At the time of the erection of any building, or at the time any principal building is enlarged or increased in capacity by adding dwelling units, guestrooms, seats, or floor area, or before conversion from one type of use or occupancy to another, permanent off-street parking space shall be provided in the amount specified by this Article. Such parking may be provided in a parking garage or properly guarded open space.

(A)

Off-street parking shall be provided in accordance with this Article in all districts.

(B)

The off-street parking required by this section shall be permanent and shall not be used for any other purposes.

(C)

Each parking space shall not be less than nine (9) feet by eighteen (18) feet, exclusive of adequate egress and ingress drives, landscaping, and maneuvering space.

(D)

Handicapped parking shall be provided that meets the requirements specified in the North Carolina State Building Code.

(A)

The required parking spaces for any number of separate uses may be combined in one lot but the required spaces assigned to one use may not be assigned to another use at the same time.

(B)

No portion of any street right-of-way shall be considered as fulfilling or partially fulfilling the area requirements for off-street parking required by the terms of this Article.

Where parking lots for more than five cars are permitted or required, the following provisions shall be complied with:

(A)

The lot may be used only for parking and not for any type of loading, sales, dead storage, repair work, dismantling or servicing, but shall not preclude convention exhibits or parking of rental vehicles.

(B)

All entrances, exits, barricades at sidewalks, and drainage plans shall be approved and constructed before occupancy.

(C)

Any parking lot for more than five (5) cars which is adjacent, along the side or rear property lines, to property used or zoned for residential uses, shall be provided with screening as described in Article 13 (Landscaping, Screening, and Buffer Areas).

(D)

Only one (1) entrance and one (1) exit sign, no larger than two (2) square feet prescribing parking regulations, may be erected at each entrance or exit.

(E)

All off-street parking including exits, entrances, and maneuvering and parking areas shall be graded, shall be permanently maintained by the owners and shall have:

(1)

Access to a dedicated street or alley; and

(2)

Gravel or crushed rock access drives or lanes which are at least ten (10) feet wide for single lane movement and 20 feet wide for double lane movement. All commercial, industrial, office, and institutional uses shall have access drives paved with either asphalt or concrete.

(F)

All parking lots that are used regularly shall be paved with asphalt or concrete. Parking lots used only by churches, private clubs or similar organizations using said parking facilities on an irregular schedule can be unpaved through application and issuance of a variance. Parking lots issued a variance shall be graded, and surfaced with crushed stone or gravel or other approved suitable material to provide a surface which will help reduce dust and erosion.

(G)

All parking facilities shall be so designed that the required access to public streets shall be by forward motion of vehicles exiting the parking facility.

(H)

Each automobile parking space shall have the following minimum dimensions depending on the angle of each space as indicated in the Minimum Dimensions for Parking Spaces table.

(I)

Central Business District Parking. Uses in the B-1, Central Business District, are exempt from parking requirements unless required by other provisions of this Ordinance.

Parking spaces shall be required in accordance with the following chart:

(A)

Area to be Required. At the time of the erection or expansion of any main building or part which is used for commercial or industrial use, off-street loading and unloading space shall be required as specified in this article.

Off-street loading and unloading spaces shall be designed and constructed so that all maneuvering to park vehicles for loading and unloading can take place entirely within the premises. These spaces shall be provided so as not to interfere with the free, normal movement of vehicles and pedestrians on public rights-of-way.

(B)

Schedule of Loading Spaces.

(1)

For purposes of this section, an off-street loading berth shall have minimum dimensions of 12 feet by 30 feet and 14 feet overhead clearance with adequate means of ingress and egress.

(2)

For any structure containing less than 20,000 square feet of gross floor area, no berths shall be required. Larger structures, however, shall provide berths as specified below:

(A)

Each application for a zoning permit or certificate of occupancy shall include information as to the location and dimensions of off-street parking space and the means of ingress and egress between such space and a street. This information shall be in sufficient detail to enable the Zoning Administrator to determine whether or not the requirements of this Article are met.

(B)

The certificate of occupancy of the use of any structure or land where off-street parking space and loading and unloading areas is required shall be withheld by the Zoning Administrator until the provisions of this Article are fully met. If at any time such compliance ceases, any certificate of occupancy which has been issued for the use of the property shall immediately become void.