It is intended that the application of the landscape standards set forth below will reduce the visual and environmental impacts of large expanses of PARKING AREAS. Breaking up paved PARKING AREAS with plantings will provide improved aesthetics and micro climatic benefits by reducing heat and GLARE. Guidance for Designing PARKING AREAS to achieve this intent is contained in Appendix B.

A.

New SITES. No new PARKING AREAS shall hereafter be constructed or Used unless landscaping is provided as required by the provisions of this Article.

B.

Existing SITES. No PARKING AREAS shall be expanded, moved or removed and/or reconstructed unless the minimum landscaping required by the provisions of this Article is provided for the property to the extent of its alteration or expansion, but not for the entire property unless required in Subsection 208-2004.B.

C.

Change of USE. No USE shall be changed to another USE for which this Chapter requires additional parking over and above that required for the previous USE, unless vehicular USE area perimeter landscaping as required by this Article is provided for such additional parking. The provisions of this section shall be effective regardless of whether or not new CONSTRUCTION is necessary to meet the parking requirements for the new USES. Where the previous USE had no required parking, perimeter landscaping shall be provided for the entire vehicular USE area serving the new USE. Interior landscaping shall not be required where only the USE of the property is changed and no new addition, expansion, or exterior CONSTRUCTION or reconstruction is proposed.

(Amended 5-12-2008 by Ord. No. 389)

A.

Property line landscape buffers between adjacent land USES shall be provided in accordance to the requirements spelled out in the landscape and land USE buffer Article 2200 of this Chapter.

B.

Any group PARKING LOT that is adjacent to a road or public RIGHT-OF-WAY shall provide a landscaping area width based upon the following RIGHT-OF-WAY width:

1.

Sixty (60) feet wide or less: fifteen (15) feet minimum landscape area width (BUFFERYARD B).

2.

More than sixty (60) feet wide: twenty (20) feet minimum landscape area width (BUFFERYARD C).

C.

Grass or ground cover shall be planted on all portions of the landscape area not occupied by other landscape material.

D.

Landscape plantings that are planted within the sight triangle near intersections shall conform to the following standards:

1.

No TREES shall be planted that have a main/stem/trunk greater than eight (8) inches in diameter or have a dripline that falls below six (6) feet six (6) inches in height.

2.

No shrubs or ground covers that exceed a height of twenty-four (24) inches.

E.

Special notes on existing natural vegetation.

1.

In all cases where Significant natural vegetation exists, there will be limits of clearing/grading AREAS established to protect and preserve these natural AREAS. These natural AREAS will not be disturbed by the installation of any STRUCTURES, utilities, storm and sanitary sewers, waterlines, sediment and erosion control traps, stormwater management systems or Signage. Existing landscape material which is proposed to be Used to fulfill landscape requirements shall be shown in the required plan, and measures taken to protect these AREAS from disturbance during CONSTRUCTION shall be identified.

2.

Where pedestrian and bike paths are proposed in the landscape area, such paths shall be meandering in order to preserve the existing TREES.

F.

TREES required as a part of the perimeter landscaping adjacent to a public RIGHT-OF-WAY landscaping may be placed on the RIGHT-OF-WAY adjoining such vehicular USE area when approved by the BOARD OF SUPERVISORS. Such TREES shall be in addition to any STREET TREES which may be required by the SUBDIVISION regulations.

G.

In any PARKING LOT perimeter landscaping area there shall be four (4) feet minimum distance to all TREES from the edge of paving where vehicles overhang.

H.

PARKING LOTS shall include side and REAR YARD perimeter landscaping that include a continuous row of shrubs, no less than three and one-half (3 ½) feet at planting and one canopy shade tree, planted forty every (40) feet on center.

A.

For any new PARKING LOT containing more than six thousand (6,000) square feet of area or fifteen (15) or more SPACES, interior landscaping shall be provided in addition to the previously required perimeter landscaping. Interior landscaping shall be contained in peninsulas or islands containing a minimum area of one hundred sixty (160) square feet having a minimum width of eight and five-tenths (8.5) feet and a minimum length of eighteen (18) feet. There shall be a minimum distance of four (4) feet from the edge of paving to the base of all TREES which may overhang parked vehicles. The minimum landscape area permitted shall be ten percent (10%) of the PARKING AREA. Each island or peninsula shall be enclosed by appropriate curbing or a similar device at least six (6) inches wide and six (6) inches in height above the paving surface (wedge curbing is acceptable), unless this is in conflict with an approved Best Management Practices Management, in which case the Design of the approved stormwater plan shall apply.

