Aleppo Township City Zoning Code
ARTICLE VI
Overlay Districts
§ 400-170 General.
The basic requirements of each zoning district shall be subject to additional standards and regulations of this article based upon said Township overlay districts. These additional mandatory standards and regulations are intended to supplement, not repeal, abrogate, impair, or replace any existing ordinances or provisions that relate to zoning or building construction within the Township.
§ 400-171 Airport Hazard Overlay District.
A.
The Airport Hazard Overlay (AHO) is established to create an airport district overlay that considers safety issues around the Pittsburgh International Airport, regulates and restricts the heights of constructed structures and objects of natural growth, creates appropriate zones, establishing the boundaries thereof and providing for changes in the restrictions and boundaries of such zones, creates the permitting process for use within said zones and provides for enforcement, assessment of violation penalties, an appeals process, and judicial review.
B.
Airport Hazard Areas are indicated on the graphics included in Appendix B[1] and are adopted as part of this chapter. Additional information on the AHO Overlay may be found on file in the Township Municipal Building.
[1]
Editor's Note: Appendix B is included as an attachment to this chapter.
C.
Permit applications. As regulated by Act 164 and defined by 14 Code of Federal Regulations 77.13(a) (as amended or replaced), any person who plans to erect a new structure, to add to an existing structure, or to erect and maintain any object (natural or manmade), in the vicinity of the airport, shall first notify the Department's Bureau of Aviation (BOA) by submitting PENNDOT Form AV-57 to obtain an obstruction review of the proposal at least 30 days prior to commencement thereof. The Department's BOA response must be included with this permit application for it to be considered complete. If the Department's BOA returns a determination of no penetration of airspace, the permit request should be considered in compliance with the intent of this Overlay Ordinance. If the Department's BOA returns a determination of a penetration of airspace, the permit shall be denied, and the project sponsor may seek a variance from such regulations as outlined in § 400-171(D) of this chapter. No notice or review under this section is required for any of the following construction or alteration:
(1)
Any object that would be shielded by existing structures of a permanent and substantial character or by natural terrain or topographic features of equal or greater height and would be located in the congested area of a city, town, or settlement where it is evident beyond all reasonable doubt that the structure so shielded will not adversely affect safety in air navigation.
(2)
Any antenna structure of 20 feet or less in height except one that would increase the height of another antenna structure.
(3)
Any air navigation facility, airport visual approach or landing aid, aircraft arresting device, or meteorological device, of a type approved by the administrator, or an appropriate military service on military airports, the location and height of which is fixed by functional purpose.
(4)
Any construction or alteration for which notice is required by any other FAA regulation.
D.
Variance.
(1)
Any request for a variance shall include documentation in compliance with 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 77 Subpart B (FAA Form 7460-1 as amended or replaced). Determinations of whether to grant a variance will depend on the determinations made by the FAA and the Department's BOA as to the effect of the proposal on the operation of air navigation facilities and the safe, efficient use of navigable air space. In particular, the request for a variance shall consider which of the following categories the FAA has placed the proposed construction in:
(a)
No objection. The subject construction is determined to not exceed obstruction standards and marking/lighting is not required to mitigate potential hazard. Under this determination a variance shall be granted.
(b)
Conditional determination. The proposed construction/alteration is determined to create some level of encroachment into an airport hazard area which can be effectively mitigated. Under this determination, a variance shall be granted contingent upon implementation of mitigating measures as described in § 400-171(G) of this chapter.
(c)
Objectionable. The proposed construction/alteration is determined to be a hazard and is thus objectionable. A variance shall be denied and the reasons for this determination shall be outlined to the applicant.
(2)
Such requests for variances shall be granted where it is duly found that a literal application or enforcement of the regulations will result in unnecessary hardship and that relief granted will not be contrary to the public interest, will not create a hazard to air navigation, will do substantial justice, and will be in accordance with the intent of this chapter.
E.
Use restrictions. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, no use shall be made of land or water within the AHO in such a manner as to create electrical interference with navigational signals or radio communications between the airport and aircraft, make it difficult for pilots to distinguish between airport lights and others, impair visibility in the vicinity of the airport, create bird strike hazards or otherwise endanger or interfere with the landing, takeoff or maneuvering of aircraft utilizing the Pittsburgh International Airport.
