Parking Signs for Office Parks: Tenant + Visitor + ADA Mix

A multi-tenant office park has a parking management problem that single-tenant buildings do not. Five tenants with five different head-counts, three different visitor patterns, and one shared ADA pool create constant low-grade conflict in the lot. The wrong sign system makes the property manager the referee on every dispute. The right sign system makes the parking allocation legible to every employee and visitor without anyone having to ask.

Below is the sign package we run at Oregon multi-tenant office parks, with the federal, state, and city code references each sign maps to.

Quick Answer

Office park parking signs span five categories: tenant-assigned parking, visitor and guest parking, ADA accessible (R7-8 and R7-8a), EV charging (R10-21), and shared service signage (fire lanes, loading zones, accessible routes). The 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design control accessible stall counts under Section 208, and ORS 98.812 governs the tow-away language for tenant-only enforcement. A 200-stall office park typically needs 35 to 55 signs covering these zones.

What's the Right Way to Allocate Tenant Stalls in a Multi-Tenant Office Park?

Three allocation models, three different sign packages:

• Pro-rata allocation by lease square footage: Most common at Class A office parks. Each tenant gets a numbered range of stalls. Signs read "RESERVED FOR [TENANT NAME] - STALLS 14-28."
• Permit allocation: Each tenant receives a number of permits equal to their allocation; permits are issued to employees as physical hangtags or windshield stickers. Signs read "PERMIT REQUIRED - AUTHORIZED VEHICLES ONLY."
• First-come-first-served with restricted overflow: Tenants share a common pool with overflow signs at the perimeter. Signs read "TENANT PARKING - 24 HOUR LIMIT - VIOLATORS TOWED."

Each model carries different signage. Pro-rata uses tenant-name signs (must be updated on every lease change). Permit allocation uses generic "PERMIT REQUIRED" signs (more durable, supports tenant turnover without sign change). First-come-first-served uses time-restricted signs (most flexible, lowest enforcement).

We default to the permit allocation model on multi-tenant builds because it survives lease changes without a sign refresh.

How Should Visitor Parking Be Signed at an Office Park?

Visitor parking at an office park has three failure modes:

1. Visitors park in tenant stalls because the visitor area is invisible from the entry.
2. Tenants park in visitor stalls because the time restriction is not enforced.
3. Visitors stay overnight because the time-limit signs are missing.

The bundle that prevents all three:

• Wayfinding sign at the entry: "VISITOR PARKING" with a directional arrow.
• Visitor stall signs: "VISITOR PARKING - 4 HOUR LIMIT" or longer per the property manager's policy.
• Overnight prohibition sign: "NO OVERNIGHT PARKING - VEHICLES TOWED - ORS 98.812" at the perimeter.

The overnight prohibition sign is the most-skipped element of the bundle and the one that most often breaks an office park's tenant relations. Without it, visiting traveling consultants park overnight, take tenant-assigned stalls in the morning, and trigger the dispute that the property manager has to mediate.

How Many ADA Stalls Does an Office Park Need?

ADA Standard 208.2 sets the minimum stall count by parking lot size. For typical office parks:

Lot Size	Required Accessible Stalls	Van-Accessible
26 to 50 stalls	2	1 of 2
51 to 75 stalls	3	1 of 3
76 to 100 stalls	4	1 of 4
101 to 150 stalls	5	1 of 5
151 to 200 stalls	6	1 of 6
201 to 300 stalls	7	2 of 7

Each accessible stall needs an R7-8 sign with the bottom of the sign at least 60 inches above the surface, per ADA Standard 502.6. One in every six must be van-accessible (R7-8a add-on).

Multi-tenant office parks add a complication: the ADA stalls are a shared resource across all tenants. A tenant cannot reserve an ADA stall for their own employees. If a tenant has a high need (a tenant whose business serves people with disabilities, for example), the property manager can create additional non-ADA reserved stalls near the entrance, but cannot privatize the ADA stalls themselves.

Are EV Charging Stalls Required at Oregon Office Parks?

For new construction and major remodels, yes. Oregon's HB 2180 (2023) sets EV stall minimums for new commercial parking, and several municipalities (Portland, Beaverton, Hillsboro) layer additional requirements through their development codes.

EV stall signage uses the MUTCD R10-21 series (added in the 2023 supplement), with green-on-white sheeting and the EV plug pictogram. To make the EV-only restriction enforceable in Oregon, pair the R10-21 with an ORS 98.812 tow-away addendum.

The MUTCD is published by the Federal Highway Administration at mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov.

