Cohoes City Zoning Code

The City shall design, build, operate, and maintain a safe, reliable, efficient, integrated, and connected multimodal transportation network that will provide access, mobility, safety, and connectivity for all users.

Complete streets design will promote improved health, economic growth, public safety, recreational opportunity, and social equality throughout the City of Cohoes, and will ensure that the safety and convenience of all users of the transportation system are accommodated, including pedestrians, bicyclists, users of mass transit, people of all ages and abilities, motorists, emergency responders, freight providers, and adjacent land users.

All City-owned transportation facilities in the public right-of-way, including, but not limited to, streets, bridges, and all other connecting pathways, shall be designed, constructed, operated, and maintained so that users of all ages and abilities can travel safely and independently.

All privately constructed streets, parking lots, and connecting pathways shall adhere to this policy.

The City shall foster relationships with the State of New York, neighboring communities and counties, and business and school districts to develop facilities and accommodations that further the City's complete streets policy and continue such infrastructure beyond the City's borders.

The City shall approach every phase of every transportation project as an opportunity to create safer, more accessible facilities for all users. These phases include, but are not limited to, planning, programming, design, right-of-way acquisition, construction, construction engineering, reconstruction, operation, and maintenance funded by the City of Cohoes, the State of New York, utility companies, and all private development. Other changes to transportation facilities on streets and rights-of-way, including capital improvements, rechannelization projects, and maintenance, must also be included.

A project's compliance with this policy shall be determined based on the filing of a complete streets checklist form.

All exceptions to this policy must be reviewed and approved by the City Building and Planning Department and/or Department of Engineering and be documented with supporting data that indicates the basis for the decision. Such documentation shall be made publicly available.

Exceptions may be considered for approval when:

The City Departments of Building and Planning and/or Engineering shall submit quarterly reports to the Mayor's Office summarizing all exceptions granted in the previous quarter. These reports shall be submitted after the end of the quarter, and shall be posted online.

The City shall adopt state transportation design standards as well as adapt, develop, update, and adopt interdepartmental policies, urban design guidelines, zoning, and performance standards and other guidelines based upon resources identifying best practices in urban design and street design, construction, operations, and maintenance. These resources include, but are not limited to: the New York State Department of Transportation Highway Design Manual, New York State Department of Transportation Specification Book, the AASHTO Green Book, AASHTO Guide for the Planning, Designing and Operating Pedestrian Facilities, AASHTO Guide for the Development of Bicycle Facilities, ITE Designing Walkable Urban Thoroughfares: A Context Sensitive Approach, NACTO Urban Bikeway Design Guide; Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, and United States Access Board Public Right-of-Way Accessibility Guidelines. When fulfilling this complete streets policy, the City will follow the design manuals, standards, and guidelines above, as applicable, but should be not precluded from considering innovative or nontraditional design options where a comparable level of safety for users is present or provided.

Designs for all projects will be context-sensitive, considering adjacent land uses and local needs and incorporating the most up-to-date, widely accepted, ADA-compliant design standards for the particular setting, traffic volume and speed, and current and projected demand. Each project must be considered both separately and as part of a connected network to determine the level and type of treatment necessary for the street to be complete.

The City of Cohoes shall view complete streets as integral to everyday transportation decisionmaking practices and processes. To this end:

The City of Cohoes shall measure the success of this complete streets policy using, but not limited to, the following performance measures:

Unless otherwise noted above, within six months of ordinance adoption, the City shall create individual numeric benchmarks for each of the performance measures included as a means of tracking and measuring the annual performance of the ordinance. Quarterly reports shall be posted online for each of the above measures.

Less than 4,000 square feet: no colonies permitted;

Between 4,000 square feet and 1/2 acre: two colonies;

Between 1/2 acre and 3/4 of an acre: four colonies;

Between 3/4 of an acre and one acre: six colonies;

Between one acre and five acres: eight colonies;

Larger than five acres: no restriction.