F.
Pre-existing nonconforming uses. Nonconforming use regulations can be found in Article X of this chapter.
G.
Obstruction marking and lighting. Any permit or variance granted pursuant to the provisions of this chapter may be conditioned according to the process described in this article to require the owner of the structure or object of natural growth in question to permit the municipality, at its own expense, or require the person requesting the permit or variance, to install, operate, and maintain such marking or lighting as deemed necessary to ensure both ground and air safety.
§ 400-172 Industrial Park Parking Overlay District.
A.
The purpose of the Industrial Park Parking Overlay (IPPO) is to address the recent experienced growth within the 79 North Industrial and Research Park and to provide businesses and property owners within the Park with the flexibility to provide additional parking for their employees, clients, and consumers. The IPPO allows businesses and property owners within the 79 North Industrial Park to provide adequate parking to meet their needs and promotes proper parking in either existing facilities or new facilities located within the Industrial Park. The IPPO also promotes shared parking facilities among businesses located within the Industrial Park. Parking can be shared among businesses provided a conditional use is granted by the Board of Commissioners. In addition, new parking lots may be constructed within the Park as part of a conditional use approval.
B.
Applicability. Commercial parking areas that are not accessory to a principal use are permitted as a conditional use in the IPPO. The IPPO allows parking areas that are commercial as a conditional use. Conditional use approval is required for any shared parking arrangements as well as the construction of any new parking lots.
C.
Base zoning district. The base zoning district for properties within the IPPO will remain C-2, commercial industrial district. Unless otherwise noted in the conditional use criteria provided hereinafter for "parking area, commercial" in the IPPO, standards of the C-2 district as well as the general design standards for parking found in Article VII shall apply.
E.
Accessibility. The number of ADA accessible parking spaces must be provided pursuant to the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act as well as per the requirements set forth in Article VII of this chapter.
F.
Screening/fencing requirements. All parking lots must be screened with a five-foot masonry wall or an additional landscape buffer wherever the parking lot abuts an adjacent property, parking lot, street, or driveway. If a masonry wall is provided, any parking lot perimeter screening plantings required shall be planted outside of the screening wall.
G.
Setbacks.
(1)
Commercial parking areas must be set back at least 10 feet from the road ROW, with the area between the ROW and parking maintained with mulch, gravel, or other appropriate ground cover and landscaped with trees, shrubs, or boulders in accordance with an approved landscape plan. The landscape plan is subject to review and approval by the Township Board of Commissioners.
(2)
Other setbacks. No commercial parking areas shall be located closer than 10 feet to any adjoining lot line.
H.
Surfacing. All parking areas and access drives shall have a paved concrete or bituminous surface, graded with positive drainage to dispose of surface water and be subject to any additional requirements of the Township Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance (SALDO), Chapter 350 of the Township Code.
I.
Buffer. Commercial parking areas must be screened via landscaping along the front, side, and rear property lines and shall be landscaped with trees, shrubs, mulch beds, or other appropriate landscaping in accordance with an approved landscape plan. The landscape plan is subject to review and approval by the Township Board of Commissioners.
J.
All commercial parking areas shall comply with the design standards for off-street parking facilities as set forth in Article VII of this chapter, unless otherwise noted herein in this section.
K.
All commercial parking areas are subject to the land development approval process as set forth in the Township's SALDO, Chapter 350 of the Township's Code. For purposes of the IPPO, only parking areas that have a structure on it (i.e., shed, canopy, gate house, etc.) shall be subject to the land development approval process.
L.
All paved parking areas shall be designed so that stormwater runoff shall not adversely affect adjacent lots. The method of stormwater management and the design of the proposed facilities shall be subject to the requirements of the Aleppo Township Stormwater Management Ordinance[1] and the Township's SALDO,[2] and are subject to the review and recommendation of the Township Engineer.
§ 400-173 Natural Resource Protection Overlay District.
A.
The Natural Resource Protection Overlay (NRPO) is hereby established in order to provide for the following:
(1)
Protect the public health and safety by mitigating potential hazards such as land subsidence that may arise due to the inappropriate development of lands with sensitive natural resources.
(2)
Safeguard the public welfare by guiding future development patterns to prevent potential impacts on the region's water and stream quality.
