Parking areas in reserve shall be set in perpetuity upon plan approval unless a new site plan is reviewed and recorded.

The Township reserves the right to require parking in reserve to be completed by the property owner at any time.

All stormwater improvements per final version of a plan must be completed prior to any certificate of occupancy regardless of any utilization of parking in reserve unless approved otherwise by the Township.

Every parking facility shall be designed so that its use does not constitute a nuisance, hazard or unreasonable impediment to traffic.

Every parking Area shall be Arranged for Orderly, Safe Movement. Parking areas containing 100 or more parking spaces shall have a curbed internal road system with a landscaped planting strip of a minimum of eight feet in width separating the road system from the parking area to provide safe and orderly movement of traffic. The internal road system shall be designed to minimize the need for cross-pedestrian traffic. Where cross-pedestrian traffic is required, it shall be designed in accordance with the Lower Macungie Township Design Guidelines.

All parking areas shall be designed such that parking courts and other amenities shall be installed within a parking lot per the Lower Macungie Township Design Guidelines.[1] There shall be a maximum 50 spaces in a single parking court. Parking courts shall be separated by a minimum ten-foot landscaped island. Where possible, landscaped parking islands should be designed as bio-retention beds. Parking courts shall be bounded by landscaped pedestrian pathways functioning as feeders to on-site buildings; these paths may be located within the required islands.

In no case shall parking areas be designed to require or encourage cars to back into a public street in order to leave a lot with the exception of a residential use on a local road. All others shall provide an adequate turn-around space in the parking area.

Every parking area shall be designed so that each motor vehicle may proceed to and from the parking space provided for it without requiring the moving of any other motor vehicle, except on-site parking associated with a single-family dwelling.

No parking shall be located in a required buffer area.

No parking area shall be located within 10 feet of a septic system absorption area.

All parking areas for four or more vehicles shall include clearly defined and marked traffic patterns, with the utmost care taken to provide for safe internal traffic movement and to avoid conflicts between vehicles and pedestrians.

Electric charging stations shall be provided at a rate of one per 75 spaces in all parking lots or courts.

All long-term parking spaces or loading and unloading zones for delivery trucks and tractor trailers shall have electrical outlets provided for use of the vehicle.

There shall be no idling of any delivery truck or tractor trailer for a period longer than 30 minutes within any parking or loading area within the Township.

Parking lot dimensions shall be no less than those listed in the following table for all nonresidential, noncommercial uses:

Each access drive shall have a minimum width of 12 feet at the edge of the cartway for one-way use only and a minimum width of 20 feet at the edge of cartway for two-way use. The maximum width shall be 14 feet per lane.

Driveway grades shall not exceed 15%. The algebraic difference between the driveway grade where it meets the edge of the pavement surface (including shoulder, if applicable) shall not exceed 11% for a distance of 40 feet measured along the driveway from the edge of the pavement surface as indicated in Figure 27-2303.3.B below.

Wherever there is a roadside swale or uncurbed street, adequate provisions shall be made to maintain uninterrupted parallel drainage along a public street at the point of driveway or access drive entry. A culvert, pipe or similar conveyance apparatus may be utilized upon submission of a plan and review and approval by the Township.

Except as is provided in § 27-1704, on all corner properties, driveways shall be spaced a minimum of 60 feet, measured at the curbline, between the centerline of any entrance or exit driveway and the street line of the street parallel to said access point.

Except as is provided in § 27-1704, no centerline of a driveway shall be less than 75 feet from any intersection.

Where access is to a state street, a valid state highway occupancy permit shall be obtained prior to plan recording. Where PennDOT standards differ from those of the Township, PennDOT regulations shall apply.

Where access drives and driveways are proposed as part of a subdivision or land development, the provisions of the Township's subdivision and land development Ordinance [Chapter 22A] shall also be met.

Sight distance for driveways shall conform to current Pennsylvania Department of Transportation criteria.

Except for areas that are landscaped and so maintained, all portions of required parking facilities, except driveway, shall be graded, surfaced with asphalt or other equivalent material approved by the Township, and drained to the extent necessary to prevent dust, erosion, or excessive water flow across streets or adjoining properties. All off-street parking spaces shall be marked to indicate their location and use.

All residential driveways shall be graded and drained to the extent necessary to prevent dust, erosion, or excessive water flow across streets or adjoining properties. All portions of driveways shall be surfaced with asphalt or other equivalent material approved by the Township, but only the first 20 feet of a driveway, measured from the cartway, shall be paved as a requirement to obtaining a certificate of occupancy. Further, the Township may issue certificates of occupancy without the first 20 feet being paved (1) under exigent circumstances determined by the Township from time to time, including, without limitation, the unavailability of asphalt due to the closing of asphalt plants serving the Lower Macungie Township area, and (2) under such exigent circumstances, the sum of $500 must be posted as escrow with the Township in a non-interest-bearing account to assure the completion of the paving within 30 days next following:

Any parking area designed for use by eight or more cars after dusk shall be adequately illuminated.

All lighting fixtures used to illuminate parking areas shall be shown on a plan and arranged to prevent glare into public streets and adjoining properties.

Minimum nighttime illumination shall comply with all provisions of this chapter.

