The LED-I, Light Economic Development District is established to provide locations within master planned "business park" environments for research technology, development and training, corporate employment offices, and light manufacturing and warehousing operating under high environmental performance standards.

While the main purpose of the district is to encourage the future location and consolidation of light industrial and economic development activities within a master planned and clustered setting, this district may be applied to discrete economic development establishments in the City as well as to existing light industry which is conforming as of the date of adoption of this ordinance.

From a design standpoint, this district is intended promote the development of light intensity land uses in planned business park settings, with an emphasis on low density, well landscaped, and screened development which would be compatible with all types of adjoining urban land uses, including residential, and which would afford maximum protection to surrounding properties. No use should be permitted which might be harmful to the adjoining land uses and the residential ambiance of the adjacent neighborhoods. Outdoor storage and outdoor industrial uses are to be discouraged but may be permitted by special use permit with appropriate design by special permit. Minimum site improvements shall include adequate on-site parking, public water and sewer service, public street frontage and safe access, pedestrian improvements, adequate storm drainage, stormwater management facilities, and outdoor lighting for parking areas.

(Ord. No. 2004-02.04, Art. 3.O, § A, 2-17-04)

1.

Airport.

2.

Aircraft-related industry (subject to additional regulations per Section I).

3.

Artisan/craftsman manufacturing.

4.

Banks and financial institutions.

5.

Telephone call center.

6.

Community facilities and uses.

7.

Corporate offices and other offices, which support permitted and special permit uses.

8.

Data storage and data processing center.

9.

Establishments for scientific, biological and chemical scientific research, development and training.

10.

Establishments for manufacturing production, processing, assembly, compounding, cleaning, servicing, storage, testing, repair and distribution of materials, goods or products which conform to federal, state and local environmental performance standards (excepting those uses which are specifically prohibited by this article).

11.

Gasoline sales establishments (with no repair services and no outdoor vehicle storage).

12.

Health club, spa, or fitness center.

13.

Light manufacturing, fabrication, testing or repair establishments which are incidental to the primary use of research, development and training or corporate offices (with no outdoor storage, loading, or displays).

14.

Light warehousing establishments, (without outdoor storage).

15.

Light wholesale trade establishments, (without outdoor storage).

16.

Mini-storage warehouses, with no exterior storage.

17.

Private post offices and delivery service establishments.

18.

Private training facilities and vocational schools.

19.

Public utilities and facilities.

20.

Veterinary hospitals (with outdoor kennel facilities).

21.

Exterminator.

(Ord. No. 2004-02.04, Art. 3.O, § B, 2-17-04; Ord. No. 2011-12.03, 12-20-11)

1.

Auto and light vehicle service establishments (with screened outdoor service and storage areas).

2.

Automobile salvage or other salvage yards.

3.

Bus and railroad terminals.

4.

Communication towers and antennae.

5.

Contractor's office, shops and storage yards.

6.

Gasoline sales establishments (with indoor repair services and no outdoor vehicle storage).

7.

Heliports and helipads, ancillary to a district use.

8.

Heavy equipment sales, rental, and servicing (with screened service and storage areas).

9.

Light manufacturing, fabrication, testing or repair establishments (with screened outdoor storage limited to 50% of the area of building coverage).

10.

Light warehousing establishments, with screened outdoor storage limited to 50% of the area of building coverage.

11.

Light wholesale trade and sales establishments, with screened outdoor storage limited to 50% of the area of building coverage.

12.

Retail sales in a warehouse, wholesale or manufacturing establishment, wherein at least 60% of the gross floor area is devoted to non-retail use and the for-sale products are manufactured on the premises or by the same corporate ownership.

13.

Restaurant.

14.

Bus and railroad terminals.

15.

Uses permitted by right and by special use permit in the HR-C District.

16.

Uses requiring outdoor storage, loading, or display.

17.

Uses with lot frontage on the Dan River.

18.

Soap manufacture.

19.

