Lacey, WA Parking Rules: Street Parking Limits (2026)

Chapter 10.14 of the Lacey Municipal Code is the city's parking chapter, and it works through signs. Under LMC 10.14.010 the director of public works, with the concurrence of the police chief, is authorized to erect signs that prohibit parking or limit the hours for parking on the improved or unimproved portion of any public street, highway, alley, right-of-way, or publicly owned parking lot. Once official signs are up, no person is allowed to park a vehicle in violation of them. The sign is what makes the rule enforceable, so a posted limit on a Lacey street binds drivers exactly as the sign reads.

LMC 10.14.030 sets a separate, sign-free rule for walking and cycling space. It is unlawful to stop or park a motor vehicle on any sidewalk, walkway or bike path within the city. The code defines those terms as the areas set aside within the public right-of-way for pedestrians, bicycles or a combination, and it states that the definition includes the portion of that area adjacent to privately owned driveways. A car parked across the sidewalk apron at the end of a driveway is therefore on a sidewalk for purposes of the ordinance, even though the driveway itself is private.

Penalties sit in LMC 10.14.040. Any violation of the chapter is a parking infraction with a monetary penalty not exceeding $450.00, and violations of LMC 10.14.010 through 10.14.030 carry a penalty of $35.00. On top of the notice of infraction, a police officer is authorized to order a vehicle impounded or removed to a place of safety, which the code says includes the business location of a registered towing operator. Notice of the removal or impoundment must be given under RCW 46.55.110. The chapter also separately restricts commercial and recreational vehicles under LMC 10.14.020, and the city manager can authorize longer parking under LMC 10.14.045.