Bethlehem, PA Short-Term Rentals: Parking Rules (2026)

The Bethlehem Zoning Ordinance, accessible via the city's AmLegal portal (codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/bethlehem), sets off-street parking minimums by use type and district. Single-family dwellings typically require at least one off-street space; multi-family dwellings require additional spaces per unit. Because Bethlehem has not classified short-term rentals as a separate use, STR operators must satisfy the parking requirement of the underlying dwelling use plus any zoning-board condition imposed at special-exception or conditional-use approval (when STR is allowed). On-street parking is governed by posted time limits, metered zones in the downtown core and on Main Street, and residential permit areas administered by the Bethlehem Parking Authority - particularly dense around Lehigh University on the South Side, near Moravian University on the North Side, and in the Historic District. Bethlehem also declares snow-emergency parking bans on designated routes during major winter storms, requiring vehicles to move from posted streets within a specified window. Visitor permits and exceptions are limited and district-dependent. Parking complaints from neighbors are a frequent driver of STR-related enforcement actions; Housing Inspections can cite for zoning shortfalls when an STR routinely overflows onto neighboring streets, and parking-authority citations accumulate against the booking record. Best practice: confirm off-street parking capacity matches the maximum occupancy advertised, post parking instructions in the listing (including residential-permit and snow-emergency rules), and verify permit-zone procedures before each booking.