This Article provides landscaping, parking, and loading standards.

A.    Landscaping is required on lots, in parking areas, in open spaces, along roads and streets, as a buffer between certain specified uses, and as a buffer between zoning districts.

B.    Figure 06.110 shows how a property is divided into areas for peripheral bufferyards, street bufferyards, on-lot landscaping, open space landscaping, and parking lot landscaping. Each area must be measured to determine the amount of landscaping required. The landscaping areas do not overlap.

C.    Most landscaping standards are in plant units -- a combination of canopy, understory, evergreen trees, and shrubs. Planting and maintenance standards and alternative plant units are contained in Figure 13.110.

D.    All landscape material shall be maintained in accordance with Section 13.220.

Table 04.110 A. establishes the required landscaping for the landscaped area of each lot and in parking lots. The landscaped area standards apply only to those areas of the lot or property not covered by buildings, road rights-of-way, open space, parking, or bufferyards. The parking lot standard applies to the parking area.

A.    Table 04.110 A. lists nonresidential landscaping requirements in plant units per acre. Residential landscaping is given in plant units per lot or dwelling unit.

B.    Parking lot landscaping shall be one (1) plant unit per number of parking spaces specified in Table 04.110. A. Any parking lot having fifty (50) percent or less than the number listed is exempt from the requirement to provide parking lot landscaping.

Figure 06.110

LANDSCAPING AREAS

All areas of open space shall be landscaped using one of the following landscape treatments:

A.    Areas presently covered with natural vegetation shall be maintained in that natural state. If maintained as a meadow, the area shall be mowed at least twice a year.

B.    Open space areas intended to be a mowed lawn, except those used as sports fields or other recreational uses otherwise paved or surfaced, shall be planted with a minimum of four (4) plant units per acre. Golf courses shall provide three (3) plant units per acre.

C.    Areas disturbed but scheduled to be returned to natural conditions shall be planted as forest (afforestation) or wetland.

This Division provides standards for bufferyards between uses and districts, and for special purposes.

Bufferyard requirements are designed to ameliorate nuisances between certain adjacent zoning districts or land uses. Bufferyards function to eliminate or minimize potential nuisances such as dirt; litter; noise; glare of lights; unsightly buildings, parking areas, or signs; and/or large changes in scale. Bufferyards also provide spacing to reduce danger from fires or explosions. Bufferyards serve a similar function between streets and various land uses.

Bufferyards shall be located along the outer perimeter of a lot or parcel; they shall extend to the lot or parcel boundary line. Bufferyards shall not be located on any portion of an existing or dedicated public or private street or right-of-way, except when specifically noted as street buffers. Bufferyards are required, as indicated in Table 04.110 A., under the following conditions:

A.    Along a district boundary where adjoining properties are in different zoning districts.

B.    Along a property boundary within the same zoning district.

C.    Along all streets, where no buffer is required by A. or B. above.

A.    Table 04.110 A. lists the opacity levels of the peripheral bufferyards required under specified conditions. Opacity levels present the buffering level to be provided by the use. Table 13.140 specifies the number of plant units required to achieve a level of opacity. A bufferyard that meets the opacity rating specified in Table 04.110 A shall be approved as part of the plat or land development approval.

B.    Where the adjoining use was built prior to this Ordinance’s adoption date, the total bufferyard required of both uses shall be provided by the proposed use. Various uses are required to have additional buffers by Table 03.110 A. Also, where parking lots abut residential uses within a zoning district, bufferyards meeting the standards of Section 06.220 shall be provided.

C.    Security up to the cost of the bufferyard may be required. The zoning officer shall verify that it is in place prior to any occupancy permits being issued. If buildings are completed at a time of the year where planting cannot be accomplished, the zoning officer may issue a temporary occupancy permit and hold the security until the landscaping is completed.

Parking bufferyards are required where parking areas abut an existing residential use within an established district. Table 13.140 lists parking buffer options. Parking buffers shall conform with the following:

A.    Where no buffer is required by Table 04.110 A., the parking buffer shall be installed.

B.    When a buffer is required by Table 04.110 A., the parking buffer may be required. The following standards apply:

1.    Where the bufferyard has a fence equivalent to a four (4) foot fence with one hundred (100) percent opacity or a four (4) foot berm, no parking buffer shall be required.

2.    Bufferyards with opacities of one-half (0.50) or greater do not require a parking buffer.

3.    Where a wall or hedge is part of the parking buffer selected, the number of each plant unit item (canopy, evergreen, understory, and shrubs) shall be the greater number of those required for the parking buffer and the district or street buffer.

C.    Parking buffers shall not be required in the interior of a residential development, however the planning commission shall review the plat and landscape plan to insure that site landscaping provides for protection where needed.

