Alpine City Zoning Code
§ 220-24
COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone.
[Added 8-28-2024 by Ord. No. 837]
A.
Purpose. The purpose of the COAH-4 Overlay Zone to allow for inclusionary development on Block 80 Lots 10 and 11, and thereby assist in the Borough's continuing efforts to address the fair share housing obligation of the Borough of Alpine under the New Jersey Fair Housing Act (FHA), applicable Council on Affordable Housing (COAH) regulations, and the Borough's Housing Element and Fair Share Plan. The overlay district contemplates that the property, consisting of approximately eight acres, could be developed as zoned historically, or in the alternative, the property could contain up to 28 market-rate dwellings and seven multifamily affordable dwellings units that are affordable to low-and moderate-income households as establish by COAH regulations.
B.
Principal use. The following principal uses are permitted in the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone:
(1)
Multifamily dwellings.
C.
Accessory uses. The following accessory uses are permitted in the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone:
(1)
Private amenities and facilities intended for use by residents of the premises and their guests, including but not limited to, clubhouses, lounges, game rooms, pool rooms, business centers, fitness centers, swimming pools (both indoors and outdoors), tennis courts, paddle courts, tot lots/children's play areas, dog runs, gazebos, multi-use recreation fields, walking trails, benches/seating, and passive recreation areas.
(2)
Balconies, decks and terraces for individual units, along with rooftop decks and amenities.
(3)
Private garages and driveways.
(4)
Off-street parking lots.
(5)
Fences, walls, gates and guard houses.
(6)
Signage.
(7)
Storage sheds.
(8)
Emergency standby generators.
(9)
Any other use which is subordinate and customarily incidental to the permitted principal use, including, but not limited to, leasing/sales/management offices, maintenance areas, trash/recycling facilities, solar energy devices, security cameras and related devices, and electric automobile charging stations.
D.
Affordable housing requirements. The following affordable housing requirements shall apply to development in the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone:
(1)
All residential development constructed in the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone shall be required to set aside a minimum percentage of units for affordable housing. The minimum set aside shall be 20%. When calculating the required number of affordable units, any computation resulting in a fraction of a unit shall be rounded upwards to the next whole number if said fraction is equal to or greater than 0.5 unit, or downwards to the next whole number if said fraction is less than 0.5 unit.
(2)
All affordable units to be produced pursuant to this section shall comply with the Borough's Affordable Housing Ordinance at Chapter 60 of the Borough Code, as may be amended and supplemented, the Uniform Housing Affordability Controls (UHAC) (N.J.A.C. 5:80-26.1 et seq.), or any successor regulation, and any applicable order of the court, including a judgement of compliance and repose order.
(3)
Administrative agent. All affordable units shall be administered by a qualified administrative agent paid for by the developer. The developer shall be responsible for all costs associated with the initial sale/rental of the affordable units, for the continuing administration of the affordable units, and for the preservation of the creditworthiness of the units.
(4)
All amenities and site services which are made available to the market-rate units shall also be made available to the affordable units on the same terms as the market-rate units.
E.
Area, bulk and density standards. The following area, bulk and density standards shall apply to development in the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone:
Requirement | COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone |
|---|---|
Minimum lot area | 3 acres |
Maximum number of dwelling units | 35 units |
Minimum Yard Setbacks: | |
Front yard | 125 |
North side yard | 50 |
South side yard | 100 |
Rear yards | 100 |
Maximum building height | 3 stories/39 feet(See Note 2 Below) |
Maximum Building Coverage | 12% |
NOTES: | ||
1 | Decks, balconies and like constructions attached to a building shall be permitted within this minimum yard setback, provided that they shall be located a minimum of 85 feet from the lot line. | |
2 | Irrespective of any other provisions regarding building height measurement, the following shall apply with respect to measurement of building height in the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone: | |
a. | The maximum height shall be calculated individually for each section of a building containing multi family dwelling units. | |
b. | The maximum building height shall be the vertical distance measured from the finished first floor to the highest point of the roof if the roof is a flat roof, or to the mean level between the roof eaves and the highest ridge point in the case of a pitched roof. | |
c. | Excluded from the calculation of building height shall be chimneys, steeples, handrails for widow's walks and other architectural features that are no greater than four feet in height and which occupy no more than 5% of the total roof area. | |
F.
Supplemental standards. The following supplemental standards shall apply to development in the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone:
(1)
Access. A single driveway shall provide access to Route 9W. This driveway may be shared with the tower facility to the west of the affordable housing site. If the tower facility does share the affordable housing site driveway, the existing tower driveway no longer necessary shall be removed and revegetated.
(2)
Electric vehicle charging stations and Make Ready spaces shall be provided as required by the New Jersey Model Electric Vehicle Ordinance pursuant to P.L. 2021, c. 171.
(3)
The applicant shall provide off-street parking consistent with the Residential Site Improvement Standards (RSIS). In addition, except for barrier-free parking, parking spaces shall measure nine feet in width by 18 in depth. Section 220-17 related to off-street paling shall not apply to off-street parking facilities in the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone.
(4)
No building intended and designed for human habitation shall be located within 425 feet of the base of the communication tower to the west and located on property N/F designated as Block 80 Lots 10 and 11.
(5)
Parking setback from property lines. All portions of any parking facility shall be setback a minimum of 100 feet from the south side property line. No portion of any parking facility except for a single drive shall be closer than 50 feet to the front property line.
