Lock Haven City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XIX
General Regulations
§ 410-112 Applicability.
A.
In addition to the general provisions for principal, accessory and/or temporary uses within a particular zoning district established in Articles IV through XIII of this chapter, and the additional specific provisions for uses established in the Article XX and elsewhere in this chapter, this article sets forth the general standards and regulations that shall be applied generally to all uses in the City. These general use standards and regulations must be satisfied prior to approval of any application for a zoning permit, occupancy permit, temporary permit, special exception and/or conditional use. The applicant shall be required to demonstrate compliance with these standards and regulations and must furnish whatever evidence is necessary to demonstrate such compliance.
B.
All principal, accessory and/or temporary uses identified subsequently herein this article must comply with the general provisions for uses within a particular zoning district in which the use is to be located, unless different standards are established herein the subsequent sections of Articles IV through XIII and XX of this chapter; in any case, the more restrictive of the general and specific provisions shall apply.
§ 410-113 Additional principal buildings and uses.
A.
Residential uses. Individual lots or subdivided parcels 1 1/4 acres or less in size shall have no principal building or buildings in addition to the principal building and use on the same lot used for living purposes. For parcels greater than 1 1/4 acres in size, one additional building on the same lot for living purposes shall be permitted; however, there must be a minimum of 35 feet between buildings.
B.
Mobile home park, condominium residential development, and/or multifamily/apartment development. These types of uses may include more than one principal building per lot, provided all other requirements of this and other applicable City ordinances, including Chapter 352, Subdivision and Land Development, are met.
C.
Condominiums. A condominium form of ownership of individual dwelling units, with a legally binding homeowners' association, may be established if the applicant proves to the satisfaction of the Codes Officer, based upon review by the City Solicitor, that there will be appropriate legal mechanisms in place and compliance with applicable state law.
D.
Nonresidential uses. Where a lot or tract is used for a nonresidential purpose, more than one principal building and/or use may be located upon the lot or tract, but only when such building and/or use conform to all open space and yard requirements around the lot for the zoning district in which the lot or tract is located, as though each building and/or use were on an individual lot. In addition, such proposals shall gain approval for a land development plan under Chapter 352, Subdivision and Land Development.
§ 410-114 Required lot frontage.
For each proposed new lot, all land developments and all principal buildings shall be sited on a lot which complies with the required lot width for the use in the applicable zoning district and which directly abuts one of the following:
A.
A public street including an "alley";
B.
A street proposed to be dedicated to the City by the subdivision plan which created or creates such lot;
C.
A private street or access drive which meets all of the requirements of Chapter 352, Subdivision and Land Development, and/or any applicable City construction and materials specifications; or
D.
In the case of single-family attached dwellings, mobile home parks, and/or multifamily/apartments, this requirement may be sufficed, if each dwelling unit is provided with vehicle access onto a private parking area which then has access onto a public or private street meeting City standards.
§ 410-115 Yards.
A.
All required yard areas provided under this chapter shall be unobstructed by any building or structure, shall be planted with grass, sod, or other vegetative cover, excepting in cases where walks, access drives, off-street parking lots, patios, or other types of surfaces are permitted. All required yards shall be maintained and kept free of all debris and rubbish, except for permitted accessory buildings and structures in the rear and side yards and fences.
B.
The following may project into the required yards as established in this chapter:
(1)
Handicapped ramps and landings.
(2)
Steps and stoops not exceeding 25 square feet.
(3)
Open or lattice-enclosed fire escapes, fireproof outside stairways and balconies opening upon fire towers, chimneys and flues into the rear yard and side yard not exceeding 3 1/2 feet in width and placed so as not to obstruct light or ventilation.
(4)
Sills, eaves, belt courses, cornices and ornamental features not exceeding two feet in depth.
(5)
Canopies not exceeding five feet projecting into the yard.
(6)
Cellarways and Bilco® doors.
(7)
Essential services and other minor public utility structures.
(8)
Parts of ornamentation or decoration, including flagpoles and lighting.
(9)
Fences, walls, retaining walls, and hedges in the front yard in any residential and CBD zoning districts shall not exceed 3 1/2 feet in height and eight feet in other zoning districts.
(10)
Driveways, sidewalks and access drives.
(11)
Decks and unenclosed porches without enclosed habitable foundations shall be permitted to project into front and side yards not more than three feet and into required rear yard no more than 20 feet, so long as a minimum of five feet remain between the structure and the lot line.
C.