The applicant's name and address and interest in the subject property;

The owner's name and address, if different from the applicant, and the owner's signed consent to the filing of the application;

The street address or legal description of the subject property;

An application for site plan approval, as required by Article XIV of this chapter;

The number of chickens that will be kept;

A description of the enclosure and chicken house, including materials used and cubic footage;

A description of the means in which food will be stored; and

If chickens will be culled on the property, location and description of the facilities used in the process.

Allowed as part of an approved site plan;

Used in the construction or alteration of a structure on the same lot or in the same development and stored for not more than one year or not more than 60 days after completion of construction, whichever is less; or

Such outdoor storage is limited to machinery, equipment or supplies essential to the operation of a farm or storage of any products grown on the premises of a farm or nursery.

Front: 100 feet from an interior road.

Side: 30 feet.

Rear: 100 feet.

Permanent conservation of natural areas.

Provision of passive/active open space.

Infrastructure improvements.

Provision of trail linkages.

Preservation of scenic views.

Provision of cross-access easement or shared access.

Streetscape improvements that promote and benefit multiple forms of transportation.

Public access to the river for motorized and nonmotorized recreation.

Increases in density.

Changes in setback or height standards.

In order to preliminarily evaluate the adequacy of amenities to be accepted in exchange for the requested incentive, the following information shall be provided by the applicant:

The proposal shall be referred to the Planning Board for review. The Planning Board will then report to the Common Council with its evaluation of the adequacy with which the amenity(s)/incentive(s) fits the site and how it relates to adjacent uses and structures. The Planning Board's review shall be limited to the planning, design and layout considerations involved with project review or such other issues as may be specifically referred by the Common Council.

The Common Council will review the Planning Board's report. The Common Council will notify the applicant as to whether it is willing to further consider the proposal and hold a public hearing in accordance with § 81-d(3)(g) of General City Law.

All applicable requirements of the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) shall be complied with as part of the review and hearing process. In addition to other information that may be required as part of the environmental assessment of the proposal, the assessment shall include verification that the zoning district in which the proposal is to be located has adequate sanitary sewer, water, transportation, waste disposal and fire protection facilities to:

Following the hearing and in addition to compliance with all SEQRA requirements, the Common Council shall, before taking action, refer the proposal for review and comment to other governmental agencies as may be required and may refer the proposal to other boards and officials for review and comment. In order to approve an amenity/incentive proposal, the Common Council shall determine that the proposed amenity provides sufficient public benefit to act on an application for site plan or subdivision approval pursuant to applicable regulations.

Following preliminary plan approval and subject to meeting all conditions imposed on the preliminary plan, including all documentation required by the City Attorney and Common Council on the amenity, the applicant may submit a final plan to the Common Council for review and approval.

Planning Board action. All uses subject to the requirements of this section may be established and maintained if their operation is approved by the Planning Board as being in conformance with the standards and regulations limiting dangerous and objectionable elements, such as dust, smoke, odor, fumes, noise or vibration. In approving the site plan, the Planning Board shall decide whether the proposed use will conform to these applicable performance standards or any additional performance standards required by state or federal laws or which are generally recognized performance standards for a given industry.

Use subject to the performance standards procedures.

The Zoning Officer, as part of the sketch plan conference, shall tentatively identify whether a proposed use will be required to certify compliance with any of the performance standards listed in this section. Certification may require signing a written statement or presentation of construction detail and a description of the specifications for the mechanisms and techniques to be used in restricting the emissions of any dangerous and objectionable elements. The applicant shall also file with such plans and specifications an affidavit acknowledging understanding and stating agreement to conform to the same at all times. Any information which is designated by the applicant as a trade secret and submitted herewith will be treated as confidential under provisions of the New York State Freedom of Information Law. During the course of site plan review, the Planning Board will determine if the applicant's proposal falls within the performance standards.

Vibration.

Noise.

Smoke. The density emission of smoke or any other discharge into the atmosphere during normal operations shall not exceed visible gray smoke of a shade equal to or darker than No. 2 on the standard Ringelmann Chart. (A Ringelmann Chart is a chart published by the United States Bureau of Mines, which shows graduated shades of gray for use in estimating the light-obscuring capacity of smoke.) These provisions applicable to visible gray smoke shall also apply to visible smoke of a different color but with an apparent equivalent capacity.

