Tippecanoe County, IN Parking Rules: RV & Boat Parking (2026)

Tippecanoe County's Unified Zoning Ordinance folds recreational-vehicle, boat and boat-trailer storage into its parking rules rather than writing a standalone RV ordinance. Chapter 4's accessory-use table lists storage of recreational vehicles, boats and boat trailers as item 4-1-c(18) and points directly at section 4-4-6(a), the provision that sets front-setback limits for parking. That section bars required parking, open or under cover, from the minimum standard front setback of any residential use or residential zone, and extends the same bar to optional parking, the category a stored RV, boat or trailer falls under, except when it sits in a driveway or turnaround.

In practice, a resident of the unincorporated county can keep an RV, boat or trailer in the driveway or a turnaround area, but not staged loose in the front yard ahead of the standard setback line, which is set zone by zone in section 4-2-2. The rule reaches only the unincorporated county; Lafayette and West Lafayette administer their own separate municipal zoning codes and this provision does not apply inside either city. Enforcement runs through the Area Plan Commission's Administrative Officer. A violation triggers a written Notice of Zoning Violation sent by certified mail under section 6-3-2, which must cite the section violated and give the owner at least fifteen calendar days to cure before fines start.

Under section 6-3-1(d), an owner who fails to comply can be fined between $50 and $1,500 for each determination of violation, with every day the violation continues counting as a separate violation, plus recoverable attorney's fees and court costs. If ninety days pass with no fix, section 6-3-4 lets the Administrative Officer record the unpaid fees with the County Auditor, who certifies them for recording as a lien on the property's tax duplicate.