Petaluma, CA Short-Term Rentals: Short-Term Rental Parking Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Parking standard
- Table 11.1 residential parking counts
- Street-parking credit
- Up to 2 uncovered on-street spaces
- Exception path
- Minor Conditional Use Permit, Sec. 24.060
- Exception evidence
- Must show adequate on-street parking
- Review authority
- Planning Manager (credit), Director (permit)
Summary
Petaluma requires every Short-Term Vacation Rental application to show on-site parking matching Table 11.1's residential standard, with a narrow credit for street parking or a discretionary exception if the lot cannot meet it.
3. Parking. The application must show that the applicant can provide: a. Parking. On-site parking for the existing residential use shall be provided as required in Table 11.1 for Dwelling Single Family or Multiple Household, as applicable. The Planning Manager, in his or her sole discretion, may give credit for up to two uncovered spaces on the abutting public street if there is legal non-conforming parking on the site; or b. Parking Exception. Applicants that are unable to meet the parking requirements in Section H.3.a. due to existing legal non-conforming parking and/or site constraints, may obtain a Parking Exception upon approval of a Minor Conditional Use Permit as prescribed in Section 24.060.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 2931 NCS, passed July 6, 2026).
Full Breakdown
110(H)(3) makes parking part of the permit application itself: "The application must show that the applicant can provide: a. Parking. " The Planning Manager may, "in his or her sole discretion," credit up to two uncovered spaces on the abutting public street where the site has legal non-conforming parking. 060, but only with documentation that adequate on-street parking exists to absorb both the short-term rental and the property's other existing uses. 110(H) application checklist, which also requires a Director-level application, a Council-set fee, smoke and CO2 detectors, and compliance with the California Building Standards Code.
1's residential parking counts rather than a fixed number, the actual space count varies with the size of the dwelling being permitted as a rental. This provision is current through Implementing Zoning Ordinance 2907, adopted September 8, 2025.
Violations & Fines
Operating a Short-Term Vacation Rental without the parking shown in the approved application, or without an approved Parking Exception where one is required, undermines the permit conditions set in Section 7.110(H)(3) and can be treated as a verified violation feeding into non-renewal under Section 7.110(I)(3)(b) or revocation under Section 7.110(J).
Frequently Asked Questions
How much parking does a Petaluma short-term rental need?
Can I count street parking toward my Petaluma STR permit?
What if my property can't meet the on-site parking requirement?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Petaluma
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