Lower Southampton Township
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
PART 7
R-4 Residential District
§ 27-701 General.
[Ord. 558, 9/4/2012]
A building or structure may be erected or altered, to be used either in whole or in part, and a lot may be used or occupied for any of the following uses and no other, provided that such uses, buildings or structures shall comply with such regulations as yard, lot sizes, lot width, building area, heights, impervious surfaces, easements, buffer yards, off-street parking and other requirements as specified by this chapter.
§ 27-702 Permitted uses.
[Ord. 558, 9/4/2012]
1.
The following uses are permitted by right:
[Amended by Ord. No. 600, 9/14/2022]
Use 3 | Single family detached dwelling | |
Use 4 | Two-family dwelling | |
Use 5 | Single-family attached dwelling (townhouse) | |
Use 6 | Multifamily dwelling | |
Use 53A | Small wireless facilities within the right-of-way, as regulated by the Small Wireless Facilities Deployment Act, but not in an underground district | |
Use 68 | No-impact home-based business | |
Use 70 | Residential accessory building or structure | |
Use 76 | Residential wind energy system | |
Use 77 | Solar energy system | |
Use 78 | Accessory in-law dwelling |
2.
The following uses are permitted as a special exception when authorized by the Zoning Hearing Board in accordance with the provisions of Part 23 of this chapter:
[Amended by Ord. 575, 9/28/2016; and by Ord. No. 600, 9/14/2022]
Use 3A | Sober living facility | |
Use 8 | Religious use | |
Use 9 | Public or private school | |
Use 10 | Library or museum | |
Use 53B | Small wireless facilities within the right-of-way and within an underground district as regulated by the Small Wireless Facilities Deployment Act | |
Use 71 | Family day care |
§ 27-703 Area and dimensional requirements.
[Ord. 558, 9/4/2012]
All uses shall comply with the area and dimensional requirements listed in this section, unless a greater area or dimensional requirement is stated in Part 14, Use Regulations, for the specific use; in which case the requirements of Part 14 shall apply.
A.
Lot area and dimensional requirements.
(1)
(2)
(3)
Multifamily dwellings and townhouses.
(4)
Other principal uses permitted in this district shall have a lot area of not less than 20,000 square feet with a width of not less than 100 feet at the building line and 80 feet at the front property line, unless otherwise required under this chapter.
B.
Where a single-family or two-family dwelling is constructed on a lot, not more than 35% of the area of any lot shall be occupied by buildings or structures.
C.
For all other permitted uses in this district, no more than 25% of the area of the lot shall be occupied by buildings or structures.
D.
Impervious surface ratio. No more than 35% of the total lot area shall be covered with impervious surface.
§ 27-704 Buffer yards.
[Ord. 558, 9/4/2012]
Along any residential zoning district boundary line or along any lot line separating a residential use from a nonresidential use, a buffer yard shall be provided which shall be not less than 50 feet in width measured from such boundary line or from the street line where such street constitutes the district boundary line and shall be in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. Such buffer yards may be conterminous with any required yard in this district, and in case of conflict, the largest yard requirement shall apply.
§ 27-705 Utilities.
[Ord. 558, 9/4/2012]
Each building in use shall be served by public water and sanitary sewer facilities at the time of development. All public utilities, such as telephone, cable television, electric, etc., shall be placed underground.
§ 27-706 Height regulations.
[Ord. 558, 9/4/2012]
No dwelling unit shall exceed a vertical height of 35 feet, which height shall be measured in accordance with the definition of "building height" in § 27-202 of this chapter.
§ 27-707 Variation of design.
[Ord. 558, 9/4/2012]
Buildings shall be designed such that no more than three adjoining dwelling units shall have an identical front yard setback. An average of at least four-foot setback variations per dwelling unit is required.
§ 27-708 Open space.
[Ord. 558, 9/4/2012]
1.
At least 40% of the gross land area of any multifamily development (Use 6) shall be devoted to permanent open space or recreational use, which area shall not include required public improvements, required yards or building setbacks, required buffer areas or streets. Open space shall not include any of the impervious surface coverage occasioned by the multifamily dwelling units, parking areas or required public improvements. Such space shall not include the minimum required yard areas or any area conveyed to the owner or occupant of any dwelling unit by sale or by lease.
2.
No more than 50% of the open space shall be in a floodplain. The specific land area to be devoted to this requirement may be dedicated to the Township, if acceptable to it. If not dedicated to and accepted by the Township, then the provisions set forth hereinafter with regard to administration and maintenance shall become applicable.
3.
In the event that the land is not dedicated to the Township, a plan for administration and maintenance of all such open space shall be presented to the Township Supervisors as part of the overall development plan. Such plan shall contain covenants or other restrictions or requirements that will assure future administration and maintenance of such open space.
4.
All other residential uses, including single-family (Use 3), two-family developments (Use 4), and single-family attached development (Use 5), except for the development of fewer than 10 dwellings, shall be required to set aside open space in accordance with the requirements of this chapter.