The purpose of this chapter is to regulate commercial zoned buildings fronting Bear Mountain Boulevard (Highway 223) between South Comanche Drive and King Street (the central business district) in order to protect public health, safety, and welfare, while accommodating commercial uses with conforming or legally nonconforming structures as of January 1, 2010, including those conditions related to parking and landscaping due to the immediate proximity of Highway 223. The specific purposes of this chapter are to:

A.

Relieve certain properties located in the central business district from certain on-site parking, landscaping, trash enclosure and other site development requirements in whole or in part.

B.

Provide a pedestrian-friendly downtown environment by allowing buildings and uses to be concentrated and oriented to pedestrians.

(Ord. No. 471, § 6, 9-22-2020)

Regulations established by this chapter shall be in addition to the regulations of the zoning district, and in the event of a conflict between the two, the provisions of the this chapter shall prevail. This title only applies to properties, buildings, and uses meeting all of the following requirements:

A.

Property fronting Bear Mountain Boulevard (Highway 223) between South Comanche Drive and King Street.

B.

Property zoned as one (1) of the following:

1.

C-O (Professional office zone).

2.

N-C (Neighborhood commercial zone).

3.

C-1 (Restricted commercial zone).

4.

C-2 (General commercial zone).

C.

All buildings or uses must either be conforming or legally nonconforming. This chapter shall expressly not apply where new development or the expansion of more than twenty percent (20%) of the gross floor area of a building in existence as of January 1, 2010.

D.

This chapter shall not apply to regulations regarding the following uses:

1.

Apartment hotels

2.

Automobile service, and auto repair garages (including tire shops)

3.

Bars (or other uses having an on-sale license from the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control)

4.

Billiard or pool halls or bowling alleys,

5.

Bottling plants,

6.

Bowling facilities,

7.

Churches, (exceeding two thousand (2,000) square feet in area)

8.

Dance clubs, dance halls

9.

Department stores (exceeding six thousand (6,000) square feet in area)

10.

Funeral services

11.

Garage, public

12.

Hotels

13.

Hospitals or sanitariums

14.

Markets (exceeding six thousand (6,000) square feet in area)

15.

Medical clinics

16.

Motels

17.

Recycling facilities and other similar uses

18.

Rental halls

19.

Theaters or auditoriums

20.

Wedding chapels

21.

Similar restricted commercial activities and facilities not specifically listed in the Arvin Municipal Code, as determined by the planning director.

(Ord. No. 471, § 6, 9-22-2020)

Notwithstanding any other requirement of Chapter 17.20 (C-O professional office zone), 17.22 (N-C neighborhood commercial zone), 17.24 (C-1 restricted commercial zone), 17.26 (C-2 general commercial zone), 17.48 (Automotive parking requirements), 17.60 (Site development permits), 17.62 (Sign regulations), 17.70 (Site development standards), the entirety of Title 15 (Buildings and Construction), and the entirety of Title 16 (Subdivisions), the following site development standards shall apply to those uses subject to this chapter:

A.

Parking Standards.

1.

Priority. When it is not possible for parking, landscaping, and other requirements such as trash receptacles and drainage to be met due to shape, size, and location of the site, priority shall be focused on meeting parking requirements first as outlined by Chapter 17.48, and then any remaining land shall be used to meet landscape requirements followed by using land to meet other applicable requirements.

2.

Hardship. The planning director may waive up to fifty percent (50%) of parking spaces required by parking where a documented hardship, not involving economics, exists or where there are unusual circumstances that prevent compliance with any of the development standards that would otherwise be required by the zoning ordinance in exchange for other improvements to the property that will generally benefit the public. However, existing parking spaces shall be preserved and in no circumstances shall existing parking spaces be reduced or eliminated. (Example: The site can only accommodate sixty (60%) of the required parking spaces. The planning director may waive the remaining forty percent (40%) with the requirement for existing on-site parking area improvements, facade or other exterior enhancements occur to the property.)

3.

Off-site parking. Required parking may be located off-site when located within three hundred (300) feet from the property from a receiving property having excess parking capacity, and as secured by a covenant for the same as approved by the planning director.

a.

Some properties have benefited from shared off-site parking lots between or adjacent to each property with no previous parking covenant in place. In such cases, the party benefiting from parking capacity in a lot they do not own must secure such a parking covenant.

