Heidelberg City Zoning Code
ARTICLE IX
Bufferyards
§ 112-901 Purpose.
One of zoning's most important functions is the division of land uses into districts which have similar character and contain compatible uses. All uses permitted in any district have generally similar nuisance characteristics. Bufferyards act to minimize the negative impact of any future use on neighboring uses. Bufferyards shall be required to separate different zoning districts from each other and to separate uses within the same zoning district that may have different impact characteristics in order to eliminate or minimize potential nuisances such as dirt, litter, noise, glare of lights, signs and unsightly buildings or parking areas or to provide spacing to reduce adverse impacts of noise, odor or danger from fires or explosions. Natural, native trees and vegetation are considered the best buffers and should be used whenever possible.
§ 112-902 Location of bufferyards.
Bufferyards shall be located on the outer perimeter of a lot or parcel, extending to the lot or parcel boundary line.
§ 112-903 Determination of required bufferyards.
To determine the type of bufferyard required on a parcel or between two parcels or between a parcel and a street, the following procedure shall be used:
1.
Identify whether any portion or property line of the site constitutes a zoning district boundary. If it does, determine the zoning on both sides of the property and apply the required bufferyard from § 112-903.2.
2.
Table 1: Bufferyards Between Adjacent Zoning Districts.
Adjacent Parcel Zoning District | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
R-1 | R-2 | C | M | MUO | ||
R-1 | Not required | Not required | A | B | A | |
Development parcel zoning district | R-2 | Not required | Not required | A | B | A |
C | A | A | Not required | A | Not required | |
M | B | B | A | Not required | Not required | |
MUO | A | A | Not required | Not required | Not required | |
3.
Where a proposed nonresidential use abuts an existing residential use, bufferyard B (§ 112-910) shall be installed, except where the nonresidential use is being proposed as a development in the Mixed Use Overlay.
4.
In the event that the required bufferyard is determined by the Borough Council to be impracticable, then an alternative bufferyard shall be selected by the Borough Council.
5.
Determine whether the proposed development is a use which has bufferyards required to separate that use from certain uses or falls within a district that applies specialized bufferyard requirements. These include:
6.
In the event more than one bufferyard requirement applies to a parcel boundary or portion thereof, the most stringent requirement shall be applied.
§ 112-904 Responsibility for bufferyards.
The party developing the site shall bear responsibility for installing the required bufferyard at the time of development.
§ 112-905 Bufferyard requirements.
1.
Buffer materials include fences, landscaping, berms and mounds used to minimize any adverse impacts or nuisances on the site or from adjacent areas. Where existing vegetation exists in the area forming the required bufferyard, it may be used to meet the bufferyard requirement. Illustrations graphically indicating the specification of each bufferyard are contained in § 112-910.
2.
Buffer materials shall be of such a type and designed in such a manner as to obscure from view at ground level such nonresidential property from the contiguous, abutting or neighboring residential properties unless determined to be impracticable by the Borough Council.
3.
Unless specified to the contrary in the individual zoning district regulations, buffers shall be not less than six feet in height nor more than eight feet high at the time of installation unless indicated otherwise in the bufferyard requirements in § 112-910.
4.
Required buffering shall be maintained or replaced as necessary and in a manner that will restore or enhance its appearance as it relates to adjacent use. Required buffer plantings shall be replaced within one year after they die.
5.
No certificate of occupancy will be issued for premises upon which buffering and site landscaping is required as a component of development plan approval until it has been installed. In the event that the season is not appropriate for such installation, a performance guarantee shall be posted with the Borough in an amount equal to 110% of the estimated cost of installation. Buffering and site landscaping shall be installed within nine months of the Borough's receipt of the performance guaranty.
§ 112-906 Bufferyard use.
A bufferyard may be used for passive recreation or stormwater management. It may contain pedestrian, bike or equestrian trails, provided that no plant material is eliminated, the total width of the bufferyard is maintained and all other regulations of this chapter are met. In no event, however, shall swimming pools, tennis courts or other such impervious surfaces be permitted in bufferyards. In no case shall this relieve the owner from the responsibility of providing the required plantings.
§ 112-907 Ownership of bufferyards.
Bufferyards may remain in the ownership of the original developer (and assigns) of a land use or they may be subjected to deed restrictions and subsequently be freely conveyed or they may be transferred to any consenting grantees, such as adjoining landowners, a park or forest preserve district, or an open space or conservation group, provided that any such conveyance adequately guarantees the protection of the bufferyards for the purposes of this chapter.
§ 112-908 Bufferyard specifications.
1.
The illustrations in § 112-910 graphically indicate the specifications of each bufferyard. Bufferyard requirements are stated in terms of the width of the bufferyard and the number of plant units required per 100 linear feet of bufferyard. The requirements of a bufferyard may be satisfied by any of the options therein illustrated. The plant materials required for a given bufferyard varies dependent on the width of that yard. The type and quantity of plant materials required by each bufferyard and each bufferyard option are specified in this section. Only those plant materials capable of fulfilling the intended function shall satisfy the requirements of this chapter.
2.
The options within any bufferyard are designed to be equivalent in terms of their effectiveness in eliminating the impact of adjoining uses. Cost equivalence between options was attempted where possible. Generally, the plant materials which are identified as acceptable are determined by the type(s) of soil present on the site. The illustrations have mathematically rounded the number of plant units required for each option with a given bufferyard. In actual practice, mathematical rounding would be applied to the total amount of plant material required by a bufferyard, not to each 100-foot length of bufferyard. All of the illustrations are drawn to scale and depict the bufferyard according to the average project diameter of plant materials at five years after planting.
3.
Each illustration depicts the total bufferyard located between two uses.
§ 112-909 Plant material.
The following plant material substitutions shall satisfy the requirements of this section.
1.
In all bufferyards, evergreen canopy or evergreen understory trees may be substituted as follows:
2.
In all bufferyards, evergreen or conifer shrubs may be substituted for deciduous shrubs without limitation.
3.
If the development on the adjoining use is existing, planned or deed restricted for solar access, understory trees may be substituted for canopy trees where canopy trees would destroy solar access.
4.
Any existing plant material which otherwise satisfies the requirements of this section may be counted toward satisfying all such requirements.
5.
The exact placement of required plants and structures shall be the decision of each user except that the following requirements shall be satisfied:
a.
Evergreen (or conifer) plant materials shall be planted in clusters rather than singly in order to maximize their chances of survival.
6.
Plants shall not include any plants documented on the Pennsylvania DCNR Invasive Plants in Pennsylvania List.
§ 112-910 Bufferyard illustrations.
Bufferyard A:  |
Bufferyard B:  |