(3)
Preserve the public health safety and welfare by protecting private property from potential damages that may occur due to uncontrolled development of lands with sensitive natural resources.
(4)
Promote and protect the community's existing level of quality of life by restricting development that could alter the quality and availability of groundwater.
B.
The NRPO provides a rational methodology for:
(1)
Inventorying, mapping and evaluating the carrying capacity of a lot based on the existing natural resources found on said lot.
(2)
Establishing standards to define and determine the amount of development that a lot can reasonably support. The net buildable area, as determined by this overlay process, is the total acreage and general location(s) of permitted disturbance on a lot. Disturbance includes the portions of a lot where grading, construction activities and, subsequently, development occur.
C.
The use of the NRPO process is intended to enable:
(1)
Developers to identify, early in the development process, the lot's development capacity and, subsequently, its development opportunities.
(2)
Protection of persons and lots from hazards resulting from the inappropriate development of land in areas that contain sensitive existing natural resources.
D.
Applicability. For the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this chapter, a Natural Resource Protection Analysis shall be completed and submitted as part of any land development or subdivision within the boundary of the NRPO, except as otherwise stated in this chapter.
(1)
The Natural Resource Protection Analysis shall be completed on the official Township forms provided by the Zoning Officer. The official forms required by this article and other applicable analyses defined by the Township shall be completed and submitted as part of any application for land development (tentative approval).
E.
Existing natural resources.
(1)
This chapter protects specific natural resources that are sensitive to development. These existing natural resources include:
(2)
Refer to the following agencies for information regarding previous land disturbances of a lot. Additional contact information is available at the Municipal Building; however, the applicant is responsible for contacting or referencing all sources, listed below or otherwise, to obtain information related to the assessment of existing natural and cultural resources.
(a)
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Natural Diversity Inventory (PNDI);
(b)
Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey;
(c)
Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Southwest Regional Offices;
(d)
Allegheny County Division of Computer Sciences Geographic Information Systems Groups;
(e)
Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission; and
(f)
National Wetland Inventory.
F.
Initial development ratios.
(1)
Protection of the Township's existing natural resources is governed by the development ratio for each sensitive existing natural resource. Initial development ratios represent the maximum amount of disturbance or alteration that a sensitive existing natural resource can sustain without posing a hazard to persons or a lot. Development ratios are specific to the existing natural resources and are further affected by the slope of the natural topography where a sensitive existing natural resource may be found.
(2)
For the purposes of this article, slopes used in Table 1 shall be at least 25 feet in length, measured on a horizontal plane.
G.
Analysis procedures and implementation.
(1)
The Natural Resource Protection Analysis is designed to determine the location and amount of development permitted within any given lot or contiguous lots under common ownership or control, which shall be determined in the following manner:
(a)
Create a one inch equals 100 feet scale slope map based on a contour interval of not more than five feet where the slope is greater than 15% and at intervals of not more than two feet where the slope is 15% or less. The slope map shall delineate the location and extent of the following four slope categories:
(b)
Inventory floodways and wetlands/hydric soils.
(c)
Inventory natural drainage ways and lakes/water bodies including all land within 50 feet from the centerline of any natural drainage ways 50 feet from the normal pool elevation of any lakes or water bodies, whichever is greater.
(d)
Inventory natural springs and vernal pools including all land within 50 feet from the waterline as established from a normal pool elevation, whichever is greater.
(e)
Inventory any areas containing colluvial soils and red bed soils.
(f)
Indicate the location and extent of the existing natural resources defined on the slope map. Each existing natural resource shall be uniquely illustrated on the slope map.
(g)
Official copies of Table 14: Resource Protection Worksheet of this chapter, as available through the Township, shall be completed to determine the initial net buildable area of the lot.
