Lewes City Zoning Code
ARTICLE IV
Use Regulations
§ 197-44 Permitted uses and structures.
[The Table of Permitted Uses and Structures is included at the end of this chapter.]
§ 197-45 Use restrictions.
[Amended 9-10-2018; 5-24-2021]
A.
Home-based businesses.
(1)
Permitted home-based businesses:
(a)
Offices for professionals, including but not limited to architects, brokers, counselors, clergy, draftspersons and cartographers, engineers, insurance agents, lawyers, real estate agents, accountants, editors, publishers, journalists, psychologists, contract managers, graphic designers, construction contractors, landscape designers, surveyors, cleaning services personnel, salespersons, manufacturers' representatives, travel agents, and caterers.
(b)
Instructional services, including but not limited to music, dance, art and craft classes, and tutoring and not to exceed three students at a time.
(c)
Studios for artists, sculptors, musicians, photographers, and authors.
(d)
Workrooms for tailors, dressmakers, milliners, and craftspersons, including but not limited to weaving, lapidary, jewelry making, cabinetry, and woodworking.
(e)
Repair services, including watches and clocks, small appliances, computers, electronic devices.
(2)
Prohibited home-based businesses:
(a)
Day-care center, adult.
(b)
Day-care center, child.
(c)
Kennels, stables, veterinary clinics and hospitals.
(d)
Medical clinics, medical offices, dental clinics, dental offices, hospitals.
(e)
Restaurants, bars, and nightclubs.
(f)
Funeral homes and undertaking establishments.
(g)
Adult entertainment establishments.
(3)
Operational standards.
(a)
Operating hours.
[1]
Customer and client visits to the home-based business shall be limited to the hours from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
(b)
Exterior environment.
[1]
Home-based businesses shall not generate volumes of vehicular or pedestrian traffic or parking demand that is inconsistent with the character of the neighborhood.
[2]
No alteration shall be made in either the external structural form or the external appearance of the residential building for purposes of any home occupation.
[3]
No evidence of any home occupation shall be visible from off the lot where it is conducted.
[4]
There shall be no displays of goods on the premises that are visible from a public street or adjacent properties.
[5]
Any commercial vehicle used in conjunction with the occupation shall be subject to the provisions of this chapter governing commercial vehicles in residential zones.
[6]
Equipment or materials used in a home-based business may be stored outside the principal residence in an enclosed accessory structure.
(c)
Employees. Employees of a home occupation shall be limited to permanent residents of the dwelling unit.
(d)
Equipment. The operation of the home-based business, including equipment used therein, shall not:
B.
Craft distillery and microbrewery.
(1)
This use shall be permitted only in conjunction with a tasting room or retail sales and service. Any area associated with on-site consumption or tasting shall not operate as a stand-alone bar or tavern, shall be located on the premises of the craft distillery or microbrewery establishment, and shall be ancillary to the primary use. "Ancillary" for purposes of this section means subordinate, auxiliary, smaller and less intensive than the primary use. On-site consumption or tasting of alcohol shall be limited to those products distilled or brewed on the premises, except as otherwise permitted by Delaware Law;
(a)
Such establishment offers the public, on a regular and continuing basis, various activities ancillary to its distilling or brewing process, including by way of example: tours of the premises, educational classes, demonstrations, tasting rooms, and retail sales areas limited to the sale of spirits distilled or beer, mead, or cider brewed on the premises for consumption off-premises and other retail items;
(2)
All aspects of the distilling or brewing process shall be completely confined within a building, including storage of all materials and finished products except as follows: spent or used grain, which is a natural byproduct of the brewing process, may be stored outdoors for a period of time not to exceed 24 hours. The temporary storage area of spent or used grain shall be:
(a)
Designated on the approved site plan;
(b)
Permitted within the side yard or rear yard or within the side yard setback or rear yard setback;
(c)
Prohibited within any yard abutting a residential use or residential zoning district;
(d)
Fully enclosed within a suitable container, secured and screened behind a solid, opaque fence or wall measuring a minimum five feet in height or opaque landscaping five feet in height.
(3)
All mechanical equipment visible from the street (excluding alleys), an adjacent residential use or residential zoning district shall be screened using architectural features consistent with the principal structure or landscaping.
(4)
All permits and approvals required by the Delaware Alcoholic Beverage Commission are obtained and remain in full force and effect.