B.

Where a PARKING AREA is altered or expanded to increase the size to six thousand (6,000) or more square feet of area or fifteen (15) or more PARKING SPACES, interior landscaping for the entire PARKING AREA shall be provided and not merely to the extent of its alteration or expansion.

C.

Landscape islands or peninsulas; number required:

1.

Each ten (10) PARKING SPACES shall require an interior planting island.

2.

All interior PARKING AISLES shall end in a landscape island.

3.

In no case shall there be more than twenty (20) PARKING SPACES in an unbroken row.

D.

Maximum contiguous AREAS for interior PARKING LOT landscaping. In order to encourage the required landscape AREAS to be reasonably distributed, no single required landscape island shall be larger than the following:

1.

Three hundred fifty (350) square feet in PARKING AREAS under thirty thousand (30,000) square feet.

2.

Fifteen hundred (1,500) square feet in PARKING AREAS over thirty thousand (30,000) square feet.

E.

Minimum plant materials. A minimum of one (1) shade tree for each five (5) SPACES of provided parking shall be required. The remaining area of the required landscaped area shall be landscaped with shrubs or ground cover not to exceed two (2) feet in height. (See also Section 208-2004, Shade TREES in PARKING AREAS.)

F.

Shade TREES in PARKING AREAS.

1.

PARKING AREAS that are required to be paved must be shaded by deciduous TREES (either retained or planted by the DEVELOPER) that have or will have when fully mature a trunk at least twelve (12) inches in diameter. When TREES are planted by the DEVELOPER to satisfy the requirements of this subsection, the DEVELOPER shall choose TREES that meet the standards set forth in Appendix B.

2.

Each tree of the type described in Subsection A shall be presumed to shade a circular area having a radius of fifteen (15) feet with the trunk of the tree as the center, and there must be sufficient TREES so that, using this standard, twenty percent (20%) of the vehicle accommodation area will be shaded.

3.

No paving may be placed within eight (8) feet (measured from the center of the trunk) of any tree retained to comply with Subsection A, and new TREES planted to comply with Subsection A shall be located so that they are surrounded by at least two hundred (200) square feet of unpaved area in a manner that will not encroach upon the projected dripline.

4.

PARKING AREAS shall be laid out and detailed to prevent vehicles from striking TREES. Vehicles will be presumed to have a body overhang of three (3) feet six (6) inches.

G.

Landscaping for service STRUCTURES. All service STRUCTURES shall be fully screened, except when located in an industrial zone. Service STRUCTURES in an industrial zone shall be fully screened when located within one hundred (100) feet of any zone other than industrial. For the purposes of this Article, service STRUCTURES shall include propane tanks, dumpsters, air conditioning UNITS and condensers, electrical transformers and other equipment or elements providing service to a BUILDING or a SITE.

1.

Location of screening. A continuous planting, hedge, FENCE, wall or earth mound shall enclose any service STRUCTURE on all sides unless such STRUCTURE must be frequently moved, in which case screening on all but one (1) side is required. The average height of the screening material shall be one (1) foot more than the height of the enclosed STRUCTURE, but shall not be required to exceed eight (8) feet in height. Whenever a service STRUCTURE is located next to a building wall, perimeter landscaping material or vehicular USE area, landscaping material of such walls or screening material may fulfill the screening requirement for that side of the service STRUCTURE if that wall or screening material is of an average height sufficient to meet the height requirement set out in this section. Whenever service STRUCTURES are screened by plant material, such material may count towards the fulfillment of required interior or perimeter landscaping. No interior landscaping shall be required within an area screened for service STRUCTURES.

2.

Protection of screening material. Whenever screening material is placed around any trash disposal unit or waste collection unit that is emptied or removed mechanically on a regular basis, a fixed barrier to contain the placement of the container shall be provided within the screening material on those sides where there is such material. The barrier shall be at least eighteen (18) inches from the material and shall be of sufficient strength to prevent possible damage to the screening when the container is moved or emptied. The minimum front opening of the screening material shall be twelve (12) feet to allow service vehicles access to the container.

H.

Interior landscaping for PARKING AREAS shall be installed and continuously maintained by the OWNER according to the requirements contained in the landscape and land USE buffer Article of this Chapter.

I.

Landscape material type and quality shall be described in detail in the landscape and land USE buffer Article of this Chapter,

J.

Whenever any property is affected by these PARKING AREA landscape requirements, the property OWNER or DEVELOPER shall prepare a landscape plan for approval by the BOARD OF SUPERVISORS.

(Amended 9-29-2008 by Ord. No. 393)