Irvington City Zoning Code
ARTICLE VIII
Off-Street Parking and Loading
§ 650-32 Off-street parking regulations.
A.
Every use or activity constructed or created within the Township of Irvington subsequent to the passage of this chapter shall be accompanied by off-street parking space as defined within this chapter according to the requirements set forth below and shall be furnished with all necessary passageways and driveways.
(1)
All such space shall be deemed to be required space on the lot on which it is situated and shall not be encroached upon or reduced in any manner. Such space may be considered as yard area in meeting the requirements of the schedule.
(2)
In the CBD Zoning District, for lots fronting on Springfield Avenue, Clinton Avenue, New Street, Nye Avenue (east of Lincoln Place), Union Avenue, and Washington Avenue, the following provisions shall apply:
(a)
Any change of use and any renovation or reconstruction of an existing building that does not involve any increase in building footprint or floor area may be permitted, and no additional on-site parking spaces will be required.
(b)
Any new development or any expansion of the building footprint or floor area of an existing building shall not be permitted unless the applicant can demonstrate that there are adequate, available parking spaces on the street, in public parking lots or garages, or in publicly accessible private lots within a walking distance of the main building entrance of 1,500 linear feet. The applicant must take into account the competing demand for available spaces from adjacent uses. The applicant must demonstrate that an adequate number of spaces will be available to serve all the proposed uses within the building on an average weekday between the hours of 12:00 noon and 2:00 p.m. and between the hours of 4:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., and on an average Saturday between the hours of 12:00 noon and 2:00 p.m.
(c)
To the greatest extent practicable, no private garage doors, driveways, or parking lots shall front on these streets, in order to promote pedestrian safety and maintain the pedestrian activity that the retail businesses in those locations rely upon.
(3)
All parking areas, passageways and driveways, except when provided in connection with one- or two-family residences, shall be surfaced with a concrete or bituminous concrete surface, clearly marked for car spaces, shall be adequately drained and maintained free of obstruction and snow, all subject to the approval of the Township Engineer.
B.
Additional off-street parking as required by this chapter shall not be required for any existing building or use unless said building shall be enlarged or extensively altered or if the use is changed, in which case off-street parking shall be provided up to the requirements of this section.
C.
Parking areas may be located in any yard space for uses in the industrial districts and in any yard except the front yard for other uses.
D.
The collective provisions of off-street parking areas 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 of the various buildings or uses computed separately, and further provided that the land upon which the collective facilities are located is owned or is leased for a minimum period of 10 years by one or more of the collective owners.
E.
All parking areas and appurtenant passageways and driveways serving commercial or industrial uses shall be illuminated during the hours between sunset and sunrise when the use is in operation. [See Ordinance No. MC 2492, Article X, Section 2C(7).[1]]
[1]
Editor's Note: See § 560-50C(7).
F.
All parking spaces shall have a slope of less than 15%.
G.
Where more than one use or activity is present within a single building or on a single parcel, off-street parking shall be provided for each of the uses or activities according to § 650-33.
H.
Access lanes shall be provided to allow for ingress and egress and maneuverability, with no parking on any aisles, driveways or access lanes, based on the degree of angle parking: 90° shall be 25 feet in depth, 60° and 45° shall be 22 feet in depth.
I.
Exemption. Municipal garages and multistory parking garages maintained and operated by the Township of Irvington are exempted and excluded from the requirements of this article.
§ 650-33 Off-street parking standards.
The following off-street parking spaces are required:
A.
All residential uses: one parking space per dwelling unit.The standard review may be superseded by the requirements of the New Jersey Residential Site Improvement Standards Act, N.J.A.C. 5:21-4.14, as amended and in effect at the time of the applicant filing their application.
[Amended 1-11-2021 by Ord. No. MC 3753]
B.
Motels: one parking space per sleeping or dwelling unit.
C.