(6)
All off-street parking and internal drives shall be suitably buffered and screened to minimize views from adjacent properties and the public right-of-way.
(7)
Ground mounted signage. One ground mounted sign shall be permitted in the front yard if setback 10 feet from the front lot line. Said sign shall not exceed eight feet in height and the message board shall not exceed 10 square feet in size. Any illumination of said sign shall only be by ground mounted lamps which shall be aimed to only illuminate the sign and not interfere with drivers on Route 9W. A landscape plan shall accompany all sign proposals so the Planning Board can ensure the sign does not distract from a desirable visual environment.
(8)
Building offsets. For buildings with more than three attached multifamily units, no more than three side-by-side, contiguous units shall have the same front facade plane. A minimum three-foot offset variation in front facade plane shall be provided between groupings within the same structure.
(9)
Development of the subject parcel as an affordable housing site will qualify as a major development pursuant to New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection most recent stormwater regulations. The applicant shall manage both the quality and quantity of all stormwater flows consistent with requirements promulgated by the State of New Jersey. No detention basin or retention basin shall be located within 100 feet of the south side property line.
G.
Accessory buildings and structures. Section 220-13 related to accessory buildings and structures shall not apply to accessory buildings and structures in the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone. Instead, the following requirements shall apply to all accessory buildings in the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone:
(1)
The maximum height of accessory buildings and structures shall be 22 feet.
(2)
Accessory buildings and pools shall meet the street and property line setback requirements applicable to principle buildings. All accessory buildings shall be set back at least 35 feet from a principal building.
(3)
Architectural design and materials used in the construction of accessory buildings shall be consistent with those used in the construction of principal buildings.
(4)
The provisions of this section shall not apply to signs, off-street parking, fences and walls, which are regulated elsewhere in this section.
(5)
Emergency standby generators shall be subject to the measured sound pressure levels of § 153-3 (Noise Ordinance) and shall be set back at least 35 feet from a lot line or public right-of-way. All such equipment shall be suitably buffered and screened to minimize views from adjacent properties and the public right-of-way.
H.
Refuse and recycling collection areas shall be either fully contained within a building or adequately screened from public view through a combination of solid fencing and landscape plantings.
I.
Fences and walls. Fences, walls, gates, pillars, piers, posts and like constructions in the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone shall be subject to Chapter 111, Fences. In addition, the following supplemental standards shall apply to retaining walls in the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone:
(1)
The maximum height of a retaining wall shall be six feet. Tiered retaining walls shall be measured separately and each tier may be up to six feet in height, provided that there is minimally a five-foot separation between retaining walls and that same is landscaped.
(2)
Site retaining walls may be constructed of finished concrete, stone, modular block, big block or soldier-pile with facade treatment.
(3)
The maximum height of walls along any property line shall be four feet, irrespective of any other regulation to the contrary.
J.
Landscaping. The following landscaping requirements shall apply to development in the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone:
(1)
A landscape plan shall be required, which shall be designed to incorporate a variety of plant material to enhance the character of the site and shall include foundation plantings and perimeter trees and shrubs.
(2)
Shade trees shall be minimally 2.5-inch to three-inch caliper. Evergreen trees shall vary between seven to eight feet and eight to 10 feet in height. Shrubs shall be at least 24 inches in height.
K.
Lighting. The following landscaping requirements shall apply to development in the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone:
(1)
All exterior lights shall be designed so as to reduce glare, lower energy usage and direct lights only to where they are needed.
(2)
All exterior lights shall be light-emitting diode (LED) light of the soft white category and shall be Dark Sky compliant.
(3)
All exterior lights shall be focused downward so that the direct source of light is not visible from adjoining streets or properties.
L.
General design standards. Building plans and elevations shall show a variation in design to be achieved by the types of roofs, heights of eaves and peaks, building materials and architectural treatment of the building facade that is utilized. The following design standards shall be utilized in the COAH-3 Zone:
(1)
Architectural elements such as varied roof forms, articulation of the facade, breaks in the roof, and walls with texture materials and ornamental details shall be incorporated to add visual interest.
(2)
Roof height, pitch, ridgelines and roof materials shall be varied to create visual interest and avoid repetition.
(3)
Architectural elements such as fenestrations and recessed planes shall be incorporated into facade design. Architectural treatments and visual interest shall be applied to all visibly exposed facades of a building. All facades of a building shall be architecturally designed to be consistent with regard to style, materials, colors and details.
(4)
A variety of building colors, materials and textures are encouraged.
(5)
Architectural features that enhance the facade or building form, such as decorative moldings, windows, shutters, dormers, chimneys, balconies and railings, are encouraged.
(6)
All entrances to a building shall be defined and articulated by architectural elements such as lintels, pediments, pilasters, columns, porticoes, porches, overhangs, railings, etc.
(7)
Heating, ventilating and air-conditioning systems, utility meters and regulators, exhaust pipes and stacks, satellite dishes and other telecommunications receiving devices shall be screened or otherwise specially treated to be, as much as possible, inconspicuous as viewed from the public right-of-way and adjacent properties.
(8)
All other applicable requirements of this chapter, and of other chapters of the Borough of Alpine Code, shall apply to development within the COAH-4 Overlay Residential Zone unless specifically superseded by the regulations of this section.