Waiver of minimum district size.

20.

Waiver of minimum lot size.

21.

Waiver of floor area ratio and building coverage.

22.

Waiver of maximum building height requirement for smokestacks associated with permitted manufacturing use.

23.

Regional brewery.

24.

Commercial recreation facilities (indoor and outdoor).

25.

Waiver of yard requirements.

(Ord. No. 2004-02.04, Art. 3.O, § C, 2-17-04; Ord. No. 2012-11.09, 11-20-12; Ord. No. 2014-02.02, 2-18-14; Ord. No. 2016-05.02, 5-5-16; Ord. No. 2023-04.04, 4-4-23)

The specific uses which follow shall not be permitted in the LED-I District.

1.

Acid manufacture.

2.

Animal slaughterhouse.

3.

Ammonia and chlorine manufacturing.

4.

Asphalt mixing plant.

5.

Blast furnace.

6.

Boiler works.

7.

Bulk storage of flammable materials.

8.

Concrete mixing and batching products.

9.

Coal, wood or wood distillation.

10.

Extraction and mining of rocks and minerals.

11.

Fertilizer, lime or cement manufacturing.

12.

Fireworks or explosives manufacturing.

13.

Herbicide manufacturing.

14.

Insecticide manufacturing.

15.

Metal foundries, smelting, processing, fabrication and storage.

16.

Private garbage incineration.

17.

Pesticide manufacturing.

18.

Petroleum, asphalt or related product refining.

19.

Private landfills.

20.

Rendering plants.

21.

Residential uses.

22.

Stockyards.

23.

Tanning and curing of skins.

24.

All nonconforming uses shall not be allowed to expand facilities.

25.

Any other similar use which in the opinion of the City Council might be injurious or noxious by reason of odor, fumes, dust, smoke, vibration, noise or other cause if not subject to other regulations in either the City Code or other provisions of Section I.

(Ord. No. 2004-02.04, Art. 3.O, § D, 2-17-04; Ord. No. 2011-12.03, 12-20-11)

Regulated by floor area ratio.

(Ord. No. 2004-02.04, Art. 3.O, § E, 2-17-04)

1.

Minimum district size: 10 acres.

2.

Minimum lot area: 40,000 square feet.

3.

Minimum lot width: 120 feet.

4.

No LED-I District lot shall be configured such that more than 10% of the prescribed minimum lot area is comprised of either of the following physical land units: (a) wetlands and (b) water features.

(Ord. No. 2004-02.04, Art. 3.O, § F, 2-17-04)

1.

Maximum building height: 60 feet.

2.

Minimum yard requirements:

A.

Front yard: 50 feet, from a property line which is the exterior boundary of the industrial park property.

30 feet, from a property line interior to the industrial park property.

Front yards with outdoor displays: a 30 foot setback is required for the outdoor display of items, when permitted, within the front yard.

B.

Interior and street side yards: 50 feet, from a property line on the industrial park boundary.

30 feet, from a property line interior to the industrial park.

C.

Rear yard: 50 feet.

D.

Side and rear yard requirements may be waived where a side or rear yard abuts a railroad right-of- way which is to be employed for use as a siding for the lot or a lot within the industrial park.

3.

Maximum floor area ratio: 0.50.

(Ord. No. 2004-02.04, Art. 3.O, § G, 2-17-04; Ord. No. 2022-02.01, Exh. A, 2-1-22)

1.

An open space plan and landscape plan shall be submitted with applications for any land use governed by this district.

2.

Stormwater management basins and structures and BMP facilities may be counted towards the minimum open space requirement provided that these basins, structures, and facilities include the appropriate landscaping and maintenance in accordance with the Landscape and Screening Regulations.

3.

Twenty (20) percent of the site shall be landscaped open space, provided that no more than fifty (50) percent of the dedicated open space shall consist of land classified as 100 year stream valleys, wetlands, stormwater management and BMP facilities, slopes greater than thirty (30) percent and/or drainage easements.