Table 14 Resource Protection Worksheet | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sensitive Existing Conditions | Gross/Lot Site Area (acres) | Permitted Disturbance Ratio | Net Buildable Area (acres) | ||
Line 1 | All floodplains, wetlands, and hydric soils | __________ x | 0.0 | = __________ | |
Line 2 | All lakes and water bodies; and natural drainageways/streams | __________ x | 0.0 | = __________ | |
Line 3 | All springs and vernal pools (including 100-foot buffer) | __________ x | 0.0 | = __________ | |
Line 4 | Colluvial soils and red beds on slopes: <25% | <25% | __________ x | 0.4 | = __________ |
<25% | __________ x | 0.1 | = __________ | ||
Line 5 | Other areas on slopes 0% to 25% not calculated as part of Lines 1 through 4 above | __________ x | 1.0 | = __________ | |
Line 6 | Other area on slopes > 25% but <40% not calculated as part of Lines 1 through 4 above | __________ x | 0.4 | = __________ | |
Line 7 | Other area on slopes > 40% not calculated as part of Lines 1 through 4 above | __________ x | 0.1 | = __________ | |
(2)
The layout of all proposed buildings, structures, streets and utilities shall occur only within the portions of a lot that do not contain sensitive existing natural resources documented as part of this article as well as determined by the Township as represented by the individual permitted disturbance ratios in Table 14.
H.
Net buildable area increases.
(1)
Purpose. To promote the efficient use of land, infrastructure and economic resources; to provide development flexibility; and to enhance development quality and longevity, two methods of increasing the net buildable area of a lot shall be available to a developer and/or landowner. Net buildable area increases shall be granted in return for development enhancements. The two methods include the following:
(2)
Applicability.
(a)
Net buildable area increases shall be permitted only in areas located on slopes between 0% and 25% in gradient. Net buildable area increases shall utilize the existing natural resources in reverse order of sensitivity in accordance with Table 14 of this section, whereas least sensitive resource areas shall be utilized first.
(b)
A developer and/or landowner may incorporate one or more of the methods outlined in this subsection to a land development plan.
(c)
When multiple methods are combined, the net buildable area increase shall be cumulative. However, the combined total net buildable area increase shall not exceed the lot's area containing colluvial soils and red beds located on slopes between 0% and 25% in gradient.
(d)
Net buildable area increases shall occur on the same lot where the development enhancement(s) are provided.
(e)
Prior to receiving Planning Commission approval of a green roof related buildable area increase, the developer and/or landowner shall complete a preliminary and/or final slope stability investigation report in conformance with Township standards.
(3)
Methods.
(a)
Stormwater runoff reduction measures. Upon incorporating any two of the following stormwater runoff reduction measures into a land development, a developer and/or landowner shall receive a maximum 10% net buildable area increase. No preliminary or final slope stability investigation report shall be required to obtain the 10% net buildable area increase.
[1]
Provide area(s) for groundwater recharge through on-site stormwater infiltration for an amount of impervious area equal to one times the net buildable area increase. The minimum required recharge volume shall be equal to 1.5 inches of runoff for the area defined.
[2]
Preserve existing trees whose combined canopy area is equal to one times the net buildable area increase. A preserved tree shall be a minimum of 10 inches in dbh.
[3]
Install additional landscaping area(s) equal to 1.5 times the net buildable area increase. This additional landscaping may be used to treat any cut or fill slopes; to increase the habitat value of any on-site stormwater management facility; to re-establish streamside buffers or for other on-site uses. Lawn or turf areas shall not constitute additional landscaping.
[4]
Utilize porous pavement to reduce stormwater runoff. Porous paving, with proof by engineering calculation/soils analysis, may be used if the developer/landowner can demonstrate that this method will produce zero increased stormwater runoff. The Township shall review proposed design and engineering of the pavement to verify construction is in accordance with acceptable industry standards and United States EPA's Porous Pavements Phase I — Design and Operational Criteria.
[5]
Propose on-site environmental mitigation of equal or greater environmental value. Mitigation shall include but may not be limited to the removal of landfilled hazardous materials, the remediation and treatment of abandoned mine drainage, or the establishment of quality wetlands. When such mitigation measures are proposed, the Township shall review the proposed mitigation measures and shall make a recommendation on the relative value of the proposed mitigation to the Planning Commission and the Board of Commissioners.
(b)
Green roof construction.
[1]
A developer and/or landowner that utilize green roof construction in a building design may receive a buildable area increase equal to a maximum of 40% of the total surface area of the green roof.
[2]
Green roof construction shall be in accordance with the standards defined by the United States Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program.
[3]
All green roofs shall be incorporated into the principal building of the lot.