Absecon City Zoning Code

Intent. The intent of the Planned Senior Citizen Community District PSCC is to permit a residential community designed for senior citizens which contains residential dwelling units, open space and medical and nursing facilities as well as social, cultural and recreational facilities.

Regulations in District. The use, height and area regulations of Sections 224- 111 to 224-116, inclusive, and those regulations set forth elsewhere in this chapter, where applicable to these sections, and the general regulations of Article XVIII are the regulations in Planned Senior Citizen Community District PSCC.

Principal uses and buildings.

Conditional uses.

Accessory uses and buildings. Accessory uses and buildings shall be uses and buildings customarily incidental to the principal uses listed as permitted. They shall be understood to include but not be limited to gatehouses, garages, carports, guardhouses and storage facilities for maintenance and equipment. Cultural and recreational structures shall be permitted.

Lot size.

Lot width. One hundred feet minimum for single-family detached dwellings. Minimum lot widths for all other dwelling unit types shall be set by the Planning Board after a review of the site plans for the proposed dwelling unit types.

Lot coverage. Fifty percent maximum, which shall include coverage by buildings, parking areas, roadways and all other materials less porous than presently existing.

Dwelling unit density. Eight dwelling units per buildable acre. The inclusion of 5% low-income and 5% moderate-income housing is required. Up to a maximum of 12 dwelling units per acre may be permitted based upon the overall project design, adequacy of buffers, provisions for open space and impacts on traffic and public facilities, including public improvements or facilities to be provided by the applicant. An increase in density above the eight dwelling units per acre shall require the inclusion of more than 5% low-income and 5% moderate-income dwelling units. The Planning Board may, however, waive the inclusion of low- and moderate-income housing units if an adequate number to meet the needs and obligations of the City of Absecon City have already been provided within the development or at another site. Any low- or moderate-income housing shall be consistent with the Absecon Housing Element and include appropriate measures for affordability controls.

Perimeter boundary lines. No structure shall be closer than 100 feet from the perimeter property line of the planned senior citizen community. No paved or improved area shall be closer than 50 feet.

Front setbacks. Where the perimeter property line of the planned senior citizen community abuts a public road, whether it is county, primary or arterial, no structure shall be located closer than 100 feet, and no paved or improved area shall be closer than 50 feet.

Physical characteristics of buildings. A maximum length of 150 feet per freestanding dwelling shall be permitted. Up to three such one-hundred-fifty-foot maximum depth buildings may be attached, provided that an angle of at least 30° exists between adjacent buildings. However, there can be no continuous roofline or continuous front and/or rear building line of more than 80 linear feet. It is the purpose of this section to provide for both broken rooflines and different setbacks and to break up a straight linear configuration. Dwelling units connected by party or common walls shall not be considered separate buildings for the purposes of this section. Units connected by open walkways may, at the Board's discretion, be considered separate buildings for the purposes of this section but shall not be considered separate buildings for the purposes of paragraph I. dealing with space between buildings if the Board so finds.

Bedroom content. The applicant shall furnish as part of the project submittal data indicating the proposed mix of bedrooms of structures included within the development.

Space between buildings. No multifamily building shall be closer than 30 feet to any other building, nor shall any single-family detached dwelling unit be closer than 20 feet to any other single-family detached dwelling unit or closer than 30 feet to any multifamily structure, except as allowed by the Planning Board when this requirement is waived for architectural considerations.

Floor area of residential dwelling units. A studio-type residential dwelling unit shall contain not less than 400 square feet; a residential dwelling unit intended for single occupancy, one-bedroom design, shall contain not less than 500 square feet; and a residential dwelling unit intended for double occupancy shall contain not less than 700 square feet.

Building height. No building shall contain more than 2 1/2 stories or be more than 35 feet in height. This provision shall not apply with respect to steeples, towers or chimneys.

Social and recreational facilities shall reflect, insofar as possible, references of the anticipated residents. Indoor facilities shall include hobby or craft facilities, lounging areas which may also be used for meetings and group activities, card rooms, lavatories and a swimming pool. Outdoor facilities shall include walks, shuffleboard and horseshoe courts.

The architectural design of all buildings and the site location and recreational facilities must be consistent with the ultimate purpose of achieving independent, self-reliant and pleasant living arrangements and shall take into account the desires and needs of older persons for privacy, participating in social community activities and access to community activities. At the same time, provisions shall be made to accommodate the limitations that sometimes accompany advanced years so that independent living can be sustained as long as possible. The applicant shall show in detail how his design considers this criteria in terms of the checklist of design standards given in Section 224-154. The architectural design as aforesaid shall be a matter of review by the Planning Board, and failure to comply or provide for the criteria as aforesaid without good and sufficient cause or without proposing acceptable alternatives may be a reason for denial. The use of natural materials, such as wood, brick or stone, is encouraged.

Storage areas with a minimum floor area of five feet by seven feet shall be provided for the use of residents.