(Ord. No. 2004-02.04, Art. 3.O, § H, 2-17-04)

1.

Refer to the Airport Overlay District, where applicable, for specific regulations pertaining to development within the district.

2.

An environmental impact statement may be required for any permitted or special permit use. All uses shall conform to federal, state and City environmental performance standards and design criteria as related to:

(a)

Air pollution;

(b)

Fire and explosion hazards;

(c)

Radiation hazards;

(d)

Electromagnetic radiation and interference hazards;

(e)

Liquid, gas and solid wastes hazards;

(f)

Noise standards;

(g)

Vibration standards;

(h)

Illumination and glare;

(i)

Water quality; and

(j)

Others as may be requested by the Planning Commission.

3.

Refer to Landscaping and Screening for frontage landscaping, parking lot landscaping, exterior lot screening and buffer yard provisions.

4.

All refuse shall be contained in completely enclosed facilities.

5.

On a corner lot, no curb cut shall be located closer than 60 feet to the curb line extended from the intersecting public street.

6.

No curb cut shall be located closer than 20 feet to a side or rear lot line, unless a common curb cut serves adjacent uses, and in no instance shall the distance between separate curb cuts serving adjacent uses be less than 60 feet.

7.

A freestanding use shall have no more than two curb cuts on any single right-of-way, and such curb cuts shall have a minimum distance of 100 feet between them.

8.

Subject to special use permit approval, the outdoor areas of an LED-I use devoted to storage, loading, and display of goods shall be limited to a maximum 25% of the total lot area and as otherwise designated on an approved site plan. Outdoor storage, loading and display areas in excess of 50% of the area of building coverage may be approved under special circumstances when the applicant can provide expanded and enhanced security, fencing, screening, buffers and landscaping.

9.

Where a lot is contiguous to property located in a residential district, all buildings shall have a minimum setback of 75 feet from common property lines. A landscaped buffer yard shall be provided, with landscape materials and placement subject to final plan approval. Fencing may be required in such cases with fence material and heights subject to final plan approval.

10.

All uses within the LED-I District shall require a General Development Plan for rezoning approval and a site plan for special permit or lot development approval.

11.

In addition to landscaping and screening requirements, there shall be a minimum landscaped buffer strip of 10 feet in depth along all LED-I District property frontage. No parking is permitted within the buffer strip. The landscaped buffer strip shall be exclusive of the area required for utility easements, sidewalks and other infrastructure which would interrupt the nature and intent of the buffer area.

12.

No mechanical equipment, tank, duct, elevator enclosure, cooling tower, mechanical ventilator or air conditioner shall be erected, constructed, converted, established, altered or enlarged on the roof of any building, unless all such equipment and appurtenances are contained within a completely enclosed structure whose top and sides may include specialized architectural treatment, such as grillwork, louvers, and lattice work.

13.

Any subdivision lot or other property which is proposed to be developed on shrink/swell soils shall require a geotechnical report to be submitted with the preliminary plat and plans. Such report shall be prepared by a registered professional engineer and shall address the feasibility of development on the subject soils. No subdivision plat or site plan shall be approved for final recordation until a foundation engineering report has been reviewed by the City.

All recorded plats for lots containing shrink/swell soils shall bear the following note: "This lot contains shrink/swell soils which require special engineering design for foundations and structural elements. No structure will be approved for issuance of a building permit until a foundation engineering design prepared by a certified professional engineer has been approved for the proposed structure."

14.

Refer to the Floodplain Zoning Overlay District, where applicable.

15.

Refer to Sign Regulations for signage provisions.

16.

Aircraft-related industries must be located at least 500′ from any residentially zoned property within the City of Danville if outside testing of materials that exceeds 100 decibels (dB) during normal operation is to be conducted.

(Ord. No. 2004-02.04, Art. 3.O, § I, 2-17-04; Ord. No. 2011-12.03, 12-20-11)