Retail establishment, wholesale store and personal service establishment:
(1)
Each retail store, wholesale store and personal service shop in any one building or structure, which building or structure contains not more than 2,500 square feet of floor areas: no parking spaces shall be required.
(2)
Each retail store, wholesale store or personal service shop in any one building or structure, which building or structure contains more than 2,500 square feet of floor area but not more than 20,000 square feet of floor area: four parking spaces, plus one parking space for each 333 square feet above 2,500 square feet of floor area.
(3)
Each retail store, wholesale store and personal service shop in any one building or structure, which building or structure contains more than 20,000 square feet of floor area: 62 parking spaces, plus one parking space for each 250 square feet above 20,000 square feet of floor area.
D.
Banks, financial and business offices and professional and commercial offices:
(1)
Banks, financial and business offices and professional and commercial offices: one parking space for every 400 square feet of building area or major fraction thereof.
(2)
Exceptions.
(a)
Those premises which lie within the business zone as delineated on the Zoning Map[1] of the Township of Irvington, fronting on Springfield Avenue, northerly side of the street, between Maple Avenue westerly to Florence Avenue; and those premises which lie in the business zones as delineated on the Zoning Map of the Township of Irvington, fronting on Springfield Avenue, southerly side of street, between Maple Avenue westerly to 40th Street, and which are used and maintained as a commercial or professional office type of enterprise shall be required to maintain two parking spaces for each 1,200 square feet of floor area.
[1]
Editor's Note: The Zoning Map is included as an attachment to this chapter.
(b)
Those premises which lie in a business zone as delineated on the Zoning Map of the Township of Irvington and which are used as a commercial or professional office type of enterprise and which lie within 350 feet of a municipal parking lot need not provide off-street parking, provided that they rent space from the municipal parking garage on a yearly basis.
E.
Supermarkets, self-service food stores: one parking space for every 250 square feet of building area.
G.
Motor vehicle sales and service:
(1)
Any building or structure containing not more than 2,500 square feet of floor area: two parking spaces shall be required.
(2)
Any building or structure containing more than 2,500 square feet of floor area but not more than 20,000 square feet of floor area: two parking spaces, plus one parking space for each 333 square feet above 2,500 square feet of floor area.
(3)
Any building or structure which contains more than 20,000 square feet of floor area: 62 parking spaces, plus one parking space for each 250 square feet above 20,000 square feet of floor area.
H.
Used car sales: five parking spaces, plus one parking space for each employee present for duty at the time the highest number are present, on a daily basis.
I.
Restaurants, cafeterias, taverns and bars, having more than 1,500 square feet of floor area: 10 parking spaces, plus one parking space for each 100 square feet of floor area over 1,500 square feet.
J.
Bowling alleys: four parking spaces for each bowling lane.
K.
Auditoriums, exhibition halls, union halls, community centers, dance halls, churches, theaters, stadiums, assembly halls and similar places of public assembly having fixed seating facilities: one parking space for every 100 square feet of total building area.
L.
Hospitals, nursing homes and similar institutional uses for care of the ill or aged: two parking spaces for every six beds.
M.
Mortuaries and funeral homes: two parking spaces for every 50 square feet of floor area in the slumber rooms, parlors or individual funeral service rooms.
N.
Industrial manufacturing establishments: three parking spaces for every five employees on the largest shift.
O.
Public swim clubs: one parking space for every full-time employee, and one parking space for every four separate memberships.
P.
Within the B-1 Neighborhood Business District, off-street parking space shall be provided for each employee present at the time of the greatest number of employees present.
Q.
Research and office building uses in any district shall provide one off-street parking facility for every 400 square feet of floor space, unless an amount is required under any other ordinance. Said required area shall be permitted in the side and rear yards, but not in the front yard, provided that said permitted area is at no point closer than 25 feet to any property line and not closer than 10 feet to any residential zone.
R.
