The Neighborhood Business District is intended to provide areas for limited small-scale commercial uses of a convenience nature serving nearby residential neighborhoods as opposed to a regional market. The district is not intended to accommodate automotive or other types of more intensive commercial activities that are of such magnitude or type that would result in the generation of excessive traffic, noise, odors, pollution, safety hazards, or other adverse impacts which would detract from the desirability of adjacent properties for residential use. In general, the neighborhood business district includes offices and retail and service establishments but excludes those highway-oriented uses which involve use of chemicals and outside sales, storage or display.

(Ord. No. 91-9(Amd. 21), 9-6-2016)

1.

Accessory uses and structures normally incidental to principal permitted uses and structures.

2.

Antique shops.

3.

Art and school supply stores.

4.

Automated car washes, as accessory to convenience stores with retail gasoline sales.

5.

Bake shops and bakeries, but not including wholesale.

6.

Banks and financial institutions, including drive-in, drive-through and automatic teller facilities as accessory or principal uses, not to exceed 10,000 square feet of gross floor area.

7.

Barber shops and beauty shops.

8.

Book or stationary stores.

9.

Churches, temples, synagogues and places of worship, and their customary accessory uses and structures, including cemeteries.

10.

Clubs, lodges, fraternal institutions and other places of public assembly for membership groups, non-profit or for profit, not to exceed 10,000 square feet of gross floor area.

11.

Clothes pressing, repair, sale and rental, but not including department stores.

12.

Convenience food and retail stores with or without retail gasoline sales.

12.1.

Cultural facility.

13.

Day care centers.

13.1.

Distilled spirits package stores (Prohibited in all zones except where expressly permitted.)

14.

Dressmaking, millinery, sewing and tailor shops.

15.

Drug stores.

16.

Dry-cleaners and laundromats not exceeding 2,500 square feet of total floor area.

17.

Electronic equipment sales.

18.

Food and grocery stores.

19.

Food catering establishments.

20.

Florist shops.

21.

Gift shops.

22.

Hardware stores.

23.

Hobby shops.

24.

Ice cream and yogurt shops.

25.

Instructional studios, such as music, dance, gymnastics aerobics and martial arts.

26.

Interior decorating shops.

27.

Jewelry stores.

28.

Libraries, museums and art galleries.

29.

Locksmith shops.

30.

Music stores.

31.

Offices, business, medical, professional, insurance and real estate, and general.

32.

Paint stores.

33.

Photocopying, printing and reproduction services not exceeding 2,500 square feet of total floor area.

34.

Photography shops and studios.

35.

Public and semi-public buildings and uses.

36.

Radio and television repair and sales stores.

37.

Record, tape, and video rental and sales stores.

38.

Recycling collection centers, but not including processing of recyclable materials.

39.

Residences, single-family detached, but not including mobile homes. Home occupations are permitted as accessory uses.

40.

Restaurants, but not including drive-in or drive-through facilities.

41.

Schools, public elementary, middle and secondary, and public and private colleges and universities.

42.

Schools, parochial, private vocational, technical and others, non-profit or operated for profit.

43.

Small appliance repair shops.

44.

Snack and sandwich shops, but not including drive-in or drive-through facilities.

45.

Sporting goods stores.

46.

Toy stores.

47.

Travel agencies.

48.

Watch and clock sales and repair shops.

(Ord. No. 91-9(Amd. 21), 9-6-2016; Ord. No. 2018-08, 8-13-2018; Ord. No. 2022-05, 5-16-2022)

Outdoor display of goods shall be allowed as an accessory use for all uses requiring site plan approval. It is the intent of this Ordinance to allow the display of merchandise for sale, but not where the display of such items impedes the flow of pedestrian or vehicular traffic, or creates an unsafe condition. Outdoor sales/display is allowed by permit if applicant complies with the following conditions:

1.

All outdoor sales must be conducted solely and exclusively on private property.

2.

The business seeking to conduct outdoor sales must be in full compliance with all existing City of Dahlonega codes including but not limited to sign and zoning regulations.

3.

The business must absolutely meet or exceed the applicable off-street parking regulations for said business, and no portion of the required off-street parking spaces for the business may be used for the conducting of outdoor sales;

4.

All outdoor display of goods shall be located immediately adjacent to the store front and not in loading zones or fire lanes. All outdoor display areas must be contiguous to one another.

5.

No goods shall be attached to a building's wall surface and all goods offered for outdoor sale shall be goods owned by the applicant and sold in the normal course of the applicant's business;

6.

At least 5 feet along the perimeter of the display shall be maintained free of obstruction to allow for pedestrian and handicap movement, such that handicapped pedestrians and others do not have to enter the parking lot or drive aisle to "walk around" the display.

7.

The area used for outdoor display and sale of goods shall be limited to no more than ½ of the length of the store front. Additionally, in the case of a shopping center, the storefront shall include the entire frontage of each shopping center block, meaning that the total amount of display and sale area for all the in-line tenants combined in that block shall not exceed 50% of the aggregate storefront of the overall shopping center;

8.

The area of outdoor display and sale shall not encompass the width of the entrance doors to the facility as projected straight out from the facility. For example, if the width of the entrance doors is 20 feet, then there shall be at least a 10-foot clearance from the doors as projected straight out and away from the facility;

9.

The approval of outdoor display and sales shall be made by the City Planning Department staff. All new development plans must show the location of outdoor display and sales areas in accordance with this Section. Existing non-residential uses that desire to have outdoor display and sales areas must submit a plan showing the location of the display areas and how the requirements of this Section are being met.

10.

The area of existing parking lots set aside for outdoor sales and display must be limited to pedestrian traffic only.

11.

There shall be no outdoor sales of hazardous or inflammable items such as gasoline, oil, antifreeze, kerosene, pesticides and similar items.

12.

All permits for outdoor sales shall expire one year from issuance.

13.

The fee for outside sales permits shall be $100.00

(Ord. No. 91-9(Amd. 21), 9-6-2016)