At its June meeting, the Arlington County Board approved updates to the Arlington County Zoning Ordinance that remove some barriers to installing EV chargers in the County. The staff board report is available here. Here’s what’s been updated:
EV Charging Signs
- “EV Charging Only” spaces count toward minimum parking but are not required.
EVSE (Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment) Allowed in Setbacks
- Level 1 & 2 chargers: may encroach into any required yard.
- Level 3 chargers: may encroach but must be 8 ft. from any street-front lot line.
- Charging cords cannot cross sidewalks; right‐of‐way charging is not yet allowed.
- Figure pictured with rear yard, side yard, front yard, building line, setback, lot line, street and building.
Parking Lot Flexibility
- New Parking Tabulation Rule
- Full size spaces with Level 2 or Level 3 charging count as 1.5 spaces. All other spaces count as 1. Fractional totals round down.
- New Space Type: EV Accommodation Space (figure of parking lot with chargers in the parking spot and in between the parking spots)
- Same width as full-size (8.5’), but shorter (15’) to make room for EVSE.
- Counts as 1 full size space.
- Does not affect compact space ratios.
Simpler Review Process
- Only the altered portion of a parking lot must meet current zoning regulations.
- If tabulation increases beyond physical spaces, “excess” spaces must remain parking or be used to site EVSE.
Learn more on Arlington’s “Installing EV Charging” page.