Off-street parking for schools shall be provided in the following ratio: elementary schools shall provide one parking space for each staff member and/or employee, plus adequate space for buses and delivery vehicles. All other schools shall provide 1 1/2 parking spaces for each member or employee, plus adequate space for buses and delivery vehicles. These requirements may be increased if, in the judgment of the Board of Adjustment and/or the Planning Board, the unavailability of bus services, the particular location or a relatively high percentage of pupils driving or anticipated to be driving cars to school make such increased requirements desirable.
S.
Driveways shall have a minimum width of 10 feet.
§ 650-34 Off-street loading and unloading.
A.
For every building, structure or part thereof having over 3,000 square feet of gross building area erected and occupied for commerce, hospital, laundry, dry cleaning, places of public and quasi-public assembly industry and other similar uses involved in the receipt and distribution by vehicles of materials or merchandise, there shall be provided and permanently maintained adequate space for standing, loading and unloading services in order to avoid undue interference with the public use of streets or alleys. Every use or activity constructed or created within the Township of Irvington subsequent to the passage of this chapter which complies with the above definitions shall be provided with at least one truck standing, loading and unloading space on the premises of not less than 12 feet in width, 55 feet in length and with at least 14 feet overhead clearance. One additional truck space of these dimensions shall be provided for every additional 10,000 square feet or fraction thereof of gross floor area in the building. No zones are excepted from this requirement.
B.
Access to truck standing, loading and unloading space shall be directly from any public street or alley or from any right-of-way that will not interfere with public convenience and will permit the orderly and safe movement of traffic.
C.
Loading space as required under this section shall be provided in addition to off-street parking space and shall not be considered as supplying off-street parking space.
D.
Off-street loading and unloading area shall be surfaced with a concrete or bituminous concrete surface, which shall be adequately drained, all subject to the approval of the Township Engineer.
E.
Whenever an off-street loading and unloading area shall be located adjacent to or across the street from a residential zone, appropriate evergreen planting or attractive noncorrosive fencing shall be provided and maintained, thereby screening the residential zone.
F.
Off-street loading spaces shall be located entirely on the lot, and no truck or trailer truck occupying any such berth shall project into or encroach upon a public sidewalk or upon the roadway of a public street.
§ 650-35 Parking lot layout and landscaping.
B.
All parking lots and loading spaces shall be curbed, screened, and landscaped with appropriate trees, shrubs, hedges, ground cover, and other plant materials along the periphery of parking lots and within parking lots to assure the establishment of a safe, convenient, and attractive facility. Parking lots serving single-family and two-family dwellings and parking lots with less than 10 spaces shall be exempt from this requirement.
C.
Such landscaping as required under Subsection B above shall be planted and maintained in accordance with the following standards. For certain uses, Article IX requires alternate landscaping standards. In case of any discrepancy between the following provisions and those in Article IX, the more stringent shall be required.
(1)
The entire perimeter of the parking lot shall be surrounded by a landscaped area having a minimum width of five feet.
(2)
Not including landscaped areas along the periphery of the parking, at least 6% of the total parking lot shall be landscaped.
(3)
There shall be a minimum of one landscaped island the size of a single normal-sized parking space for every 15 parking spaces. The islands shall be evenly distributed throughout the parking lot. Each landscaped island shall be planted with at least one evergreen or deciduous tree of not less than three inches caliper.
(4)
All landscaped areas shall be protected from adjacent parking and loading areas by curbs or concrete, metal, or wood bumpers at least six inches in height and securely anchored to the ground.
(5)
Raised planting islands shall be provided in appropriate locations in order to guide vehicle movement, to provide adequate space for plant growth, and to accommodate pedestrian circulation or vehicle overhang. Such raised planting islands and the landscaping within them shall be designed and arranged so as to provide vertical definition to major traffic circulation aisles, entrances, and exits, to channel internal traffic flow, to prevent indiscriminate diagonal movement of vehicles, and to provide cooling shade and visual relief from the visual monotony and summer heat of a large paved parking lot. Curbs of such islands shall be designed so as to facilitate surface drainage and prevent vehicles from overhanging sidewalks and damaging landscaping materials.