(5)
Outdoor seating and gathering areas shall be permitted subject to the following requirements:
(a)
Permanent and temporary outdoor seating and gathering areas shall be subject to building permit application and site plan approval.
(b)
Tables, chairs, umbrellas, equipment, games, and any other items provided in connection with outdoor seating and gathering areas shall be maintained in good repair and shall be secured during non-business hours in a safe and orderly manner.
C.
Museums.
[Added 3-14-2022]
(1)
Museum buildings must comply with the dimensional requirements of the zoning district in which they are located.
D.
Beekeeping.
[Added 5-22-2023]
(1)
All beekeeping activities shall comply with the State of Delaware regulations found in Title 3, Chapter 75, Beekeeping.
(a)
The definition provisions contained in Title 3, Chapter 75, of the Delaware Code shall govern the construction, meaning, and application of words and phrases used in this section.
(2)
All persons keeping bees shall register with the State Apiarist.
(3)
Colony density: a maximum of three colonies per parcel of land.
(4)
Colony location:
(a)
Beekeeping equipment shall not be located within the front yard.
(b)
Where there is a wall, fence, or vegetation acting as a barrier between the subject property and adjacent property, a one-foot setback is required from the property line. Where there is no wall, fence, or vegetation acting as a barrier between the subject property and adjacent property, a five-foot setback is required from the property line.
(c)
A colony located within 20 feet of any principal structure on an adjacent parcel shall comply with the following:
[1]
The hive opening shall face away from doors and/or windows; or
[2]
A flyway barrier shall be installed. The flyway barrier shall be six feet in height. The flyway shall consist of a solid wall, solid fencing material, dense vegetation, or a combination thereof. The flyway shall be installed within three feet of the entrance to the hive and shall extend at least two feet in width on either side of the hive opening.
(5)
Hive: Bee colonies shall be kept in hives with removable frames, which shall be kept in sound and useable condition.
(6)
Water: A convenient source of water shall always be available to the bees during the year.
(7)
General maintenance: Each beekeeper shall ensure that no bee comb, wax syrup for feeding honeybees, spilled honey, or other materials that may encourage robbing are left upon the grounds of the apiary site. Such materials once removed from the site shall be handled and stored in a sealed container or placed within a building or other insect-proof container.
(8)
Permit: A building permit shall be required for the installation of a colony.
§ 197-46 Accessory uses.
A.
Definition. A use is an accessory use if it meets all of the following criteria:
B.
Where permitted. Except as otherwise provided, accessory uses are permitted in all zones.
C.
Prohibited activities and facilities in accessory buildings and structures, except for accessory dwelling units.
[Amended 9-9-2024]
(1)
Accessory buildings and structures shall not be used for human habitation.
(2)
Cooking facilities, including stoves, ovens, ranges, wood, coal, microwave or any other type of appliance which is or could be used for the preparation of food.
(3)
Bathing facilities, including a bidet, shower, tub unit or any other similar facility, except that any accessory building may have one sink with running water and one toilet or commode.
(4)
Sleeping facilities, including, but not limited to, beds, sleep sofas, hammocks or any other sleeping apparatus which is or could be used for sleeping purposes, stored in such a manner so as not to be available for sleeping purposes.
§ 197-46.1 Accessory dwelling units (ADUs).
[Added 9-9-2024
A.
Purpose. The purpose of this section is to promote the development of accessory dwelling units (ADUs), to accommodate changing housing needs, to increase housing supply in a sustainable manner, and to provide affordable housing options per the Comprehensive plan. This section seeks to balance the need for additional housing while maintaining the character and integrity of the existing City.
B.
Dimensional regulations. Accessory dwelling units shall adhere to Attachment 5, Table of Dimensional Regulations for Accessory Buildings and Structures, which is included as an attachment to this Chapter 197.
C.
Use restrictions. ADUs shall adhere to Attachment 1, Table of Permitted Uses and Structures, which is included as an attachment to this Chapter 197.
E. ACCESSORY DWELLING UNITS
Definition. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
A dwelling unit customarily incidental and subordinate to the principal residential use of the land or residential building and located on the same lot with the principal use. An ADU provides complete independent living facilities, including its own cooking, sleeping, and sanitation facilities, and may take forms including conversion of an existing dwelling unit into two living spaces or units, a detached dwelling unit, a dwelling unit attached to the primary dwelling, a dwelling unit that is part of an accessory structure such as a detached garage, or a converted portion of a garage.
