Site plans shall not be required for any single-family dwelling, for such accessory uses as a private garage, or other buildings incidental to single-family residential or agricultural use.

Site plan review will not be required in connection with the alteration or repair of an existing building or use when the Zoning Officer determines that said alteration or repair will not result in additional lot coverage, will conform with the maximum and minimum building standards, and will not increase the number of off-street parking spaces.

The Planning Board may waive the requirements of this Part 4 if the proposed development has secured previous site plan approval or when the Planning Board is convinced that the development will not affect existing circulation, drainage, building arrangement, landscaping, buffering, lighting and other considerations of site plan review.

Site plans shall be prepared under the supervision of and be signed and sealed by either a New Jersey licensed professional engineer or a registered architect. A plan shall be drawn in black on white at a scale not less than one inch equals 50 feet.

The site plan shall clearly show the conditions on and adjacent to the site at the time of application, the features of the site which are being incorporated into the proposed use or building, and the appearance and function of the proposed use or building. At a minimum, the preliminary site plan shall include the following information, unless waived by the Planning Board:

An original and seven copies of an environmental impact statement as described in Part 2, Article VI, § 115-18D, shall be filed.

The approving authority may require additional information in order to properly review and take action on a specific application. The approving authority may also rely on the information or design requirements of Part 5, Land Subdivision, where applicable or may make reasonable requests for additional information.

Circulation. Pedestrian and vehicular traffic movement within and adjacent to the site with particular emphasis on the provision and layout of parking areas, off-street loading and unloading areas, and the movement of people, goods and vehicles from access roads and within the site and adjacent to it. The Planning Board shall ensure that all parking spaces are usable and are safely and conveniently arranged. Access to the site from adjacent roads shall be designed so as to interfere as little as possible with traffic flow on these roads and to permit vehicles a rapid and safe entrance and exit to and from the site.

Site design. The design and layout of buildings and parking areas shall be reviewed so as to provide an aesthetically pleasing design and efficient arrangement. In the orientation and siting of buildings, the unique characteristics of the site shall be taken into account with consideration given to relating buildings to the natural terrain, creating desirable focal points, preserving natural views, and respecting the established character of the neighborhood. The site plan shall provide for a unified design with features that tie principal and accessory structures together and relate site features successfully and harmoniously to similar elements in surrounding buildings.

Lighting. Adequate lighting shall be provided to ensure safe movement of persons and vehicles and for security purposes. Lighting standards shall be a type approved by the Planning Board. Directional lights shall be arranged so as to minimize glare and reflection on adjacent properties.

Buffering. Buffering shall be located around the perimeter of the site to minimize headlights of vehicles, noise, light from structures, and the movement of people and vehicles and to shield activities from adjacent properties when necessary. Buffering may consist of fencing, evergreens, shrubs, bushes, deciduous trees or combinations thereof to achieve the design objectives.

Landscaping. Every effort shall be made to preserve the landscape in its natural state or to improve existing site conditions in keeping with adjacent areas. Landscaping shall be provided as part of the overall site plan design and integrated into building arrangements, topography, parking and buffering requirements. Landscaping shall include trees, bushes, shrubs, ground cover, perennials, annuals, and plants.

Signs. Signs shall be designed so as to be aesthetically pleasing, harmonious with other signs on the site, and located so as to achieve their purpose without constituting hazards to vehicles and pedestrians.

Utilities. Storm drainage, sanitary waste disposal, water supply and solid waste disposal shall be reviewed and considered. Particular emphasis shall be given to the adequacy of existing systems and the need for improvements both on-site and off-site. Adequate fire protection shall be ensured in the review of all major developments. Solid waste disposal shall be adequate to ensure freedom from vermin and rodent infestation.

Environmental considerations. Environmental elements relating to soil erosion, preservation of trees, protection of watercourses, topography, soil, and wildlife shall be reviewed, and the design of the plan shall minimize any adverse impact on these elements. Whenever possible, the natural features of a site are to be preserved, floodplains respected, and excessive cut or fill avoided.

Parking area design standards. All parking areas shall be designed in accordance with the following standards:

Existing off-street parking areas shall not be reduced or encroached upon in any way which would make them deficient for the uses served.