All parking spaces and public or private drives shall be at least five feet from any side or rear lot lines, unless the uses share a parking lot or access or unless the adjacent lots involve buildings that are attached at the lot line with the exception of the WC Zoning District. Parking lots shall conform to adopted Township Design Guidelines[2] for all commercial, multifamily or mixed-use developments. Parking lots shall be located at the rear or side of any new building within a development and primary use structures shall then front directly upon the street. In the case of industrial uses, parking lots shall comply with this chapter and the adopted Township Design Guidelines, also, for industrial uses.

No parking space nor outdoor display of articles or vehicles for sale or rent shall be located within the right-of-way required to be reserved for future dedication under § 27-1703.4.

No parking space access or fire lane shall be located within 20 feet of any garden apartment or townhouse building or 10 feet of any nonresidential building except for retail drive-through lanes or for driveways entering into a private garage, carport, vehicle service garage bay, or loading zone. This requirement is intended to allow sufficient space for walkways, foundation landscaping and firefighting.

All areas not serving as parking spaces, aisles, access drives or pedestrian walkways shall be covered with an all-season ground cover and be well maintained. The use of mulch shall be minimized to avoid fire hazard.

Except where entrance and exit drives cross street lines, all parking areas for any purpose other than single-family detached and single-family semidetached residences shall be physically separated from any public street by a raised curb with landscaping and all season groundcover included therein or a landscaped berm and shall not be less than five feet from the ultimate right-of-way lines. This buffer shall be permanently landscaped and maintained by the property owner.

Unless there is an internal road system delineated from the parking area by a planting strip, any lot that contains more than 30 parking spaces shall provide landscaped areas within the paved area as depicted in the Lower Macungie Township Design Guidelines.[3] No more than 20 parking spaces shall be permitted in a continuous row without being interrupted by a planting island with a width equal to one parking space.

One deciduous tree of a minimum caliper of 2 1/2 inches measured six inches above the ground shall be required for every five required off-street spaces. The trees shall be of the same species as listed in the Township subdivision and land development Ordinance [Chapter 22A].

Parking facilities located adjacent to a street right-of-way shall provide a landscaping strip at least 10 feet in width. This area shall be planted with either shade or ornamental trees. A minimum of one tree for every 50 feet of lot frontage shall be provided, as well as an evergreen hedge (at least three feet in height), a wall or fence, or other methods to reduce the visual impact of the parking facility.

Any planters, containers, or pots located within a parking facility shall not contain any flammable materials, such as mulch, wood chips or other wood products.

The off-street parking facility shall contain a boulevard-style primary access driveway lined with street trees and include a center median with vegetative landscaping.

Parking spaces shall be dispersed throughout the site and shall be accessed from secondary access driveways only. The purpose of this standard is to limit the number of parking spaces visible from existing streets and roads.

Parking facilities shall be designed to prevent direct access from parking aisles to that portion of an access drive which runs along the store fronts and which is within 40 feet of a designated pedestrian crossing. Methods of implementing this design include, but are not limited to, constructing at least one row of parking which runs parallel to the pedestrian crossing, or installing dense, low vegetation between the parking area and the pedestrian crossing.

Fire lanes shall be identified and posted by the owner.

Shopping cart collection corrals shall be incorporated into the parking lot design. Roofed corral structures are not to be counted as part of the shopping center building coverage. Cart corrals may encroach into required yards, subject to review and approval of the overall site design by the Township.

Example:

A landscaped area shall be provided, consisting of an area at least six feet wide located behind the sidewalk or edge of paving if there is no sidewalk outside the ultimate right-of-way.

Screening provided for parking and loading areas along public streets and sidewalks shall be composed of fences, solid walls, vegetated hedges, or a combination thereof, according to the following standards:

Screening provided for parking and loading areas abutting residential districts or uses shall be composed of fences, solid walls, vegetated hedges, landscaping or a combination thereof, according to the following standards:

One canopy tree should be provided along the street for each 50 linear feet of parking lot frontage in addition to required street trees or displayed elsewhere within a plan submitted, reviewed and approved to the satisfaction of the Township.

Each off-street loading and unloading space shall be either (1) at least 14 feet in width by 40 feet in depth or (2) at least 10 feet in width by 60 feet in depth.

Each space shall have sufficient maneuvering room separate from other parking to eliminate traffic conflicts within off-street loading and parking areas.

Each space shall be located entirely on the lot being served and be so located that each space and all maneuvering room is exclusive of the required buffer areas and rights-of-way.

All off-street loading and unloading spaces, maneuvering areas, driveways and entranceways shall be graded, surfaced with asphalt or other material suitable to the Township and drained to the satisfaction of the Township Engineer to the extent necessary to prevent nuisances of dust, erosion or excessive water flow across public ways and to protect adjoining property.

No such facilities shall be designed or used in any manner so as to constitute a nuisance, a hazard or an unreasonable impediment to traffic.

All such facilities shall comply with the lighting requirements of § 27-2303.5, and the landscaping requirements of § 27-2303.7.

Off-street delivery and loading areas shall be located to the side or rear of the store fronts and shall be accessed only from the secondary access drives serving the shopping center.

Off-street delivery and loading areas shall be completely screened from view with landscaping or a screening wall that matches the building facade from any public space. For purposes of this section, a public space shall be any street, road, parking lot, sidewalk or pedestrian area or any other space where people may gather and congregate.