Fort Collins, CO Short-Term Rentals: Short-Term Rental Parking Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- City Code Sec. 15-644(a)(3) and (b)(3)
- Cross-referenced standard
- Land Use Code Section 5.9.1(K)(1)(k)
- Continuing duty
- Repeated as a license condition in Sec. 15-648(3)
- Legacy exception
- Pre-Oct. 31, 2017 applications under Sec. 15-646(b) exempt
- Enforcing office
- City Financial Officer and Director
Summary
Every short term rental license in Fort Collins is conditioned on compliance with the Land Use Code's parking standard for the use. City Code Sec. 15-644 folds Land Use Code Section 5.9.1(K)(1)(k) directly into the licensing checklist, so a parking shortfall can block or cost a license just like a missing tax certificate.
The dwelling unit must comply with all applicable federal, state, and local laws including, but not limited to, the Code of the City of Fort Collins and Land Use Code, and in particular, Land Use Code Section 5.9.1(K)(1)(k) which sets forth applicable parking requirements.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Municipal Code: Supplement 155 | Transitional Land Use Code (for project before May 17, 2024): Supplement 61 | Traffic Code: Supplement 27).
Full Breakdown
Sec. " Sec. 15-644(b)(3) applies the identical cross-reference to short term non-primary rentals. The parking rule is not just a one-time application item: Sec. 15-648(3) repeats that a licensee "shall comply with all applicable Code of the City of Fort Collins and Land Use Code provisions including... 1(K)(1)(k)" for as long as the license remains valid, so it is enforced as a continuing licensing condition, not only at intake. There is a narrow carve-out for rentals that predate the City's 2017 short term rental rules: under Sec.
1(K)(1)(k)," though if ownership later transfers, Sec. 15-646(e)(2) requires the new owner's application to bring the property into parking compliance before the grandfathered license can carry over.
Violations & Fines
Failing to meet the Land Use Code Section 5.9.1(K)(1)(k) parking standard is a failure to comply with the terms of the license under Sec. 15-649(a)(3), which lets the Director suspend, revoke or refuse to renew the license. A revoked license bars the dwelling from a new short term rental license for one year per Sec. 15-649(c), and Sec. 15-650 exposes a licensee who keeps operating in violation to a fine or imprisonment under the general penalty in Sec. 1-15.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is the actual STR parking standard written?
Is parking compliance checked only when I first apply?
Does every existing STR have to meet the current parking rule?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Fort Collins
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