Visual screening or landscape buffers for office, commercial, institutional, and multifamily residential properties shall be provided for the following purposes:

   (A)   To remove, reduce, lessen or absorb the impact between certain land uses by the proper utilization of landscaped and screened buffers;

   (B)   To minimize potential noise, glare and visual clutter of parking and loading areas, trash receptacles and outdoor storage by obscuring the view with landscaping and screening;

   (C)   To protect, preserve and promote the aesthetic appeal, character and value of the City of Montgomery's neighborhoods, particularly by providing interest along the streetscape;

   (D)   To soften the appearance of building masses and to break up and reduce the impact of large paved areas;

   (E)   To reduce heat generation, stormwater run-off and soil erosion; and

   (F)   To establish a minimum standard for the consistent appearance of plant material in the community landscape.

(Ord. 5-2005, passed 3-23-05)

   The standards and criteria in this Chapter establish the city's objectives and levels of landscaping intensity expected. However, it should be recognized that existing vegetation and other natural features may also adequately achieve the intended standards and objectives of each section, and precise compliance with all of the numerical standards may be preempted or unnecessary because of existing or proposed conditions on the site or adjacent property. Therefore, when complying with this Chapter, the city may permit the flexible arrangement of the plant material to best achieve the intent of this Chapter and the purposes of the numerical standards, to preserve existing natural features, and to assure that other health and safety objectives and standards of the city are not compromised.

(Ord. 5-2005, passed 3-23-05)

   The Zoning Administrator, subject to approval by the Planning Commission, shall adopt certain rules and regulations setting forth acceptable landscape materials including, but not limited to, trees, shrubs, groundcover, fill, fencing or other decorative landscape materials necessary for the enforcement of this Chapter and any other landscape requirements of this Code.

(Ord. 5-2005, passed 3-23-05)

   Terms related to required landscaping and screening shall have the following meanings:

   BERM. An earthen mound designed to provide visual interest, screen undesirable views, and/or decrease noise.

   CALIPER. The caliper of a tree shall be determined at 4½ feet from the ground, commonly known as Diameter at Breast Height (DBH).

   DECIDUOUS. A plant with foliage that is shed annually.

   EVERGREEN. A plant with foliage that persists and remains green year-round.

   ORNAMENTAL TREE. A deciduous tree planted primarily for its ornamental value or for screening purposes; tends to be smaller at maturity than a shade tree.

   SHADE TREE. A tree with foliage that usually sheds annually and is planted primarily for its high crown of foliage or overhead canopy. A shade tree must be a species that has a minimum height at maturity of at least 30 feet.

   SHRUB. A woody plant, smaller than a tree, consisting of several small stems from the ground or small branches near the ground.

(Ord. 5-2005, passed 3-23-05)

   Required yards and all other portions of the lot not covered by permitted structures shall be landscaped with grass, trees, shrubbery and/or other appropriate ground cover or landscaping material, which at all times shall be maintained in good and healthy condition.

   (A)   All screening shall be free of advertising or other signs, except for directional signs and other signs for the efficient flow of vehicles, consistent with Chapter 151.30.

   (B)   Trees and shrubs shall be arranged to create varied and attractive views and plant material should provide a variety of color displayed throughout the year.

   (C)   The required landscaping shall be maintained in healthy condition by the current owner and replaced when necessary. Replacement material shall conform to the original intent of the landscape plan.

   (D)   Vehicle parking shall not be permitted in landscaped areas and is restricted to paved surfaces.

   (E)   All interior landscaped areas shall have protective curbs along the edges to protect the landscaping from vehicles; however, the curbs shall be perforated or have caps or breaks to allow for stormwater runoff to pass through them, unless determined to be inappropriate by the City Engineer.

   (F)   Bioretention areas, rain gardens, filter strips and swales constructed to function as a stormwater best management practices shall be allowed in the required landscaped areas; however, the existence of a stormwater BMP does not eliminate the requirement for major shade trees as outlined in this section.

