Amherst Township City Zoning Code
CHAPTER 1137
C-2 Commercial or General Business District
1137.01 PERMITTED USES.
In a C-2 District land may be used for, and buildings and structures may be erected, altered or enlarged for, the following:
(a) All uses permitted in a C-1 District, together with their accessory uses.
(b) Grocery stores and parking lots.
(c) Drug stores.
(d) Restaurants, barrooms and other eating places.
(e) Wearing apparel stores.
(f) Shops for custom work or the making of articles to be sold at retail on the premises, shoe repair shops, dressmaking, tailoring, pressing and dry cleaning shops in which only nonexplosive and nonflammable solvents are used and self-service laundries.
(g) Hardware, paint, wallpaper, furniture and household appliance stores.
(h) Newsstands, book or stationery stores, flower shops, variety and gift shops.
(i) Barber shops, beauty parlors and photographic studios.
(j) Banks, business and professional offices, telephone exchanges, electricity transformer stations, gas reducer stations and utility buildings for storage and repair of equipment, cars and materials used in the maintenance of gas or electric utilities.
(k) Theaters, assembly halls and bowling alleys.
(l) Hotels, motor courts, motels and tourist homes.
(m) Job printing and newspaper printing.
(n) Automobile salesrooms, including body and fender work. However, no repair facilities shall be in the front portion of the building within thirty feet of the street on which the building fronts.
(o) Gasoline service stations where no part of the station, including pumps or signs, is nearer than fifteen feet to a street line or nearer than ten feet to a side or rear property line.
(p) Radio, broadcasting or television stations, radio repair shops, blueprinting or photostating shops and business colleges.
(q) Any other building for sales and services similar to those listed above.
(s) All uses which are accessory and incidental to the permitted uses listed above.
(u) Single family, two family, and multiple family dwellings which are located on the second floor or higher, which are in the district or boundary as follows: Within the boundary of the following area: beginning in the centerline of South Main Street at Cleveland Avenue, proceeding east along the centerline of Cleveland Avenue to the centerline of Spring Street, south along the centerline of Spring Street to the centerline of Tenney Avenue, west along the centerline of Tenney Avenue to the centerline of South Main Street, north along the centerline of South Main Street to the centerline of Cleveland Avenue, and also including all of the permanent parcels of property, as shown on the County Tax Map, which are located outside of this described boundary abutting on the centerlines and having a street right of way frontage along the described boundary line to a depth not to exceed 200 feet.
(Ord. 00-79. Passed 7-24-00.)
1137.011 SEXUALLY ORIENTED BUSINESSES NOT PERMITTED.
Notwithstanding anything in this Chapter to the contrary, no sexually oriented business, as defined in Section 1145.17, shall be permitted in any portion of a C-2 District.
(Ord. 00-168. Passed 12-11-00.)
1137.02 HEIGHT REGULATIONS.
In a C-2 District, no building or structure shall exceed four stories or forty feet in height, except as otherwise provided in Chapter 1145.
(Ord. 65-82. Passed 12-27-65.)
1137.03 AREA REGULATIONS.
(a) Front Yard. The depth of a front yard shall be thirty-five feet except that where a uniform building line has been established or observed nearer to the street line, on one side of the street, between two intersecting streets, such building line shall be observed.
(Ord. 86-27. Passed 4-14-86.)
(b) Side Yards. None required, except where such use abuts a residential use, a ten foot buffer area across the side length of such abutting property shall be required and shall consist of a barrier of natural evergreens with a minimum height of six feet at planting, consisting of two rows staggered at five foot centers. Prior to the issuance of the building permit the property owner shall place upon the land a deed restriction which shall run with the land and shall require the owner, or any subsequent owner, to maintain in perpetuity the buffer strip provided in this section, in the manner provided in this section, including the replacement of trees as necessary.
(c) Rear Yards. None required, except where such use abuts a residential use, a thirty foot buffer area across the rear length of such property shall be provided and shall consist of a barrier of natural evergreens with a minimum height of six feet at planting, consisting of six rows staggered at five foot centers. Prior to the issuance of the building permit the property owner shall place upon the land a deed restriction which shall run with the land and shall require the owner, or any subsequent owner, to maintain in perpetuity the buffer strip provided in this section, in the manner provided in this section, including the replacement of trees as necessary.
(Ord. 89-72. Passed 10-9-89.)
(d) Gasoline Stations. Gasoline stations shall have a minimum lot width of 150 feet and a minimum area of one-half acre.
(Ord. 65-82. Passed 12-27-65.)
1137.04 INTENSITY OF USE REGULATIONS.
Every lot or tract of land shall have a width of not less than twenty feet at the street line. See parking regulations in Chapter 1145.
(Ord. 87-44. Passed 5-26-87.)
1137.05 ACCESS DRIVES.
Access drives to major streets shall be controlled in the interest of public safety and to maintain the designed capacity of the major street system.
(a) Drives shall be so designed and located that vehicles can safely enter and leave the facility with no need to park, stand or maneuver back and forth on the major thoroughfare right of way.
(b) These positions of the access drive located within the highway right of way shall be paved with material equal to the highway pavement, shall be no greater than thirty-five feet wide, shall be designed to prohibit surface drainage from flowing directly onto the highway pavement, shall include a minimum twenty feet turning radii between the edge of the drive and the highway pavement and shall be curbed.
(Ord. 65-82. Passed 12-27-65.)
(Ord. 65-82. Passed 12-27-65.)
(c) Each lot shall not have more than two access drives to any one street or highway. The width of any access drive shall not be less than twenty-six feet nor shall it exceed thirty-five feet. Insofar as practicable, the use of common accessways by two or more uses shall be encouraged to reduce the number of such highway access points. The fronting of such uses on a marginal service street shall also be encouraged.
(Ord. 72-23. Passed 6-12-72.)