The required front yard established may be adjusted in the following cases for all zoning districts, with the exception of the residential and the CBD zoning districts:
(1)
Where 40% or more of the frontage on one side of a street between two intersecting streets is developed with buildings that have not observed a front yard, as described above, then:
(a)
Where a building is to be erected on a parcel of land that is within 100 feet of existing buildings on both sides, the minimum front yard shall be a line drawn between the two closest front cornices of the adjacent structures on the two sides.
(b)
When a building is to be erected on a parcel of land that is within 100 feet of an existing building on one side only, such building may be erected as close to the street as the existing adjacent building.
D.
No portion of any open stairs or stair towers may be constructed on the front facade of a building above the first floor, nor may any open stairs or stair towers project beyond the front facade of a building.
E.
Off-street parking shall not be permitted in required front yards or in front of principal buildings in the CBD Zoning District, and shall only permitted in required front yards or in front of principal single-family and two-family dwellings in residential districts when located on paved driveways. Otherwise, off-street parking is permitted in required front yards and in front of principal buildings in all nonresidential zoning districts, provided required screening and buffering standards of § 410-116 of this chapter are met.
F.
Irregular lots. Where any main wall of a structure located on any irregularly shaped lot does not parallel the lot line which the wall faces, the yard or minimum distance to the lot line at every point shall be at least equal to the minimum dimension required for the yard or distance to the lot line.
G.
Corner lots. Front yards are required on both street frontages for yards abutting street rights-of-way. For the purposes of determining side and rear yards, one yard shall be deemed to be a rear yard, with the other deemed a side yard.
§ 410-116 Required buffering and screening.
A.
Buffer yards. Unless otherwise required by this chapter, where any of the following are proposed: nonresidential use; multifamily residential use; off-street parking area of five or more spaces; off-street loading area; or outdoor storage and/or sales area; which abut an existing single- or two-family residential use permitted by right, special exception, or conditional use (excluding nonconforming uses), a buffer strip at least 10 feet wide shall be provided and maintained along the entire length of the property line (including any side or rear property line) which separates the above-mentioned uses from an existing single- or two-family residential use permitted by right, special exception, or conditional use (excluding nonconforming uses).
(1)
Permitted uses in a buffer yard include screening (including vegetation and fencing), stormwater management facilities, underground utility facilities and easements, signs (in accordance with Article XVII of this chapter), and sidewalks/pedestrianways, driveways and access drives shall be permitted to cross required buffer yards. Buildings, structures, outdoor storage and/or sales of vehicles, equipment, materials, trash and waste disposal facilities, and off-street loading and off-street parking shall not be permitted in a required buffer yard.
(2)
Buffer yards may coincide as part of any required building setback and/or yard area.
(3)
Buffer yards shall not be located in any portion of a public right-of-way or proposed right-of-way.
(4)
Buffer yard areas shall be planted, mulched, and maintained with a vegetative material, including grass or other living ground cover on all portions of the buffer yard not occupied by other landscape material, including required screen plantings.
(5)
Buffer yards shall be maintained and kept free of all debris and rubbish.
B.
Screening. Unless otherwise required by the chapter, screening shall be provided in all required buffer yards as specified in this section of this chapter and where any nonresidential use or nonresidential zoning district abuts a residential zoning district and/or use, in accordance with the following:
(1)
A planted visual barrier and/or landscape screen shall be provided. This screen shall be composed of a combination of shrubs, hedges, deciduous and coniferous trees, all selected to provide a view-restrictive screen, arranged to form both a low-level and a high-level screen. The high-level screen shall consist of trees planted with specimens of at least four feet in height, and planted at intervals which will provide an overlapping foliage screen at maturity with a minimum mature height of 15 feet. The low-level screen shall consist of shrubs or hedges planted at an initial height of not less than two feet and spaced at intervals of not less than five feet. The low-level screen shall be placed in alternating rows to produce a more effective barrier. All plants not surviving two growing seasons after planting shall be replaced. The screen plantings shall be so placed that at maturity it will be no closer than three feet from any ultimate street right-of-way or property line.
(2)
Fences and walls, and earth mounds, or any combination thereof, may be included with living plant material to provide a view-restrictive screen. Fences and walls will, however, have to be maintained at a minimum height of four feet and a maximum height of six feet, unless otherwise specified in this chapter. Fences and walls shall not be constructed of corrugated metal, corrugated fiberglass or sheet metal.
(3)
A clear sight triangle shall be maintained at all street intersections and at all points where vehicular accessways intersect public streets.
(4)
The screening shall be broken only at points of vehicular or pedestrian access.
§ 410-117 Trash and waste disposal.