The collective provision of off-street parking by two or more buildings or uses located on adjacent lots is permitted, provided that the total of such facilities shall not be less than the sum required for involved buildings or uses computed separately, unless it can be demonstrated to the satisfaction of the approving authority that the periods of need are entirely or partially mutually exclusive.

All off-street parking is to be provided on lot or contiguous to the lot and adjacent to the specified principal use. For nonresidential uses in commercial districts, required parking may be located within 150 feet of such use, said distance to be measured from the nearest point of the parking facility to the nearest point of the building served.

An off-street loading space, as defined in this chapter, shall be required:

When the computation to determine the number of required loading spaces results in a requirement of a fractional space, any fraction to and including 1/2 shall be disregarded and fractions exceeding 1/2 shall require one space.

Existing required loading areas, together with their accessways, shall not be encroached upon or reduced in any manner or devoted to any other use. The use's certificate of occupancy shall be declared invalid in the event of such occurrence.

All off-street loading spaces shall be surfaced with asphaltic or portland cement concrete. The arrangement of off-street loading space shall be such that no vehicle shall have occasion to back into any public street or an internal access road of a parking area.

Off-street loading areas shall be located or screened so that they cannot be seen from adjacent land uses or from the public street and shall not encroach on any required yards.

Access to a site shall be provided from an improved existing or proposed public street at defined locations. For developments on parcels of land with frontage of less than 150 feet, no more than two one-way driveways or one two-way driveway shall be permitted. The number of driveways provided from a site directly to a road for a parcel of 150 feet or more shall not exceed two two-way driveways or one two-way driveway and two one-way driveways.

All entrance and exit driveways to a road shall be located to afford maximum safety to traffic on the road. Where a site occupies a corner of two intersecting roads, no driveway entrance or exit may be located within 50 feet of the tangent of the existing or proposed curb radius of that site.

Whenever a development is proposed at the intersection of an arterial or major collector and a road of lesser importance, access to the development shall be gained from the county or Township road of lower functional classification.

The width of a driveway at the right-of-way line shall be a minimum of 20 feet and a maximum of 40 feet for two-way operation and a minimum of 12 feet and a maximum of 20 feet for one-way operation.

No part of any driveway shall be located within a minimum of 10 feet of a side property line. However, the Planning Board may permit a driveway serving two or more adjacent sites to be located on or within 10 feet of a site property line between the adjacent sites. The use of marginal access roads or joint driveways may be required by the Planning Board in an area of commercial development to collect the commercial traffic.

Where two or more driveways connect a single site to any one road, a minimum clear distance of 75 feet shall separate the closest edge of any two such driveways for a parcel with less than 150 feet of frontage, and a minimum of 100 feet shall separate any two driveways for a parcel of more than 150 feet.

Deceleration lane. Where a driveway serves as an entrance to a land development providing 50 or more spaces, a deceleration lane shall be provided for traffic turning right into the driveway from any arterial, major or minor collector road. The deceleration lane shall be at least 200 feet long and at least 13 feet in width. A minimum forty-foot curb radius will be used from the deceleration lane into the driveway. If a deceleration lane is provided, the driveway angle may be less than the 75° required in § 115-44.

Acceleration lane. Where a driveway serves right-turning traffic from a parking area providing 200 or more parking spaces and the abutting road has a peak-hour traffic volume exceeding 1,000 vehicles per hour, an acceleration lane shall be provided at least 200 feet in length and at least 13 feet in width. In situations where these criteria are not met, the Planning Board may require acceleration lanes for commercial or residential development upon the recommendation of the Township Engineer to improve traffic merging or sight conditions.

The style of the light and the light standard shall be consistent with the architectural style of the principal building. The height of the lighting shall be in scale with the height of the principal building and shall not exceed 35 feet.

All lights shall be properly shielded to restrict the maximum apex of illumination to 150° and to prevent glare or illumination on adjacent land uses.

Lighting shall be located along streets, parking areas, and at all intersections. In addition, all building entrances and exits shall be lighted and all sidewalks shall have low or mushroom-type structures. Freestanding lights shall be located and designed so as not to be easily damaged by vehicles or to be a roadside safety hazard.