Odor. No emission shall be permitted of odorous gases or other odorous matter in such quantities as to be readily detectable when diluted in the ratio of one volume of odorous air emitted to four volumes of clean air. Any process which may involve the creation or emission of any odors shall be provided with a secondary safeguard system so that control will be maintained if the primary safeguard system should fail. There is hereby established, as a guide in determining such quantities of offensive odors, in Table III, Odor Thresholds, in Chapter 5 of the Air Pollution Abatement Manual, Copyright 1959, by the Manufacturing Chemical Association, Inc., Washington, D.C., as said manual and/or table is subsequently amended.

Fly ash, dust, fumes, vapors, gases and other forms of air pollution. No emission shall be permitted which can cause any damage to health, animals, vegetation or other forms of property or which can cause any excessive soiling at any point beyond the boundaries of the lot. The concentration of such emission on or beyond any lot line shall not exceed 0.1 the maximum allowable concentration set forth in § 12-29 of the Board of Standards and Appeals of the New York State Department of Labor, effective October 1, 1956, and any subsequent standards.

Electromagnetic radiation. It shall be unlawful to operate or cause to be operated any planned or intentional source of electromagnetic radiation which does not comply with the current regulations of the Federal Communications Commission regarding such sources of electromagnetic radiation, regulations of the Interdepartmental Radio Advisory Committee shall take precedence over the regulations of the Federal Communications Commission. Further, said operation in compliance with the federal regulations shall be unlawful if such radiation causes an abnormal degradation in performances of other electromagnetic radiators or electromagnetic receptors of quality and proper design because of proximity, primary field, blanketing, spurious reradiation, harmonic content or modulation of energy conducted by power or telephone lines. The determination of abnormal degradation in performance and of quality and proper design shall be made in accordance with good engineering practices, as defined in the latest principles and standards of the American Institute of Radio Engineers and the Electronic Industries Association. In case of any conflict between the latest standards and principles of the above groups, the following precedence in interpretation of the standards and principles shall apply: American Institute of Electrical Engineers; Institute of Radio Engineers; and Electronic Industries Association.

Radioactive radiation. No activities shall be permitted which emit dangerous radioactivity at any point beyond the property lines. The handling of such radioactive materials, the discharge of such materials into the air and water and the disposal of radioactive wastes shall be in conformance with the regulations of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission as set forth in Title 10, Chapter 1, Part 20, as amended, and all applicable regulations of the State of New York.

Heat. Heat emitted at any or all points shall not at any time cause a temperature increase on any adjacent property in excess of 5° F., whether such change is in the air or on the ground, in a natural stream or lake or in any structure on such adjacent property.

Glare.

Liquid or solid waste. No discharge of any materials of such nature or temperature as can contaminate any water supply or otherwise cause the emission of dangerous or offensive elements shall be permitted at any point into a public sewer or stream or into the ground, except in accord with standards approved by the State and Albany County Departments of Health and local ordinances. There shall be no accumulation of solid wastes conductive to the breeding of rodents or insects.

Stormwater. For all developments disturbing more than one acre, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) requires that municipalities receive a copy of the stormwater pollution prevention plan (SWPPP) prior to plan approval. The owner is required to comply with the NYSDEC's SPEDES General Permit for Stormwater Discharge from Construction Activity Permit No. GP-02-01.

Every person, firm, corporation, or legal entity who wishes to place a temporary storage container at any location within the City of Cohoes shall be required to obtain a license from the Code Enforcement Officer in any of the following circumstances:

Obtaining said license shall be the responsibility of the person, firm, corporation or legal entity that owns or occupies the premises on which the container is to be placed.

Application for such license shall be made on forms provided by the Code Enforcement Officer. Each application shall state:

Each application shall be accompanied by the required license fee.

The Code Enforcement Officer shall have the authority to reject any application that presents, in his or her judgment, a dangerous or hazardous situation to any person or persons or to the public or violates any provisions of this Code, including but not limited to setback requirements. In rejecting any such application, the Code Enforcement Officer shall state the reasons for rejection.