(Ord. 5-2005, passed 3-23-05; Am. Ord. 2-2009, passed 3-4-09)

   All areas, except lots devoted to single-family detached and two-family dwellings, within the required building and parking setback, excluding driveway openings, shall be landscaped and maintained in compliance with the following minimum standards:

   (A)   One major shade tree shall be provided for every 30 linear feet of lot frontage, not including drive entrances. Each tree, at the time of installation, shall have a clear trunk height of at least 6 feet and a minimum caliper of 2 inches.

   (B)   One shrub shall be provided for every 5 linear feet of lot frontage or fraction thereof, not including drive entrances. In the yard area in front of a parking lot, the requirements of § 151.3408(B) shall also apply. Each shrub shall have a minimum height of 18 inches at the time of installation.

   (C)   All areas not devoted to trees and shrubs shall be planted with ground cover plants, which may include grasses. Mulch, landscaping stones, and similar landscape treatment shall not be a substitute for ground cover plants.

   (D)   The landscaping may be flexible in its arrangement by appropriately aggregating the required plant materials.

   (E)   Landscaping requirements in the OM and OMG Districts may be modified by the Zoning Administrator.

(Ord. 5-2005, passed 3-23-05; Am. Ord. 2-2009, passed 3-4-09; Am. Ord. 16-2013, passed 11-6-13)

   Screening and buffering along the common boundary or portion thereof shall be provided in accordance with the following regulations and shall be approved as part of the development plan required by Chapter 150.14.

   (A)   When Required. Screening and buffering shall be required for parking lots, access drives or loading and service areas when adjacent to a residential use or district.

      (1)   When a property in the LB, GB or OMG District is adjacent to a residential use or district, the screening requirements shall be extended along the entirety of the shared property line.

   (B)   Width of Buffer Yard. Each required buffer yard shall have the minimum width equal to the parking setback required for the district.

   (C)   Type of Screening. A brick, stone, or decorative masonry wall of acceptable design along the common boundary or portion thereof, shall be required. The spaces between the wall and the lot line of the adjoining premises in any residential district shall be landscaped with grass, hardy shrubs, or evergreen ground cover and maintained in good condition. In lieu of a wall, a solid, continuous, visual screen along the common boundary or portion thereof with one or more of the items listed below can be substituted, only when it is determined by the Planning Commission that such screening can be equally as effective as the solid wall.

      (1)   Existing natural vegetation; or

      (2)   New screening materials consisting of one or a combination of the following:

         (a)   A landscaped mound or berm at least 3 feet in height, and planted with an evergreen hedge or dense planting of evergreen shrubs not less than 6 feet in height measured from the natural grade.

         (b)   A dense vegetative planting incorporating trees and/or shrubs of a variety which shall be equally effective in winter and summer; or

         (c)   A solid fence.

   (D)   Location. The location of the wall, fence, or vegetation shall be placed within the buffer yard to maximize the screening effect as determined by the Planning Commission and/or Council.

   (E)   Height of Screening. The height of the screening, measured from the natural grade, shall not be less than 6 feet in height and shall be maintained in good condition without any advertising thereon. When the screening or a portion thereof is intended to be achieved with vegetation, the required height shall be a minimum of 42 inches at planting with a 6-foot height achieved no later than 24 months after the initial installation. Whenever the required screening is located along the common side lot line in the area extending from the front building line of the residential use to the street, the required screening shall not exceed a height of 4 feet.

(Ord. 5-2005, passed 3-23-05; Am. Ord. 12-2008, passed 9-3-08; Am. Ord. 16-2013, passed 11-6-13)

   (A)   Landscaping on the Interior of Parking Lots. Interior landscaping of parking lots shall be provided in accordance with the following requirements:

      (1)   When any parking area is designed to accommodate ten or more vehicles, a minimum of 10% of the parking surface area shall be planted as landscaped island areas, developed and reasonably distributed throughout the parking surface areas so as to provide visual and climatic relief from broad expanses of pavement. The total parking surface area for such calculation shall not include parking area in a parking garage other than the top level which is open and exposed for parking whether at ground surface or the roof level of an above ground parking structure. The total parking surface area shall also include any impervious surface area intended for stopping, standing, traveling, display or inventory of motor vehicles.

         (a)   Landscaped islands shall be developed and distributed throughout the parking lot to define major circulation aisles and driving lanes and provide visual and climatic relief from the broad expanses of pavement.