4.

Parking on separate legal parcel with common ownership. If a property benefits from parking located on a separate adjacent legal parcel owned by the same party, and the separate legal parcel includes any number of required parking capacity, a lot line adjustment or lot merger shall be required as outlined under the provisions or Title 16 (Subdivisions).

5.

For conforming and legally nonconforming buildings built before January 1, 2010 additional parking shall not be required for structural alterations, repairs, or for building additions less than four hundred (400) square feet in area, as long as existing parking spaces are preserved and the expansion is not twenty percent (20%) or more of the existing use.

6.

If minimum site development standards cannot otherwise be met except under a hardship or other exceptions and standards set by this chapter, the planning director shall have the authority to review any existing on-site parking areas and facilities, and to make determinations on their general appearance and condition. If the condition is determined to be unacceptable either in part or entirely, the planning director shall have the authority to require measures to reduce impact or to otherwise provide for safe and aesthetically pleasing parking facilities including, but not limited to, removal and replacement of existing pavement surfaces found to be in a state of disrepair, grading modifications to provide for a relatively flat walking and driving surface, placement of an asphalt or concrete surface if none currently exists, restriping if existing stripes are found to be faded or missing, installation of wheel stops and or protective railings, reconstruction of drive approaches determined to be in a state of disrepair, and the installation or repair of ADA striping and signage.

7.

Change of land use. A change in the use of an existing building shall not require the provision of any additional parking spaces unless the new use would require twenty percent (20%) or more additional parking spaces as compared to what would be required for the existing use as calculated in the manner specified by Chapter 17.28.

B.

Landscape Standards.

1.

Priority of parking. Landscape requirements may be reduced by the director of planning or building in order to preserve or add additional parking spaces where parking spaces are required in order to meet minimum parking requirements. (Example: A site has enough parking spaces, but cannot meet the minimum requirement that ten percent (10%) of the developed area shall be landscaped as only two percent (2%) of the remaining area is available. The planning director may reduce the landscaping requirement to two percent (2%) in order to preserve parking spaces.)

2.

Hardship. The planning director may waive or defer landscaping standards where a documented hardship, not involving economics, exists or where there are unusual circumstances that prevent compliance with any of the required development standards.

C.

Trash Receptacle Standards.

1.

Priority of parking and landscaping. The city desires to assure that parking and landscaping requirements are met to the greatest extent feasible, and then an appropriate location and enclosure for trash receptacles should be considered.

2.

Hardship. The planning director may waive or defer trash receptacle standards where a documented hardship, not involving economics, exists or where there are unusual circumstances that prevent compliance with any of the required development standards. Such hardship can include the need to provide or maintain parking spaces or to meet landscaping standards in whole or in part as contemplated by this section.

3.

Intent. Trash receptacles shall be designed to promote the 1) screening of areas where refuse (trash) including recycled items from being visible from vehicles and pedestrians on Bear Mountain Boulevard and from other businesses also fronting Bear Mountain Boulevard; and 2) the limiting of access by animals, whether phenomenon, and unauthorized people to trash receptacles including trash/recycle cans, bins, and dumpsters, in an attempt to prevent unauthorized dumping or movement of refuse.

4.

Alleys. Where alleys are present, trash receptacles must be located such that the trash collection company can reasonably access the trash receptacle from within the alley. Said location should be located behind an existing building, and, if feasible as determined by the planning director, they should be surrounded on all four (4) sides by a permanent opaque enclosure not less than five (5) feet in height with a lockable door or gate that shall be locked at all times other than when refuse is being added to the receptacles and at the time of collection.

5.

Location when alleys not present. Where alleys are not present, an enclosure as described above must be provided in a location, subject the approval by the planning director, to minimize aesthetic, odor, and similar impacts of the enclosures and trash receptacles on the public taking into account existing site conditions.

D.

Drainage Standards.

1.

Flooding risk. Uses must limit the amount of runoff allowed to drain from the site to the sidewalk, street, or alley as in all cases, the runoff goes south.

2.

Standards. The following standards shall apply:

a.

Existing sites must capture runoff and either retain it on site or to detain it on site before it is allowed to overflow to the street or alley.

b.

