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Columbia County Unincorporated
City Zoning Code

CHAPTER 18

45 COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL ZONES 1

§ 18.45.010 Purpose.

The purpose of this chapter providing for the establishment of commercial and industrial zones is as follows:
A. 
To establish standards for the height and size of buildings, the areas and dimensions of yards and open spaces.
B. 
To provide for facilities to minimize traffic congestion and hazards.
C. 
To provide for facilities and the operation of both commercial and industrial uses to minimize noise, vibration, water and air pollution and fire and safety hazards within those zones.
D. 
To provide areas within Columbia County that would be compatible to commercial and industrial type uses.
Subject
Zone District
C-1
LI-1
HI-1
Maximum building height
35 feet
60 feet, 35 feet adjacent to residential zone. May add 1 foot for each 2-foot increase in setback.
None
Minimum parcel size
1/2 acre w/water and sewer
1 acre w/water and sewer
2 acres
Setbacks
See Note 1
Front
County road
15 feet + 1/2 ROW from centerline
35 feet + 1/2 ROW
State highway
Outside WSDOT safety zone or 10 feet from ROW
Private road
10 feet from ROW
20 feet from ROW
45 feet from ROW
Side
10 feet
20 feet (5 feet if no road frontage)
25 feet (30 feet on corner)
Rear
10 feet
20 feet (5 feet if no road frontage)
25 feet
Minimum road frontage or lot width
100 feet
200 feet
200 feet
Minimum lot depth
100 feet
200 feet
200 feet
Signage
1 freestanding monument sign, 1 square foot of signage for each 10 feet of road frontage, and
1 sign mounted flat against the front face of the building, not to exceed 25% of the facade, and
1 sign mounted flat on up to 2 side faces of the building, not to exceed 15% of the wall area.
Notes:
1. Any external sign displayed shall pertain to the use conducted within the building.
2. Artificially illuminated signs shall not be permitted if they face an abutting agricultural residential zone (AR-1).
3. Moving or intermittent flashing signs are prohibited.
4. Signs located on Highway 12 are subject to Highways Control Act Chapter 468-66 WAC and Scenic Vistas Act Chapter 47.42 RCW as referenced in WSDOT Highway Advertising Control Guidelines.
Notes:
1.
All approaches, roads and sight triangles shall meet the Standards for Design and Construction of Roads in Un-Incorporated Columbia County guidelines as approved by the County Engineer.
2.
C-1 zone:
a.
The minimum lot size of this zone shall be one-half acre when a public water supply and public sewer facility is used, except that motels, hotels, and planned area developments shall meet the following requirements: 9,200 square feet shall be required for three-dwelling-unit buildings. Each additional unit shall require an additional 1,000 square feet.
b.
When use of a private water supply and/or private sewage system is contemplated, the minimum lot size in this zone shall be as deemed appropriate by the Columbia County health department in accordance with Chapter 246-272A WAC or any other applicable regulation.
3.
L-I zone:
a.
A use which creates a nuisance because of noise, smoke, odor, dust, gas, or water pollution is prohibited.
b.
Materials shall be stored and the ground shall be maintained in a manner which will not attract or aid the propagation of insects or rodents or otherwise create a health or fire hazard.
c.
Landscaping. There shall be a 10-foot landscaped buffer adjacent to public roads and 20 feet adjacent to residentially zoned property. Minimum five-foot-wide landscaped planters shall separate buildings and other structures from parking and driveways.
d.
Service, manufacturing, assembly, fabrication, processing and storage activities, except as permitted as an accessory use or by approval of a CUP or PUD, shall be wholly within an enclosed building or where permitted screened from view, except from abutting industrial property, by a permanently maintained sight-obscuring fence at least six feet high. Barbed or razor wire shall not be permitted where abutting residential or commercial zones and must be specifically approved for use where visible from a public right-of-way.
e.
Points of access from a public street to properties in an LI-1 zone shall be so located as to minimize traffic hazards in areas of high traffic and be well lighted and defined by a landscaped planter.
f.
Building entrances or other openings adjacent to or across the street from an agricultural-residential zone shall be prohibited if they cause glare, excessive noise, or otherwise adversely affect land uses in the AR zone. All exterior lighting shall be designed to keep light and glare on site.
g.
A public water and waste water system shall be utilized where available and allowed, otherwise systems meeting state health and DOE requirements are required. In UGAs nonpublic systems shall be designed to allow future connection to public infrastructure.
h.
The site shall be designed to deliver stormwater to an approved public system or maintain all stormwater generated on site in conformance with state of Washington stormwater management standards.
4.
H-I zone:
a.
All buildings housing manufacturing processes or industrial uses shall be located at least 200 feet from the nearest zone classified other than industrial, and all other buildings or structures shall be at least 100 feet from a nonindustrial zone.
b.
All minimum setback requirements shall be increased one foot for each one foot that the building or structure exceeds 45 feet in height.
(Ord. 90-02 § 12; Ord. 95-01 § 13; Ord. 2015-02 § 2; Ord. 2017-03 (Exh. E); Ord. 2020-02 § 2 (Exh. G); Ord. 2025-03, 9/15/2025)

§ 18.45.020 Harlem Road Overlay Zone.

The intent of the Harlem Road Overlay Zone is to allow flexibility in the type of uses along the south side of Harlem Road between 605 and 643 Harlem Road. For parcels that extend from Harlem Street through to Highway 12, the overlay zone will apply to the first 200 feet south of Harlem Street.
The overlay zone allows existing single-family homes to be recognized as permitted by zoning. The following uses are allowed as permitted principal and accessory uses in addition to the uses listed for the underlying commercial zone:
A. 
Single-family residence.
B. 
Duplex or multi-family residence (as allowed per CCC 18.15.045 notes 2 and 3).
C. 
Residential accessory structures.
D. 
Caretaker's residence.
018 Harlem Road Overlay Zone.tif
(Ord. 2025-03, 9/15/2025)