         (b)   Each island shall be a minimum of 6 feet in any horizontal dimension.

         (c)   Within the landscaped islands, there shall be provided one major shade tree for the first 20 parking spaces and one additional shade tree for every 10 additional parking spaces, provided there is no impairment to the visibility of motorists or pedestrians. Each tree, at the time of installation, having a clear trunk height of at least 6 feet and a minimum caliper of 2 inches.

         (d)   Shrubs or low, spreading plant materials may be planted within the required landscaped islands provided there is no impairment to the visibility of motorists or pedestrians.

         (e)   Landscaping needed to meet the perimeter landscape requirement shall not be counted toward interior landscaping.

      (2)   For the purpose of this section, the area of a parking lot shall be the total vehicular surface area including circulation aisles.

   (B)   Screening Along Public Streets and Perimeter of Parking Areas. Whenever parking areas consisting of 5 spaces or more are located such that the parked cars will be visible from a public or private street, screening, in addition to the interior landscaping required in division (A) above, shall be provided and maintained between the parking area and the street right-of-way.

      (1)   All shrubs, berms, walls, and fences, shall have a minimum height of 3 feet, and shall cover 100% of the perimeter of the parking area. When the screening or a portion thereof is intended to be provided with landscaping, the minimum height at installation must be 24 inches.

      (2)   Such landscaping and/or screening shall be located parallel to and within 5 feet of the edge of the parking lot.

   (C)   Interior landscaping islands shall be designed to serve as bioretention areas, unless determined to be inappropriate by the City Engineer. A minimum of one tree shall be installed for every 435 square feet and one shrub shall be installed for every 30 square feet of interior landscape areas. Figure 151.3408(F) illustrates an example of an interior parking lot bioretention area.

   (D)   Shrubs or low, spreading plant materials may be planted within the required landscaped islands provided there is no impairment to the visibility of motorists or pedestrians.

   (E)   Landscaping needed to meet the perimeter landscape requirement shall not be counted toward interior landscaping.

(Ord. 5-2005, passed 3-23-05; Am. Ord. 2-2009, passed 3-4-09; Am. Ord. 16-2013, passed 11-6-13)

   For single-family attached and multi-family developments, Office, Office Commercial, Business, Old Montgomery Gateway, Old Montgomery Districts, and for non-residential conditional uses in residential districts, screening of accessory uses shall be provided according to the following:

(Ord. 6-2010, passed 7-7-10; Am. Ord. 2-2014, passed 3-5-14)

   (A)   Fences and walls, when not used for screening and buffering as required by § 151.3407, may be used in commercial districts for the following purposes:

      (1)   For decorative purposes in the front yard, not to exceed a height of four feet; or

      (2)   For security and/or containment of equipment or vehicles in the side or rear yard. Fences shall be of chain link, picket, split rail, sapling, louver, board on board, or other design, and, if painted, shall be one color. The maximum height of the fence is six feet. The smooth finished side of the fence or wall shall be the side of the fence that faces outward from the lot or yard being fenced.

   (B)   All fences and walls shall be approved with appropriate landscaping as part of a final development plan.

(Ord. 6-2010, passed 7-7-10; Am. Ord. 2-2014, passed 3-5-14)

   (A)   Proposed landscaping, fences or walls required to fulfill the standards and criteria of this Chapter shall be reviewed and approved as part of a development plan pursuant to Chapter 150.14.

   (B)   When a fence or wall is proposed at a separate time from any other development for new construction, additions or site renovation, a fence or wall may be approved administratively by the Zoning Administrator when the Zoning Administrator determines that the proposal:

      (1)   Complies with the requirements of this section;

      (2)   Is consistent with any previously approved plan;

      (3)   Is compatible with the current site development if there is no approved plan; and

      (4)   Will have a minimal adverse impact to the surrounding areas.

   (C)   If, because of the nature and location of the proposed fence or wall, the Zoning Administrator does not make such a determination, the request shall be referred to the Planning Commission and considered by the Commission according to the development plan review procedures in Chapter 150.14.

(Ord. 5-2005, passed 3-23-05)