Existing buildings shall be required to install roof gutters or other means of capturing runoff which must be directed to landscaped areas, planter boxes, underground detention structures or other types of Low Impact Development (LID) improvements. In no case shall roof runoff be allowed to drain directly to a pedestrian walkway including sidewalks along Bear Mountain Boulevard.

c.

Existing roof gutters and downspouts determined by the planning director to be in a state of disrepair must be repaired or replaced to the satisfaction of the planning director.

d.

Existing parking lots that that are reconstructed must either direct runoff to an appropriately sized sump or drainage swale, install dry well catch basins to allow the runoff water to permeate into the soil, or otherwise limit storm drainage as approved by the city engineer. Drainage sumps or swales shall not be required unless adequate space is available.

E.

Building design. Notwithstanding section L of section 17.70.010, the following building design standard shall apply:

1.

Architectural design of all proposed buildings shall be Mediterranean or other approved architectural look and style determined by the planning director to be acceptable.

2.

Legally nonconforming buildings that were designed in an architectural style other than Mediterranean prior to January 1, 2020, may retain that style. Any subsequent changes to architectural design shall be Mediterranean.

F.

Floodplain Standards.

1.

No waivers given. The requirements shown in Chapter 15.32 shall apply in their entirety to all existing and proposed buildings in the district. The entirety of the district is located within an "AO" special flood hazard zone as determined by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) which corresponds to a flood depth of one (1) foot within a 100-year occurrence interval. The City of Arvin is a participant in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) through FEMA which requires certain non-compliant older structures to be appropriately modified to achieve compliance. Refer to Chapter 15.32 for more information, and communicate with the floodplain administrator for the city for more information.

G.

Sewer Lateral and Main Connection Standards.

1.

Applicability. The entirety of Chapter 13.08 is applicable to any property located within the district as well as any additional requirements and provisions provided for under this section.

2.

Grease interceptors.

a.

Any building with an existing kitchen, food preparation areas, or disposal systems including floor and ground sink drains connected to the municipal sanitary sewer system must have a grease interceptor as specified in article VIII of Chapter 13.08.

b.

Any building with any new devices or facilities as described above must have a grease interceptor as specified in article VIII of Chapter 13.08.

c.

The planning director or their designee shall have the authority to inspect existing facilities, to review proposed modifications to existing or proposed facilities, and to determine whether a grease interceptor must be provided.

d.

If an existing building sewer lateral has an existing grease interceptor, the building owner and or tenant shall allow the planning director or their designee to inspect the condition and capacity of the device, and shall have the authority to require modifications to the device, cleaning of the device, or replacement of the device if it is determined to be damaged or undersized given the nature of the proposed business or activity. The planning director or their designee shall have discretion as to whether an existing undersized interceptor must be replaced.

e.

If an existing building sewer lateral has an existing grease interceptor that the planning director or their designee determines is not necessary given the nature of the proposed business or activity within a building, the interceptor may remain in place provided that it is properly abandoned or removed per article VIII of Chapter 13.08. Alternatively, the interceptor may remain in place and in working order, but shall be subject to the same maintenance and inspection requirements provided for under article VIII of Chapter 13.08 in perpetuity.

f.

Item "f" above shall be inapplicable, and the provisions of 13.08.160 shall apply in the event that an existing building with a grease interceptor is razed or demolished.

3.

Existing sewer laterals. If the existing sewer lateral for an existing facility is determined by the planning director or their designee to be noncompliant with the provisions of Chapter 13.08, the lateral(s) must be brought into compliance per applicable standards. Potential reasons for noncompliance may include but shall not be limited to undersized pipes, insufficient pipe slope, unacceptable pipe material, blind connections to a main with no wye, damaged lateral pipe, and multiple connections to the same lateral from different legal parcels. Additionally, existing sewer laterals shall not traverse any other legal parcel not owned by the property owner which condition must be remedied either by an exclusive easement granted by the property owner(s) or by the realignment of the sewer lateral such that it flows directly from the property in question to the public right-of-way.

4.

Permits. All work required by this section or Chapter 13.08 that occurs within the public right-of-way must not be performed unless an encroachment permit is first obtained through the community development department.

(Ord. No. 471, § 6, 9-22-2020)