In addition to complying with Chapter 340, Solid Waste, regarding trash and waste disposal facilities/areas (specifically dumpsters, recycling collection containers, compactors, bailers, etc.) for all uses, excluding single- and two-family residential dwellings, shall comply with the following provisions:
A.
All trash and waste disposal areas shall be completely enclosed, and the lid shall be kept in place.
B.
No trash and waste disposal areas shall be located in any front yard area or in front of the principal building.
C.
Required screening, consisting of a combination of fencing or walls at least six feet with a maximum of eight feet high and living vegetative material as set forth in § 410-116B of this chapter, shall be provided on three sides. Additionally, any fence and/or walls provided as part of required screening shall be provided with a self-latching door or gate.
§ 410-118 Clear sight triangle (except in Central Business District).
In order to prevent the creation of a traffic hazard by limiting visibility at a street intersection, no structure, building, earthen bank or vegetation shall be allowed on a corner lot or at a point of entry on a public road above the height of 2 1/2 feet measured from the center line grades of the intersecting streets; and within the area bounded by the street lot lines of such corner lots and a line joining points on these street lot lines measured as follows:
§ 410-119 Height regulation exceptions.
A.
When permitted in any zoning district other than a residential zoning district, all public, semipublic or public services buildings, hospitals, public institutions or schools may be erected to a height not exceeding 60 feet, and places of worship may be erected to a height not exceeding 65 feet if the building is set back from each yard line at least one foot for each additional two feet of building height above the height limit otherwise provided in the zoning district in which the building is located.
B.
Special industrial structures such as cooling towers, elevator bulkheads, fire towers, tanks, water towers, and all other towers which require a greater height than provided in the zoning district may be erected to a greater height than permitted, providing:
C.
The height limitations of this chapter shall not apply to flagpoles, church spires, belfries, chimneys and residential antennas.
[Amended 5-16-2011 by Ord. No. 880]
§ 410-120 General outdoor storage and stockpiling.
No lot or premises shall be used as an outdoor, unenclosed storage or stockpile area for junk automobiles, appliances or the storage or collection of any other similar-type miscellaneous items in residential or the CBD Zoning Districts. Additionally, any permitted outdoor storage of junk automobiles, appliances or the storage or collection of any other miscellaneous items, unless specifically permitted as a junkyard in accordance with Article XX of this chapter, shall not occur in the required front yard. Also, no lot or premises shall be used as a garbage dump or a dead animal rendering plant, nor may manure, rubbish or miscellaneous refuse be stored in an unenclosed fashion within any zoning district. All organic rubbish or storage shall be contained in enclosed, airtight, verminproof containers.
§ 410-121 Nuisance elements.
A.
Definition of elements. No land or building in any zoning district which shall be used or occupied for any purpose shall be operated in such manner so as to create any dangerous, injurious or noxious fire, explosive or other hazard, noise or vibration, smoke, dust, dirt or other form of air pollution, electrical or other disturbance, glare or other substance, condition or element in such amount as to adversely affect the surrounding area or premises (referred to herein as "dangerous or objectionable elements"); provided, that any use permitted by this chapter may be undertaken and maintained in any zoning district if it conforms to the regulations of the subsection limiting dangerous and objectionable elements at the specified point or points of the determination of their existence.
B.
Locations where determinations are to be made for enforcement of performance standards. The determination of the existence of any dangerous and objectionable elements shall be made at:
§ 410-122 Standards to be enforced.
A.
Radioactivity or electrical disturbance. No activities shall be permitted which emit dangerous radioactivity or electrical disturbance adversely affecting the operation of any equipment other than that of the creator of such disturbance.
B.
Vibration. No vibration shall be permitted which is detectable without instruments at the points of measurement specified in § 410-121B of this chapter.
C.
Glare. All on-site outdoor lighting of buildings and surrounding areas shall be designed to prevent glare to adjoining properties by employing hooded, shielded, or screened fixtures that confine glare to the site, and security lighting should be directed toward the building, rather than the area around it, so as to not be visible at the points of measurement specified in § 410-121B of this chapter. Additionally, no direct or sky-reflected glare from high-temperature processes, such as combustion or welding or otherwise, so as to be visible at the points of measurement specified in § 410-121B of this chapter. This restriction shall not apply to signs otherwise permitted by the provisions of this chapter.
D.
Other forms of air pollution. No emission of fly ash, dust, fumes, vapors, gases and other forms of air pollution shall be permitted which can cause any damage to health, to animals, vegetation or other forms of property, or which can cause any excessive soiling.