This Article provides the standards and review criteria for development within six hundred sixty (660) feet of the right-of-way of any federal, state and county designated byways in the County. These designated intrinsic scenic, natural, historic, archeological, recreational and cultural resources are critical to the County, and promote and enhance the health, quality of life, prosperity, and welfare of all citizens of the County. These provisions are intended to protect, preserve, and enhance the intrinsic qualities of designated byways within the County by:

A.

Ensuring maximum preservation and enhancement of the byway's outstanding and unique intrinsic qualities.

B.

Minimizing grading, tree removal, signage, and changes to the existing character of designated byways, including the natural vegetation and topography of areas along and adjoining such roads.

C.

Reducing visual intrusions that are not compatible with the intrinsic qualities of the byways.

D.

Ensuring that the design and placement of buildings and other improvements preserve, complement, or enhance views from designated byways.

E.

Ensuring that new development, redevelopment, infill development, and other changes along the byways are compatible with the intrinsic qualities, and consistent with the goals, objectives, and management strategies of the Corridor Management Plans or other County studies related to designated byways as set forth in Appendix 8.

F.

Requiring the use of conservation design techniques, as defined in this Chapter, to minimize impact to the scenic viewshed or position buildings outside the scenic viewshed of any federal, state, or county designated byway, while respecting the property rights of those who own property along a byway.

G.

Encouraging design flexibility that permits modifications in mass, height, landscaping and open space configuration.

(Ord. No. 22-072, § 7, 10-11-2022)

Major and minor subdivision and major and minor land development plans for properties within six hundred sixty (660) feet of the right-of-way of designated byways as defined in Article 33 are subject to the requirements of this Article.

(Ord. No. 22-072, § 7, 10-11-2022)

A.

Designated byways must have an approved Corridor Management Plan (CMP), or other study prepared or recognized by the County. The CMP, or other study, shall include a detailed inventory of the character-defining features of the byway and specific recommendations regarding protection, preservation, and enhancement of the intrinsic qualities of the byway. See Appendix 8 for a list of studies applicable to this Article.

B.

Applicants must consult the CMP or other study prepared or recognized by the County for the designated byway for design, regulatory, and management guidance, in addition to the other requirements of this Article.

(Ord. No. 22-072, § 7, 10-11-2022)

A.

Parking standards. To preserve and enhance the scenic viewshed and further environmental benefit:

1.

Required parking may be reduced up to twenty-five (25) percent of the minimum parking requirements in this Chapter for non-residential uses along designated byways on properties subject to this Article. Reductions greater than twenty-five (25) percent may be granted upon approval of a special study pursuant to Section 40.03.524.

2.

The maximum number of parking spaces may not exceed one hundred fifteen (115) percent of the minimum parking requirements in this Chapter.

3.

Parking areas should be avoided in the front or street yard. Parking areas are prohibited within a scenic corridor.

B.

Grading. Land disturbance must be performed in a manner that preserves any scenic viewshed or identified intrinsic quality.

C.

Site access. Points of access must be context sensitive and minimized through the use of common driveway easements and new public roadways that avoid multiple individual driveways along designated byways.

D.

Minimal screening. The provisions of this Article are intended to preserve scenic viewshed corridors with little or no screening or buffering.

1.

Where proposed buildings or visual intrusions are sited in the viewshed area, applicants must use a combination of tools to minimize impact to the scenic viewshed or vista. Such mitigation may include changing rooflines, elevations, grading, reorienting the building facade and shifting building bulk from the side yards to the front or rear yards within the permitted building envelope.

2.

Applicants must screen structures and visual intrusions by achieving an opacity standard pursuant to Table 40.18.210 without the use of walls, fences, berms or hedges. Plant unit types 3 and 4, in accordance with Article 23, are preferred to provide adequate screening in a leaf-off condition. Applications that demonstrate compliance with Subsection 40.04.110.F are exempt from the standards in Table 40.18.210.

3.

Scenic corridor standards in Table 40.04.240 may be reduced when a scenic viewshed is preserved, as demonstrated through a viewshed plan, and approved by the Department. To qualify for consideration of a reduction, development must be designed in accordance with Appendix 8. The land development application must include a narrative identifying how the proposal addresses the provisions of Appendix 8.

4.

Solid or opaque fencing is prohibited within the scenic corridor.

Table 40.18.210
Screening Standards for Development Along Designated Byways

(Ord. No. 22-072, § 7, 10-11-2022)

Intrinsic qualities identified in a Corridor Management Plan or other study identified in Appendix 8 must be protected with a conservation easement that preserves the resource, pursuant to the following:

A.

Identified intrinsic qualities must be protected by a conservation easement as shown on the record plan, consistent with the purposes of this Article, running in favor of the County or a third-party conservancy, providing that such resource shall be preserved or left in a natural state. A conservation easement may be sufficiently documented on a record plan without need for a separately recorded instrument where maintenance responsibility is assigned.

B.

Parcels with historic resources may also be rezoned as an Historic (H) overlay zoning district as an alternative protection mechanism or in addition to an easement.

C.

Pre-existing easements may be sufficient for protection, provided the easement terms are acceptable to the County.

(Ord. No. 22-072, § 7, 10-11-2022)

A.

Applications for development within six hundred sixty (660) feet of the right-of-way of designated byways must demonstrate compliance with the purpose, goals, and objectives of this Article, and protect, conserve, and enhance the byway's resources identified in the Corridor Management Plan or other County study as set forth in Appendix 8.

B.

In addition to the review requirements of Article 31, required applications within six hundred sixty (660) feet of the right-of-way of a designated byway must submit a Viewshed Plan consistent with the requirements of Appendix 1.

C.

If the Department determines an application does not protect or enhance the scenic viewshed, the applicant must submit a 'Scenic' Environmental Impact Assessment Report (S-EIAR) pursuant to Section 40.10.701. The S-EIAR must be certified by a landscape architect registered in the State, or a professional engineer with a background in civil engineering registered in the State, and must demonstrate appropriate consideration of the scenic viewshed.

1.

The S-EIAR must demonstrate how the application:

a.

Avoids and minimizes visual intrusions to the scenic viewshed; and

b.

Sufficiently mitigates all visual intrusions with an appropriate level of compensating features.

2.

Any additions or mitigated visual intrusions within the scenic viewshed shall be context-sensitive and compatible with the character of the byway.

(Ord. No. 22-072, § 7, 10-11-2022)