inside it; trailers used as contractors' offices or equipment sheds on an active construction site for the duration of an approved building permit; trailers for temporary nonresidential purposes with an administrative special use permit under Section 11-513; and trailers on city-owned or Alexandria City Public Schools property for school-related activities. Section 7-1102 separately governs recreational vehicles in residential zones, allowing them only on a lot used for single-unit, two-unit, townhouse, or multi-unit dwellings of up to four units, and only if the RV is 25 feet or shorter in the R-8, R-12, and R-20 zones or 20 feet or shorter in every other residential zone.

Only one recreational vehicle is permitted per lot unless it is stored inside an approved enclosed garage or storage building, in which case any number is allowed, and any RV parked outdoors must be unoccupied and sit behind the front building line rather than in front of the house. Boats parked on a trailer fall under the same Section 7-1101 trailer restrictions, since the ordinance does not carve out a separate category for watercraft trailers.