Honolulu Parking Requirements Under ROH Chapter 21: Off-Street Stalls, Dimensions, and Reductions
Off-street parking is one of the most comment-prone areas of Honolulu plan submissions — not because the requirements are unusual, but because the parking calculation is rarely shown on the drawings in a way that the plan checker can verify without follow-up questions. A compliant parking plan requires the right number of stalls, the right dimensions, clear access, and the calculation documented on the site plan.
How parking requirements work under the LUO
ROH Chapter 21 (the Land Use Ordinance) establishes minimum off-street parking requirements for each use type, expressed as a ratio of stalls to floor area, units, or seats. The applicable rate depends on the use, the zoning district, and sometimes the location of the parcel relative to transit.
The LUO parking requirements are minimums — a project may provide more parking than required, but may not provide less without a variance or a qualifying reduction. Some BMX and transit-oriented districts have reduced minimums or no minimum at all, reflecting the intent to reduce auto-dependency near transit. Verify the specific district standards before applying the general residential or commercial rate.
The parking calculation must appear on the site plan or in the general notes as a line-item calculation: use, required rate, gross floor area (or units or seats), and resulting stall count. A bare notation of "parking: 2 stalls provided" is not sufficient — show the calculation, not just the result.
Parking requirements by use type
Representative figures — verify against current ROH Chapter 21 use table for your district. Mixed-use projects must sum requirements across all uses.
| Use | Requirement | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Single-family dwelling | 2 stalls per dwelling unit | Both stalls must be on the lot. Tandem permitted in most districts. |
| Ohana unit (attached) | 1 additional stall | For the secondary unit, in addition to the primary dwelling requirement. |
| ADU | 1 stall | May be reduced or waived in transit-accessible areas per state law. |
| Apartment (A-1, A-2, A-3) | 1–2 stalls per unit depending on unit size and district | Studio/1BR typically 1 stall. 2BR+ typically 1.5–2. Verify district table. |
| Retail / commercial (B-1, B-2) | 1 stall per 200–300 sq ft GFA | Rate varies by district. Some BMX districts reduce or eliminate the requirement. |
| Office / professional | 1 stall per 300 sq ft GFA | Representative figure. Verify for specific district and use. |
| Restaurant / food service | 1 stall per 100 sq ft GFA or 1 per 3 seats | Whichever is greater. Drive-through adds separate stacking lane requirement. |
| Medical / dental office | 1 stall per 200 sq ft GFA | Higher than general office due to patient turnover. |
Stall dimensions
ROH Chapter 21 specifies minimum stall dimensions. The standard stall dimensions are:
- Standard stall: 8 feet 6 inches wide by 18 feet deep (8.5' × 18')
- Compact stall: 7 feet 6 inches wide by 15 feet deep — limited to a specified percentage of total stalls on most projects
- Accessible (ADA) stall: 8 feet wide with 5-foot access aisle (or 8 feet with 8-foot van-accessible aisle for van-accessible stalls) — number required per ADA Standards for Accessible Design based on total stall count
- Aisle width: 24 feet minimum for 90-degree parking, 20 feet for 60-degree, 12 feet for one-way 45-degree
Stall dimensions must be shown on the site plan with dimension lines. A plan that shows parking areas without dimensioning the stalls will come back with a comment. The plan checker cannot assume compliance.
Tandem parking — two stalls arranged front-to-back in a single driveway lane — is permitted for residential uses in most districts. Each tandem space counts as one stall. Tandem stalls serving different units (where car B cannot exit without moving car A) are generally not permitted in commercial applications.
Reductions and exemptions
State law (HRS §46-4) limits local parking requirements for ADUs within a specified distance of a major transit stop. For qualifying parcels, the parking requirement for the ADU may be waived entirely. This is a frequently overlooked exemption that can make ADU projects viable on lots with constrained parking areas. Verify the transit stop proximity using TheBus route data and measure from the parcel to the nearest qualifying stop.
Business Mixed-Use (BMX) districts and some transit-oriented development areas in Honolulu have reduced or eliminated off-street parking minimums. In some BMX-3 areas, parking is not required for ground-floor commercial uses below a certain floor area threshold. Do not apply standard B-2 parking rates to a BMX project — verify the district-specific standards.
Where two or more uses on adjacent parcels have peak demand at different times, shared parking arrangements may satisfy the LUO requirement for both uses with fewer total stalls. A shared parking agreement (recorded on both parcels) and a parking study demonstrating complementary peak hours are required. DPP does not grant shared parking credits informally.
Bicycle parking
ROH Chapter 21 requires bicycle parking for most commercial and multi-family projects above a certain size. The requirement is typically expressed as a ratio of bicycle stalls to automobile stalls or to gross floor area. Bicycle parking must be:
- Located within a specified distance of the primary building entrance
- On a paved surface with a secure rack or enclosure
- Not blocking pedestrian circulation
Bicycle parking is frequently omitted from commercial project submissions and generates a first-round comment. Show the bicycle rack location and count on the site plan.
Common parking comment triggers
- No calculation shown. Total stalls provided with no breakdown of how the requirement was calculated.
- Stalls not dimensioned. Parking area shown on site plan without stall width and depth dimensions.
- Aisle width not shown. Back-up or maneuvering space not dimensioned or clearly inadequate for the stall angle.
- Accessible stall count wrong. ADA stall count must match the total stall count per ADA table, not a flat number.
- Tandem stalls in commercial application. Tandem parking shown for a use where it is not permitted.
- Mixed-use calculation missing second use. Only the residential or only the commercial requirement calculated, not the sum.
Parking compliance checked against your actual use and district.
Ikena Permit calculates the LUO parking requirement for your project's use mix and zoning district, checks the stall count shown on your site plan, and flags missing dimensions and accessible stall counts before you submit.
Request early access →Published by Ikena Permit, a DBA of Ikena Design & Build LLC, Honolulu, HI. Informational only. Parking requirements vary by district and use — verify against current adopted ROH Chapter 21 and applicable state law. Last reviewed May 2026.