How Many Parking Spaces Do You Need in Your Commercial Parking Lot?

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Marion County, OH does provide zoning requirements for how many parking spaces you should have in your commercial parking lot. Most parking space requirements are defined by the floor area of your business, which is the total floor area to be used for:

Services to the public
Services to customers, patrons, clients or patients
Fixtures and equipment used for display or sales of merchandise

It does NOT include areas used principally for nonpublic purposes, such as:

Storage
Incidental repair
Processing or packaging of merchandise
Show windows
Offices incidental to the management or maintenance of stores and buildings
Toilet or restrooms
Utilities
Dressing rooms, fitting or alteration rooms

Additionally, you should allocate one parking space for each employee.

Find your property type below to see how many spaces you need!

Marion County, OH Commercial Parking Lot Requirements:

Type of property	# Parking spaces required
Uses Not Listed	Requirements for most nearly similar use specifically listed, as determined by the Safety/Service Director

Public & Institutional Properties
Administrative govt. offices	1 for each 200 sq. ft. of floor area
Schools (elementary & junior high)	1 for each 10 classroom seats
Schools (high schools & universities)	1 for each 5 classroom seats OR 1 for each 5 seats in an auditorium, stadium, or gymnasium, whichever is greater
Places of worship	1 for each 5 seats
Hospitals	1 ½ for each bed
Libraries, museums, art galleries	1 for each 400 sq. ft. floor area

Amusements & Assembly Properties
Sports arenas, stadiums, auditoriums, theaters, places of assembly with fixed seats	1 for each 5 seats
Game halls, dance halls, lodge halls, exhibition halls, skating rinks, swimming pools, places of assembly without fixed seats	1 for each 100 sq. ft. of floor area used for the purpose listed
Bowling alleys	5 for each alley

Services
Funeral homes, mortuaries	1 for each 75 sq. ft. of floor area devoted to parlors
Medical/dental offices & clinics	1 for each 100 sq. ft. of floor area
Sanitariums, convalescent homes, homes for the aged and children	1 for each 4 beds
Barber shops and beauty parlors	3 per operator
Hotels, motels, tourist homes	1 for each living or sleeping unit
Laundry and dry cleaning pickup	1 for each 100 sq. ft. of floor area
Banks	1 for each 100 sq. ft. of floor area
Business & professional offices	1 for each 200 sq. ft. of floor area
Bars, taverns, night clubs	1 for each 100 sq. ft. of floor area

Restaurants
Indoor service only	1 for each 100 sq. ft. of floor area
Including curb service	1 for each 100 sq. ft. of floor area in addition to curb service stalls provided
Primarily carry-out service	1 for each 30 sq. ft. of floor area

Retail Properties
Furniture & household appliance stores, repair stores	3 spaces for the first 1,800 sq. ft. of floor area. 1 space for each additional 400 sq. ft.
Retail stores & shops not elsewhere specified, including general merchandise	3 spaces for the first 1,500 sq. ft. of floor area. 1 space for each additional 150 sq. ft.

General Commercial & Industrial Properties
Automobile or machinery sales & garage service	1 for each 800 sq. ft. of floor area
Wholesale establishments & warehouses	1 for each 3,000 sq. ft. of floor area OR 1 for each 2 employees on maximum shift, whichever is greater
Commercial service laboratories, machine shops & similar	1 for each 600 sq. ft. of floor area OR 1 for each 2 employees on maximum shift, whichever is greater
Manufacturing plants	1 for each 1,200 sq. ft. of floor area OR 1 for each 3 employees on maximum shift, whichever is greater

ADA Parking Space Guidelines for Commercial Property Owners

The ADA requires businesses to have parking spots for handicapped drivers. Some of these spots should be at least 96 inches wide for van accessibility.

As of 2015, every 25 spots must have a corresponding handicap spot. If you have more than 100 parking spaces, you need additional handicap spaces as listed below:

101 to 150 - 5 spaces
151 to 200 - 6 spaces
201 to 300 - 7 spaces
301 to 400 - 8 spaces
401 to 500 - 9 spaces
501 to 1,000 - 2% of total parking spaces provided in the lot
1,001+ - 20 plus 1 for each additional 100 spaces

Parking Lot Design Guidance

Parking lot design can be tricky, and parking spaces are only one component to consider. There are additional requirements for signage, expansion or property use changes, and even the asphalt itself.

For assistance on designing and constructing your asphalt parking lot, check out the following resources or reach out to our team!

Commercial Construction & Contracting Resources