Each application shall contain proof that the applicant has in effect commercial general liability insurance in the amount of $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate, naming the City of Cohoes as additional insured. Each applicant shall also execute a hold harmless agreement indemnifying the City against loss, including costs and expenses, resulting from injury to person or property as a direct or indirect result of his or her enterprise.

The container is no larger than 100 gallons in volume (or if several containers are used, they total not more than 100 gallons in volume), is placed only on private property and is used exclusively for the regular and ordinary collection and removal of garbage and refuse produced by a residence located on the same lot or parcel as the container.

The container is placed on private property for not more than seven days over a period of six consecutive months.

The container is placed by an agency of federal, state, or local government.

The container is placed on private property in an area entirely concealed from view.

Upon a finding that all requirements under this chapter have been met, the Code Enforcement Officer may issue a license to the applicant. The Code Enforcement Officer shall have the authority to impose reasonable conditions upon the placement and/or use of any temporary storage container.

Each license shall contain a statement that the licensee shall authorize the City of Cohoes, and/or its officials, representatives, and employees, to remove the licensed temporary storage container or containers, without notice to the licensee, in any event of public emergency.

Any license may be amended or renewed upon proper application to the Code Enforcement Officer.

The Code Enforcement Officer may cause any temporary storage container placed in violation of this chapter or in violation of the terms of any issued license to be removed. Such removal may be effected without notice when the Code Enforcement Officer determines, in his/her sole discretion that the container presents an imminent danger or hazard to a person or persons or to the public. The Code Enforcement Officer shall, to the extent practicable, notify the licensee of the container to be removed. If the licensee cannot be located despite reasonable efforts, or if the licensee fails or refuses to remove the container within a reasonable time, the Code Enforcement Officer shall have authority to remove the container, and may cause such removed container to be stored, discarded or destroyed at the sole expense of the applicant and/or owner of the temporary storage container or sold at public auction.

Any person who violates any of the provisions of this section shall, upon conviction, be subject to the penalties as established in § 285-28 of the Code.

Ownership by a single subdivision property owner.

Ownership by a homeowners' association.

Ownership by a not-for-profit land conservation organization.

Ownership by the City of Cohoes.

Where the designated open space is owned by a subdivision property owner or a homeowners' association, a conservation easement shall be granted containing the restrictions on the use of the open space and recorded in favor of a not-for-profit land conservation organization or the City of Cohoes granting said organization or City the right to enforce the conservation easement by injunction or any other civil action. If the conservation easement is granted to a land conservation organization, the City shall be granted a third-party right of enforcement of the easement.

The conservation easement shall:

Unless otherwise agreed to by the City of Cohoes, the cost and responsibility of maintaining the open space areas and common facilities shall be borne by the property owner, homeowners' association, or land conservancy organization holding the conservation easement.

If the open space areas and/or common facilities are not properly maintained, the City of Cohoes may exercise its rights under the conservation easement to enter upon the property and undertake the necessary maintenance and charge the property owner, homeowners' association or land conservancy organization for the costs incurred.

Has met all the application requirements for an eating and drinking establishment license.

Has obtained the approval of the Code Enforcement Officer for any railing, flooring or other support or enclosure used in the assembly, operation or enclosure of the sidewalk cafe. No such railing, flooring or other support or enclosure shall be considered an erection of, an addition to, or a structural alteration of a building or structure unless such railing, flooring, or other support or enclosure is permanently attached to such building or structure.

Has complied with all rules, regulations and specifications promulgated by the City Planner.

Before any sidewalk cafe permit is issued, the application and site plan submitted to the City Planner, pursuant to this section, shall be referred to the Chief of Police and Commissioner of Public Works, who shall recommend approval, disapproval or modification of said site plan. The sidewalk cafe shall be located only in front of the establishment that is owned or leased by the licensee and shall not extend more than 60% of the total width of the sidewalk measured from the property line to the edge of the street pavement.

