Downingtown City Zoning Code
ARTICLE IX
C-1 General Commercial District
§ 287-36 Intent.
The C-1 General Commercial District is intended to provide areas for office, retail, specialty, personal service and business uses, recognizing areas where such uses already exist and assuring that new uses or changes in use will be compatible with existing adjacent land uses; to provide for public convenience by addressing circulation and parking needs; and to help assure an attractive setting for permitted land uses.
§ 287-37 Use regulations.
[Amended 12-1-1999 by Ord. No. 99-14; 6-16-2004 by Ord. No. 2004-2; 8-6-2025 by Ord. No. 2025-05; 8-6-2025 by Ord. No. 2025-06]
A.
Use by right. In the C-1 District, land, buildings and premises may be used by right for any one or more of the following principal purposes and no others, subject to Article IV and Article XIA:
(1)
Retail sales, except vehicular sales and/or service.
(2)
Personal service establishment, such as barbershop, beauty salon, shoe repair, tailor or cleaning and pressing.
(3)
Restaurant, tearoom, cafe, bar, retail bakery, confectionary or other places preparing, selling and/or serving food or beverages.
(4)
General business, professional, governmental and administrative offices.
(5)
Studio for performing or visual arts.
(6)
Bank or similar financial institution.
(7)
Religious use.
(8)
Museum, library or other educational or cultural use.
(9)
Places of amusement.
(10)
Convenience stores.
B.
Accessory uses. Any accessory use on the same lot with and customarily incidental to any of the foregoing permitted uses shall be allowed.
C.
Uses by special exception. The following uses shall be permitted only upon the grant of a special exception by the Zoning Hearing Board, subject to the terms of this article and of § 287-145, and subject to Article IV and Article XIA:
(1)
Funeral parlor.
(2)
Dwelling unit or units, when arranged to form an integral part of a building in which the ground floor or, at minimum, the front portion thereof is constructed and maintained for any use permitted under Subsection A(1) through A(9) herein, and when in compliance with § 287-38J below.
(3)
Conversion of a single-family detached dwelling to two dwelling units, in accordance with the terms of § 287-94.
(4)
Any use deemed by the Zoning Hearing Board to be of the same general character as any of the uses specifically permitted by this section.
D.
Conditional uses. The following use shall be permitted only upon the grant of conditional use approval from the Borough Council, subject to the terms of this article and § 287-137, and subject to Article IV and Article XIA:
(1)
Medical marijuana dispensaries, subject to compliance with § 287-87.2.
(2)
Significant tobacco retailer, provided the use is located at least 1,000 feet from another significant tobacco retailer, a medical marijuana dispensary, medical marijuana grower/processor, school, religious use, public park, and day care center. This use shall also be subject to compliance with the regulations in § 287-87.3.
§ 287-38 Area and bulk regulations.
[Amended 12-1-1999 by Ord. No. 99-14]
Except as otherwise noted in § 287-37 above, the following regulations shall apply to all uses in the C-1 District, except as provided for in Article XIA:
A.
Minimum lot size: 2,500 square feet.
B.
Minimum lot width: none required.
C.
Minimum front yard: none required.
D.
Minimum side yards: none required except where no rear access is available; there, one fifteen-foot side yard is required.
E.
Minimum rear yard: none required.
F.
Maximum building coverage: 50%.
G.
Maximum other impervious surface coverage: 30%.
H.
Minimum vegetative area: 10%.
I.
Maximum building height: four stories or 45 feet, whichever is less; except as shown on the Zoning Map for Zone 1 and Zone 2 of the Height Option Overlay Districts, taller buildings may be permitted in accordance with § 287-51D. Zone 1 buildings may be built by right up to five stories to a maximum of 75 feet; and up to seven stories to a maximum of 90 feet as a conditional use. Zone 2 buildings may be built by right up to four stories to a maximum of 60 feet to the extent shown in the Height Option Overlay Districts Map.
[Amended 8-1-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-10]
J.
Minimum building height: two stories and a minimum of 30 feet.
[Added 8-1-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-10[1]]
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also provided for the redesignation of former Subsection J as Subsection K.
K.
Dwellings in combination with nonresidential use:
(1)
Any dwelling unit permitted under the terms of § 287-37C(2) above, shall have a floor area of not less than 442 square feet or as otherwise may be required by the Borough Building Code.[2]
[2]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 109, Building Construction, Art. I, and Ch. 120, Construction Codes, Uniform.
(2)
Total floor area devoted to dwelling units within the structure shall not exceed four times the total floor area of the ground-floor nonresidential use or uses.
(3)
Entrance to any dwelling unit may be shared with another unit or units, but shall be independent of the nonresidential use or uses.
(4)
Off-street parking for each dwelling unit shall be provided in accordance with the requirements of Article XVIII of this chapter.
(5)
Where two or more dwelling units are to be created above the second story, requisite approvals of interior layout, emergency exits, etc., shall be obtained from the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.
§ 287-39 Design standards.
The following design standards of this chapter shall, as applicable, govern all uses within the C-1 District:
A.
Signs: as required by Article XIX.
B.
Parking: as required by Article XVIII.
C.
Loading: as required by § 287-111.
D.
Screening: as required by § 287-78.
E.
Access and traffic control: as required by § 287-80.
F.
Storage: as required by § 287-79.
G.
Interior circulation: as required by § 287-81.
H.
Lighting: as required by § 287-82.
I.
Central Business Revitalization Overlay District design standards: as required by § 287-51.1.
[Added 12-1-1999 by Ord. No. 99-14[1]]
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also provided for the relettering of Subsection I as Subsection J.
J.
Any use within the C-1 District shall comply with the applicable requirements of Chapter 109, Building Construction, Article I, Building Code.
[Amended 12-1-1999 by Ord. No. 99-14]
§ 287-40 Plan submission requirement.
A.
In order to demonstrate compliance with the terms of this article, any applicant proposing an authorized use within the C-1 District shall submit a plan (map and text) to the Borough Zoning Officer, describing specifically how each standard in §§ 287-38 and 287-39 shall be addressed.
B.
Where the proposed use constitutes a subdivision or land development, as defined by the Borough Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance,[1] the plan submission requirements of that ordinance shall supersede the provisions of this section.
[1]
Editor's Note: See Chapter 256, Subdivision of Land.