Laundry facilities, either located in individual units or in common areas, shall be provided for the use of residents.

Streets which are to be dedicated for public use shall be in accordance with those standards set forth in Section 224-158 et seq.

The Planning Board may waive the strict application of the requirements of Section 224-158 for those streets which are not to be dedicated and which are internal roads only.

The following off-street parking requirements shall apply:

Indoor social, cultural, recreational and meeting facilities shall be required. The gross floor area devoted to such usage shall be not less than 20 square feet per residential dwelling unit for the first 250 residential dwelling units, plus 10 square feet for each residential unit in excess of 250 units.

Not less than 50% of the gross area of the planned senior citizen community shall be devoted to open space, which is defined to include any areas not covered by buildings, structures or by paved streets or parking areas. No more than 10% of the gross area of the planned senior citizen community shall be water area that is included as part of the 50% computation set forth above. At least 30% of open space must be common open space.

Within the fifty-foot-wide area established in Section 224-113E hereof, there shall be a buffer strip suitably landscaped with grass, ground cover, shrubs and trees and unused for any other purpose except walkways, bicycle paths, gardening, equestrian trails and passive park purposes, including park benches, except that this landscaping requirement shall not apply within any such setback area which abuts an open body of water or public street or where natural wooded areas exist.

Appropriate passive outdoor recreational areas shall be provided and shall include suitable landscaping. These areas shall be suitable for sitting and walking areas as well as for bicycle trails.

Topsoil shall not be removed from the site during construction but shall be stored and redistributed to areas most exposed to view, and such areas shall be stabilized by seeding and planting.

Any land sold and deeded out shall contain a restriction on use to ensure the land sold will be used for senior citizen housing.

Adequate controls must be provided to ensure the age-restricted nature of the project. Such controls shall comply with the requirements of the Fair Housing Act, U.S.C. § 3601 et seq.

No school bus or school vehicle of any type used for the transportation of passengers as defined in N.J.S.A. 39:1-1 shall be permitted to park on any street or property at any time unless the vehicle is engaged in the pickup or discharge of passengers and then only for the amount of time necessary to carry out the pickup or discharge. This section shall not apply to the parking of school buses on school owned lands, public or private, or on streets contiguous to any school, public or private within the City of Absecon during school hours.

One nonflashing and externally illuminated project identification sign for each direction of travel on any public street on which the planned senior citizen community development has frontage, not to exceed 30 square feet in area on any one side or six feet in height and located not less than 20 feet from any street or property line. Such signs may bear only the name of the planned senior citizen community and the developer, the street address and the presence or lack of vacant units.

One nonflashing sign to identify each church, auditorium, guest house, administrative or other quasi-public building or other social, cultural or recreational facility, not exceeding 10 square feet in area on any one side and located not less than 10 feet from any curbline.

Such other signs as the approving authority may, in its discretion, deem appropriate, provided that in no event shall there be permitted any other such sign which is of a flashing type or which is greater than 20 square feet in area or which is not compatible with the aesthetics of the planned senior citizen community.

Interior streets, parking areas, dwelling entrances, pedestrian walks and any recreation area which is to be used for any nighttime activity shall be provided with sufficient illumination to minimize hazards to persons using the same and shall, where necessary, be shielded to avoid glare that might be disturbing to occupants of buildings or properties surrounding the planned senior citizen community. Lighting shall conform to the design standard contained in Article XX, Section 224-130 of this chapter.

Appropriate provisions shall be made for private garbage and trash collection and for the private maintenance of all interior roads and streets (including snow removal), recreational facilities and all buildings and land areas. In addition, provisions shall be made to permit the City, at its option, to perform or cause to be performed such services in the event of the continued failure of performance of the same by the private association or other entity charged with such responsibility, all at the cost and expense of the owners of the property within the planned senior citizen community.

The overall design, construction and improvement phasing plan, recreational facilities, landscaping plans and site locations of buildings must be submitted to the Planning Board. The body has the right to approve the general design to obtain aesthetic harmony. The construction and improvement phasing plan is to be updated annually by the developer on or before the anniversary date of the preliminary approval for the duration of the project, and it shall be subject to review and approval by the Planning Board, and shapes, site positions and architectural design may be considered along with the landscaping and nature features. The following criteria also may be taken into consideration:

All installation of utilities on the site shall be underground. The project may be serviced by a central master antenna communications system for all of the residents.

All trash or garbage disposal facilities shall be properly screened, and plans shall be submitted as part of the development site plan showing the location and types of screening thereof. Recycling shall be incorporated into the plans, conforming to local and State laws and regulations.

The medical and nursing facilities established in a planned senior citizen community shall be primarily for the residents of that community. Such facilities may also be used by nonresidents, provided that sufficient facilities are reserved to satisfy the medical and nursing care needs of the residents of the planned senior citizen community.

Traffic generation shall not exceed the available capacities of the intersections providing public access to the planned development.

The capacity of the sewerage and water systems shall be adequate to serve the projected demands of the planned development.