RV parking rules in East Hempfield Township

East Hempfield Township RV parking at a glance

Can I keep an RV on my driveway for a few days?

On a lot used principally for a single-family detached dwelling, or an adjacent lot owned by the same owner, §270-4.7B(2) provides a temporary route for one recreational vehicle. The limit is 72 hours during any seven-day period, on paved or gravel surface in any yard, at least ten feet from any street right-of-way and five feet from adjoining lot lines. Other housing types and commercial storage need their own determination.

What if I want to store the RV longer?

One RV may be stored outdoors per lot outside the required front yard and at least five feet from adjoining side/rear lines. It may occupy no more than 320 square feet to its outermost edges and be no more than 13 feet high to its main body. Listed accessories such as air conditioners, vents, antennas and masts do not count toward height; a boat flybridge or console does. It must remain behind the front setback line; vacant lots use the principal-use front setback.

Maintain vegetation, dispose of litter, retain required licensing and prevent fuel/lubricant leaks. Developments with more than 20 semidetached, townhouse or multifamily dwellings, or a combination, must provide a common storage area at 100 square feet per dwelling, designed to parking-lot standards. That development provision is not blanket permission for individual yard storage.

Can friends or relatives sleep in an RV at home?

Section 270-4.9 separately permits temporary occupancy of a tent, travel trailer, camper or motorhome in an approved campground or for up to 14 days in a calendar year on a friend’s or relative’s lot. For more time, submit a written request explaining the additional time and justification to the Zoning Officer for review. A request is not approval.

The section does not establish that occupancy waives vehicle placement, utilities, building or health requirements. Confirm those together before a visit. A bus or boat is not listed in the temporary friend/relative exception.

Can an RV become a permanent dwelling?

No persons or family may permanently reside in a tent, travel trailer, bus, boat, camper or motorhome under §270-4.9. The 14-day guest allowance is not a permanent-residence route. A longer approved campground stay also needs its actual campground authorization.

Does the home-parking rule apply on the street?

No. The 72-hour provision is an on-lot parking rule. It does not authorize street parking or street hookups. Section 270-4.7B(4) has separate commercial-truck and trailer restrictions, including a 10,000-pound truck definition and a prohibition on trailers not accessory to a principal residential use. Ask about vehicle classification and posted street controls rather than assuming that a residential storage exception overrides them.

Who to contact for your setup

Ask East Hempfield Township zoning staff about your parcel, zoning district, vehicle classification, legal yard boundaries and intended activity. Ask Police about the exact street, posted restrictions and temporary controls. Confirm later amendments, private covenants, leases and utility approvals separately.

Use the East Hempfield Township parking checker to organize the starting conditions. The checker cannot approve a parcel, a variance or an unverified exception.

Official sources reviewed November 6, 2026

• East Hempfield §§270-4.7 and 270-4.9: outdoor storage and occupancy

  2022 outdoor-storage amendment; separate temporary occupancy, written extension request and permanent-residence ban.

• East Hempfield Article 2 zoning definitions

  Definitions read in context with storage and occupancy; no floodplain-only RV exception is used.

A review date records when we checked these sources. The notes above explain any use of older code editions or limits on access to the full source; an address-specific township determination may still be required. Read our research method.