Spotlight fixtures attached to buildings shall not be permitted except for security purposes in the rear of buildings.

The appropriate intensity of lighting in footcandles and the type of lighting shall be determined by the Planning Board upon the recommendation of the Township Engineer.

Buffering or screening shall be required along the perimeter of all site plans unless waived by the Planning Board. Buffers shall be created along and adjacent to property lines of similar or proposed uses and along the road. Buffers may also be required on the interior of the site plan to shield parking areas. Whenever a commercial land use abuts existing or proposed residential land use, a dense natural barrier or screen shall be required. Screening may also be required around garbage collection areas, loading bays, and where interior roads run parallel with roads exterior to the site. Screening should also be considered along the rear property line to act as a backdrop for the proposed use.

Windbreaks, composed of appropriate natural screening, should be considered in the prevailing wind direction to prevent wind-borne debris from leaving the site.

Buffer zones shall be maintained in their natural state when wooded. When natural vegetation is sparse at certain locations, the Planning Board may require planting native to existing adjacent woodland.

Fences or walls are effective screening devices. However, any proposed fence or wall shall complement the structural type and design of the principal buildings. The use of fences with high transparency (i.e., chain-link fence) shall not be considered as an adequate buffer unless complemented by landscaping. High fences or walls with little if any transparency shall only be considered in areas appropriate for screening.

The use of landscaping techniques such as terracing and the creation of berms or mounds shall be encouraged as part of the landscaping plan and to accomplish adequate buffering or screening.

Landscaping shall be designed to accent and complement buildings and shall be located to assist with interior climate control.

The impact of any proposed landscaping plan shall be considered over time so that shrubs or trees do not grow and eventually block sight distances. This concern is particularly important at driveway entrances and in parking areas.

Factors such as texture, color, shapes, and foliage shall be considered in the choice of species. In addition, the susceptibility of the species to disease and litter or maintenance problems must be considered.

The preservation of existing trees and vegetation is encouraged. Specimen trees over 15 inches in diameter shall be incorporated in all landscaping plans. Although the alteration of the existing terrain is permitted to accomplish appropriate landscaping objectives, the grade around existing trees may not be varied more than six inches except if properly designed tree wells are to be constructed.

There shall be included in any site plan for any new building containing three or more dwelling units occupied or intended to be occupied by persons living independently of each other, or a group of such buildings ("multifamily housing"), if permitted by variance, an indoor or outdoor area for the collection and storage of residentially generated recyclable materials ("recycling area"). The dimensions of the recycling area shall be sufficient to accommodate recycling bins or containers which are of adequate size and number and which are consistent with anticipated usage and with current methods of collection in the area in which the project is located. The dimensions of the recycling area and the bins or containers shall be determined in consultation with the Municipal Recycling Coordinator and shall be consistent with the district recycling plan adopted pursuant to Section 3 of P.L. 1987, c. 102 (N.J.S.A. 13:1E-99.13), and any applicable requirements of the municipal Master Plan adopted pursuant to Section 26 of P.L. 1987, c. 102.[1]

The recycling area shall be conveniently located for the residential disposition of source-separated recyclable materials, preferably near, but clearly separated from, a refuse dumpster.

The recycling area shall be well-lit and shall be safely and easily accessible by recycling personnel and vehicles. Collection vehicles shall be able to access the recycling area without interference from parked cars or other obstacles. Reasonable measures shall be taken to protect the recycling area and the bins or containers placed therein against theft of recyclable materials, bins or containers.

The recycling area or the bins or containers placed therein shall be designed so as to provide protection against adverse environmental conditions which might render the collected materials unmarketable. Any bins or containers which are used for the collection of recyclable paper or cardboard, and which are located in an outdoor recycling area, shall be equipped with a lid, or otherwise covered, so as to keep the paper or cardboard dry.

Signs clearly identifying the recycling area and the materials accepted therein shall be posted adjacent to all points of access to the recycling area; individual bins or containers shall be equipped with signs indicating the materials to be placed therein.

Landscaping and/or fencing shall be provided around any outdoor recycling area and shall be developed in an aesthetically pleasing manner.