How Cojo Approached a Real Example: 320-Stall Office Park, Hillsboro, March 2026

A 5-building office park in Hillsboro called us in March 2026 to refresh the parking sign system after a tenant churn left the previous tenant-name signs out of date. The property had:

• 320 parking stalls across 5 buildings
• 14 ADA accessible stalls (existing)
• 12 EV charging stalls (new install in 2024)
• 24 visitor stalls
• 270 tenant stalls split across 11 lease tenants

Our scope:

• 11 building-entry signs (one per tenant entrance) with permit-allocation language
• 24 visitor stall signs (4-hour limit, overnight tow-away addendum)
• 14 R7-8 / R7-8a ADA pair refreshes
• 12 R10-21 EV stall signs with ORS 98.812 tow-away plates
• 6 fire-lane sign refreshes
• 4 wayfinding signs at the campus entrances

Total install ran in the $14,500 to $19,000 range across two weekends, consistent with the Industry Baseline Range for a 71-sign office park refresh.

Industry Baseline Range

Component	Cost
Tenant-permit allocation sign	$175 to $325
Visitor stall sign with tow-away addendum	$200 to $375
ADA R7-8 / R7-8a pair on new post	$250 to $500
EV stall sign (R10-21 + tow plate)	$200 to $400
Wayfinding sign at campus entry	$300 to $650
Full office park sign refresh (60 to 80 signs)	$14,000 to $22,000

These figures reflect published industry averages. Current market pricing varies significantly and actual quotes may fall well outside these ranges based on site-specific conditions, material costs, and project complexity.

Current Market Reality

Aluminum sign blanks rose 11 percent across 2025, custom-printed tenant-name signs carry 4 to 6 week lead times, and EV signage stock is intermittently constrained by green-sheeting supply. Office park managers planning a 2026 sign refresh should budget 20 to 30 percent above 2023 install pricing and order tenant-name custom prints 8 weeks ahead of the install.

What Should the Office Park Property Manager Verify Before Closing the Sign Job?

A defensible office park sign install gives the manager:

1. Permit-allocation reconciliation against current lease square footage.
2. ADA stall count audit against the ADA Standard 208 requirement.
3. Photo log with GPS for every installed sign.
4. Material cert sheets for sheeting grade.
5. Local jurisdiction permit numbers (some Oregon cities require sign permits for tenant-name signs).
6. Tenant communication plan for the sign change-over (especially permit issuance).

The sixth item is the one most often missed. A perfect sign install with no tenant communication produces a wave of confused calls to the property management office on day one.

FAQ

Q: Can a tenant in a multi-tenant office park reserve an ADA stall for their own employees?

A: No. ADA Standard 208 makes accessible stalls a shared building-wide resource. A tenant cannot privatize an ADA stall. If a tenant has a documented need for additional reserved stalls near the entrance, the property manager can create non-ADA reserved stalls separately, but the ADA stall pool must remain open to any person with a valid placard or plate.

Q: What's the most defensible tenant parking sign wording at a multi-tenant office park?

A: "AUTHORIZED VEHICLES ONLY - PERMIT REQUIRED - VIOLATORS TOWED AT OWNER'S EXPENSE - ORS 98.812" with the towing company's name and phone number. This wording supports a permit allocation system, gives the property manager flexibility on enforcement, and survives tenant turnover without a sign change.

Q: Are EV charging stalls required at office parks in Oregon?

A: For new construction and major remodels, EV stall minimums apply under HB 2180 (2023) and most Oregon municipal development codes. Existing office parks are not retrofit-required, but Oregon DEQ and EV-incentive programs commonly fund retrofits for properties that voluntarily add stalls. Sign with R10-21 and an ORS 98.812 tow-away plate.

Q: How tall does a tenant-name sign need to be?

A: There is no federal or Oregon minimum height for tenant-name signs as a category. We default to a 12 inch by 18 inch sign with the tenant name in 2-inch letters and the stall range in 1-inch letters, matching the standard reserved parking sign dimensions. The bottom of the sign should be at least 60 inches above the surface for sight-line readability.

Q: How often should office park parking signs be refreshed?

A: Every 5 to 7 years for material refresh, with mid-cycle updates for tenant changes. The bigger driver is tenant churn: a major lease change typically prompts a tenant-name sign refresh and an audit of the stall allocation. Annual visual inspection is the minimum for fade, vandalism, and vehicle-strike damage.

Next Step

Cojo installs and refreshes office park parking sign packages across Oregon with permit allocation modeling and tenant communication support. Compare options in our parking sign buyer's guide, or request a site walk for your campus.