F.
Requirements.
(1)
Prior to constructing, converting, altering, erecting, improving, or otherwise modifying an ADU, a building permit for an accessory dwelling unit must be applied for and issued by the Planning and Building Department. No more than 40 accessory dwelling unit building permits may be issued within 12 months of September 9, 2024. After the first year, there is no limit on the number of ADUs that may be issued unless a separate number is determined by the Mayor and City Council.
(2)
A City of Lewes building permit is required for any work in connection with the creation of an ADU as identified in Chapter 70.
(3)
An ADU shall not be used or occupied in whole or in part, and a change of occupancy of an ADU shall not be made, until the Planning and Building Department has issued a certificate of occupancy for the accessory dwelling unit.
(4)
The property owner must submit a signed and notarized accessory dwelling unit property owner affidavit prior to receiving an accessory dwelling unit building permit, as a condition of having an ADU on the property. This affidavit is provided by the City and must be recorded at the Recorder of Deeds in and for Sussex County prior to submission to the City.
(5)
Any fraud, material misrepresentations, or false statements contained in the attestations, required documentation, or correlating materials associated with securing approval for an ADU shall be grounds for immediate revocation of a certificate of occupancy for the accessory dwelling unit. Furthermore, all requirements herein shall be continuously maintained throughout the duration of the certificate of occupancy for the accessory dwelling unit.
(6)
No more than one ADU shall be permitted on a single lot.
(7)
The property owner must occupy and reside in either the principal dwelling unit or the ADU as their principal legal residence.
(8)
One additional off-street parking space is required for an ADU, in addition to the number of spaces required for the existing primary dwelling (§ 197-61).
(9)
An ADU shall not be sublet.
(11)
Upon a change in occupancy of an ADU, the property owner agrees to allow the Planning and Building Department the right to inspect the ADU to confirm attestations of all previously submitted application information and applicable code requirements. Inspections shall be performed at an agreed upon time with no less than 48 hours prior notice, except in the case of an immediate threat to public safety. Nonresponse to or refusal of an inspection shall be grounds for the suspension of an accessory dwelling unit certificate of occupancy.
(12)
An ADU shall not be used for commercial use.
(13)
Prior to a new tenant moving into the ADU, an inspection shall be performed by the City of Lewes.
§ 197-47 Temporary uses.
B.
Permitted temporary uses:
(1)
Real estate sales offices within approved development projects.
(2)
Christmas tree sale lots for a period not to exceed 30 consecutive calendar days; however, a permit shall not be required when a sale is in conjunction with an established commercial business.
(3)
Other seasonal activities, such as pumpkin sales, auto shows, garden tours, racing events.
(4)
Circuses and carnivals.
(5)
Temporary outdoor display/sales of merchandise in any zone under the following conditions:
(6)
Fairs, festivals and concerts, when not held within premises designed to accommodate such events, such as auditoriums, stadiums or other public assembly facilities.
(7)
Farmers' markets and swap meets.
(8)
On- and off-site contractors' construction yards.
(9)
Large-scale promotional balloons (e.g., roof-mounted hot air balloons) in any zone under the following conditions:
(a)
No more than four such promotions are conducted in any calendar year.
(b)
The promotions are not conducted for a period of more than seven consecutive days.
(c)
The promotions are related to merchandise or services which are customarily available on the premises.
(d)
The premises are utilized for a permanently established business.
(10)
Similar temporary uses which, in the opinion of the Mayor and City Council, are compatible with the zoning district and surrounding land uses.
§ 197-48 Prohibited uses in all zoning districts.
The following uses are prohibited in all zoning districts:
A.
Animal rendering.
B.
Asphalt refining.
C.
Automobile/motor vehicle wrecking.
D.
Blast furnace garbage or offal reduction or rendering or dumping.
E.
Crude oil refining.
F.
Houseboats.
G.
Manufacture of asphalt, bleaching compounds, coal, coke, cork products, corrosive acid, fertilizer, gelatins, glue, industrial alcohol, linoleum, matches, oils, paint, rubber, soap, tar products, paper.
H.
Ore smelting.
I.
Rubber treatment.
J.
Slaughterhouses.
K.
Storage of toxic bulk chemicals, bulk gasoline above the ground, explosives, junk, oil.
L.
Tanning or curing of hides.
M.
Raising livestock, poultry or exotic animals.