WHEATON, MD – Citing concerns about holiday traffic, Montgomery County officials announced this week that all residential properties must now provide a minimum of 2.5 off-street parking spaces per Nativity scene.
“This is really about balance,” said Planning Board Chair Artie Harris, noting that the original Nativity occurred in a walkable, transit-oriented village that does not meet current Montgomery County zoning standards. “If the Messiah were born today, we would absolutely want him arriving in a way that minimizes the impact on our single-family neighborhoods.”
The new regulation applies to all traditional Nativity reenactments and any interpretive or symbolic depiction of the birth of Jesus Christ, including but not limited to wooden cutouts or inflatable Marys. Under the rule, Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus count as one household, and each wise man is considered a separate visitor unless they arrive by public transit, camel, or approved star-guided rideshare.
Officials also clarified that the stable sheltering the infant Jesus technically qualifies as an unpermitted Accessory Dwelling Unit, since it is a detached structure with a sleeping area, a roof, and a clear intent to exist on the same lot as a primary residence. As such, the manger must either be legalized through the ADU process or removed within 30 days of Epiphany.
“We’re not trying to start a war on Christmas,” said Planning Department spokesperson Linda Wexler, speaking beneath a PowerPoint slide titled “Best Practices for Faith-Based Parking Compliance.” “But once you start allowing one unparked Nativity, it becomes very hard to tell people ‘no’ when they want to hold Easter egg hunts without a traffic study.”
Residents wishing to display a Nativity without adequate parking may apply for a waiver, which requires a $1,200 fee, notarized letters from adjacent property owners, and the installation of a fire sprinkler system in the stable.
Violators could face fines, removal of the manger, or mandatory conversion of the Nativity into a by-right, mixed-use development with ground-floor retail and market rate condos.
County leaders confirmed they are still studying how many parking spaces will be required for the Second Coming.
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