No signs shall be hung or attached to any portion of the sidewalk cafe, except those signs on an awning that are in compliance with provisions set forth in Article XI of this chapter.

A Code Officer, City Planner, and Commissioner of Public Works may impose any other restriction on the location, size or design of the sidewalk cafe that, in their sole judgment, protects the health, safety and welfare of the public.

An agreement by the applicant to repair, at the expense of the applicant, any damage caused to the sidewalk in the operation of the sidewalk cafe. The City Planner may require a bond, in an amount to be fixed by the City Planner, to be filed by the applicant.

Proof that the applicant has been issued an eating and drinking establishment permit by the City of Cohoes.

Comply with all plans submitted to and approved by the City Planner under § 285-74.2 of this article.

Serve no alcoholic beverages on or at any sidewalk cafe after 10:00 p.m. or before 12:00 noon. All service of any kind whatsoever shall cease at 10:00 p.m. and not begin until 12:00 noon.

By no later than 10:00 p.m., remove all patrons from the sidewalk cafe and, by no later than the closing of the establishment, have all furniture, utensils, containers or any other materials used in the operation of the sidewalk cafe or within the area used by the sidewalk cafe removed from the sidewalk cafe area, provided that any railing, flooring or other support or enclosure used in the assembly, operation or enclosure of the sidewalk cafe may be allowed to remain on the sidewalk area if specifically permitted in the City Planner's approval of the sidewalk cafe plans under Subsection C above. No sidewalk cafe shall remain open after 10:00 p.m.

Remove all sidewalk cafe structures by October 31 and not install same prior to April 1 in any year for which a license is granted.

No music, from whatever source (acoustical, electric or other), may be played on the premises outdoors between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 12:00 noon.

Prominently display its certificate from the New York State Department of Health.

If applicable, prominently display at all times all licenses and authorizations issued by the New York State Liquor Authority for the dispensing and sale of alcoholic beverages.

Comply with all other provisions of the Code of the City of Cohoes.

Documentation of neighborhood support in the form of a signed letter of approval from the abutting property owners consenting to the use of the land for a community garden.

A site plan showing the proposed layout of the garden that includes the layout of plots (raised beds), water tap locations, accessory structures, fences, existing trees and roadways. Garden boundaries must meet the setbacks according to the proper zoning of the property. This site plan must be approved by the Zoning Officer prior to development.

Operating standards that address the requirements listed in subsection E of this section.

A proposed building materials list to include products intended for the design of the raised beds, fencing, and any other accessory structures.

A schedule of proposed fees to be collected from individuals wishing to use the garden.

Garden areas shall not encroach onto adjacent properties. The cultivated areas will meet the required setback(s) for the zoning district in which the garden is located.

The land shall be served by a water supply sufficient enough to support the cultivation practices used on the site.

The site must be designed and maintained so that water and fertilizer will not drain onto adjacent property.

All seed, fertilizer, and animal feed shall be stored in a sealed, rodent-proof container and housed within an enclosed structure.

The use of insecticides, herbicides and synthetic fertilizers is strictly prohibited. Only natural organic methods and products shall be used for the treatment of nuisances and to provide plant and soil nutrition.

The sale of any product of the garden is prohibited.

All plants shall be grown in raised beds with suitable commercial-grade fabric barrier lying at the base and lower sides, to prevent disturbance of native soils and to protect new soils from contaminants. New soil should be brought to the site that is suitable for planting edible vegetation.

No composting will be allowed on-site without a preapproved composting plan. Only one composting area will be allowed on-site with approval and it shall not be placed within 15 feet of any property line. Composting materials are generated from the site only.

Only the following accessory uses and structures shall be permitted: sheds for storage of tools and feed (size will be subject to review by the Zoning Officer), greenhouses, hoophouses, and cold frames in which plants are cultivated, benches, bike racks, raised/accessible planting beds, compost and waste bins (based on approval from the Zoning Officer), picnic tables, fences, garden art, rain barrel systems, and children's play areas.

Fences are permitted as regulated in the underlying zoning district.

Signage should comply with applicable City ordinances.