Where indicated in Table 04.110 A., special buffers may be required for selected uses under certain conditions. Uses that adjoin a public or private school, County Hospital, City Administration, County Administration, Ursuline Academy, or Lakemary shall be reviewed individually to determine if a buffer having a maximum opacity of 0.4 shall be required or whether the proposed landscaping and building design is adequate without additional buffering. Also, commercial uses with floor areas above sixty thousand (60,000) square feet may be required to increase buffers to 0.4 opacity. The following shall be used to evaluate the buffer:

A.    The scale of the adjoining uses. Where the scale difference of the buildings is greater than ten (10), buffering shall be required.

B.    Where architecture is very different, contrasts, conflicts, or distracts from the quality of the existing building, buffering shall be required.

C.    Where mechanical equipment is visible, screening shall be required architecturally and/or in the bufferyard.

D.    Where signs, lighting, or loading areas are a detraction from the adjoining public use, bufferyards shall be required.

E.    Where bufferyards or special buffers are required, the latter developer shall be required to install the bufferyard/special buffer.

A bufferyard may be used for passive recreation. It may contain pedestrian, bike, or equestrian trails, provided the plant material amount is not reduced because of the trail, the total width of the bufferyard is maintained, and all other Ordinance regulations are met. However, in no event shall swimming pools, tennis courts, sports fields, or other such uses be permitted in bufferyards. Where a golf course is installed in the bufferyard location, it shall be considered an adequate bufferyard provision.

This Ordinance recognizes that roads are a public investment paid for by all citizens, not just those whose properties front the road. This Division requires off-street parking areas for land uses. These requirements lessen congestion on streets and ensure an adequate supply of parking and loading spaces for customers within a reasonable distance.

All uses shall be required to meet the off-street parking standards set forth in Table 03.110 A. or B. The following general requirements shall govern off-street parking provisions and maintenance:

A.    Change of Use. Should a lot or building owner or occupant change the use of said lot or building, the new use shall conform with this Ordinance’s off-street parking provisions.

B.    Storage Prohibited. Required off-street parking spaces shall be available for operable passenger automobiles of the residents, customers, patrons, and employees of the use to which they are accessory. Storing materials or inoperable vehicles, or parking trucks or trailers, shall be prohibited.

C.    Vehicle Work Prohibited. No major vehicle work of any kind shall be permitted in conjunction with off-street parking facilities.

Table 03.110 A. specifies the minimum number of parking spaces required for each use type. When the number of required off-street parking spaces results in a fractional space, the fractional space shall be counted as one (1) parking space. If several uses occupy a single parcel or building, the off-street parking and loading requirement shall be the additive total for all these parcel’s or building’s uses. Uses not listed shall have their parking requirements determined by Staff based on most similar use(s) or studies.

Where Table 03.110 A. calls for a special study, or where a developer believes the parking requirements are inappropriate for the proposed use, a special study conducted by a transportation planner or engineer citing similar uses and based on a detailed analysis of the proposed use may be submitted at the developer’s expense. The City may substitute or rely on the special study for that specific property. The Planning Commission may require reserve space for additional parking if they believe there is a high probability the use could change and require the normal amount of parking spaces.

Where a building is a mixed use structure, or where a combination of uses is such that uses with very different parking requirements are in the same complex or building, the uses’ off-street parking requirements shall be calculated individually. However, in some instances, the uses may have very different hours of operation reducing the parking need; the uses can share parking spaces. In other cases, particular land uses may be able to reduce the need for parking due to a synergistic relationship. A special study shall document the parking needs. The Planning Commission may require open area be placed in reserve if they are not convinced all needs can be met at the reduced level.

In the D District, the developer may deduct from the required parking their share of on-street parking spaces, parking around the Square, and City lot parking in accordance with the following formula: Parking Credit = Sa x P where

Sa    =        Share of the area in the D District less the area of the Square and the County Building.

P     =        Total parking spaces on streets and in City lots. (February 1997 totals were 151 parking spaces in lots around the square and 385 spaces in the Downtown District.) Developers may get current counts from the City or provide a Downtown District total by survey.

A.    Parking shall be setback behind any required buffer area or as specified in Table 04.110A. All parking spaces, aisles, and turning areas shall be located entirely within the served property’s lot lines and shall not encroach on any road, driveway, or other public right-of-way. No parked vehicle shall overhang any road, sidewalk, access driveway, or public right-of-way.

B.    Parking or overflow parking may be located off-site or in common parking areas subject to the following rules:

1.    Single-family homes shall have all parking other than overflow parking on lot, except town houses and atrium homes may opt to use off-site parking.

2.    Multi-family dwelling units shall have all off-street parking located within one hundred eighty (180) feet of the building being served. This provision also applies to town houses or atrium homes that choose to use off-site parking.

3.    For all other uses, all off-street parking shall be located within six-hundred (600) feet of the building being served.

All uses shall provide off-street loading as required by Table 03.110 A. However, existing buildings shall be exempt from this Section’s provisions if installation is impossible.