D.
The selection, amount, and location of all landscaping materials shall be subject to approval by the Planning Board, based upon considerations of the adequacy of the proposed landscaping to serve its intended purpose with minimal maintenance problems, including plant care, snowplowing, and lead removal.
E.
All landscaped areas shall be attractively planted, and all landscaping shall be maintained in a manner satisfactory to the Township at all times.
F.
The placement of landscaping shall not obstruct a driver's vision at traffic intersections or driveway openings.
G.
All off-street parking lots shall be designed in accordance with the following standards:
(1)
Unobstructed access from a parking or loading area to and from a street shall be designed so as to not require the backing of any vehicle across a sidewalk or into a street except for permitted single-family and two-family homes.
(2)
In order to provide maximum efficiency, minimum curb cuts, and encourage safe and convenient traffic circulation, an applicant may request, as part of the site plan application, an interconnection of parking lots via access drives within and between adjacent lots, provided that the applicant has obtained the written consent of the owners of those adjacent lots. The Planning Board may require deed restrictions to be adopted in order to bind the owner of the properties to maintain the interconnection permanently.
(3)
Off-street parking areas shall be designed to prevent the maneuvering of vehicles into or out of parking spaces or the parking or storage of vehicles within any portion of an entrance driveway or driveways that is within 10 feet of the right-of-way line of any road.
(4)
No required off-street parking space, including adjacent parking access lanes or maneuvering space, shall be located within an existing or proposed right-of-way of any road, nor within 10 feet of any existing or proposed right-of-way line or any public street or highway. Fire lanes shall be provided to give access to buildings for firefighting, as required.
(5)
Parking spaces shall be usable without requiring excessive maneuvering when all other spaces are occupied by vehicles. The Planning Board shall make a determination of whether a parking space is usable. Parking spaces that are not usable shall not count toward satisfying any parking requirement and shall not be approved.
(6)
In order to provide visibility and definition at the ends of parking aisles, a planted area enclosed by concrete curbing shall be provided. Such planted islands may be used to partially satisfy the landscaping requirements of this section.
(7)
Dead-end parking aisles shall not be permitted except where unavoidable, as determined by the Planning Board.
(8)
Concrete wheel stops or raised curbing shall be provided as required by the Planning Board and shall be so located as to prevent the overhang of any vehicle into any pedestrian sidewalk or landscaped area or required buffer strip.
(9)
Each parking space shall not be less than nine feet wide and 18 feet long, except that where a parking space is bounded by a curb or the wall of a building, each space shall be a minimum of 10 feet wide. Parallel parking spaces shall be minimum of 10 feet wide and 22 feet long. Handicapped parking spaces shall be designed in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq.
(10)
The side perimeter of each parking space shall be delineated by painted lines on the pavement.
(11)
The facilities provided in any parking lot and their arrangement shall not be changed without due consideration and approval by the Planning Board. Furthermore, any modification of fire lanes in a parking lot shall be reviewed and approved by the Township.
H.
Appropriate signs shall be provided in parking lots to direct internal traffic flow. Such signs shall generally not exceed one square foot in area.
I.
Lighting.
(1)
Mounting heights shall not exceed 20 feet above grade. Lower heights shall be used for walkways.
(2)
All luminaires shall be shielded to eliminate glare, especially on any other property and public streets off the site, to the greatest extent possible. Lamps shall be recessed in the luminaire.
(3)
All wires and cables shall be underground.
(4)
At least 50% of all lighting shall be turned off after business hours, when only lights necessary for security purposes shall be left on.
(5)
Luminaires shall be manufactured by a major manufacturer of illumination equipment.
(6)
The lighting plan shall be designed by an experienced lighting designer who shall certify that the lighting plan conforms with these standards.