No front setback is required.

No part of a building, exclusive of awnings or signs, shall extend on or over a sidewalk. In the absence of a sidewalk, no part of a building, exclusive of awnings and signs, shall extend from the building closer than twelve (12) feet from the edge of a paved road.

No rear setback is required, except that an open space buffer zone of not less than fifteen (15) feet shall be required between adjacent structures.

No side setback is required due to firewalls being required in this district.

Buildings on primary street frontages within the Central Business District shall not be set back from the front property line. Rather, they shall be located immediately adjacent to the back edge of the public sidewalk right-of-way. Buildings shall be oriented parallel to the major street frontage, and the ground floor of the building shall be at the public sidewalk level with entries to lease space and outdoor areas directly accessible from the sidewalk. Driveways shall be located on alley frontages in order to maximize on-street parking and minimize disruptions to traffic flow.

Covered walkways (such as arbors and awnings) shall be placed along the fronts of buildings to create a “pedestrian-friendly” orientation, provide weather protection and add a visual interest at the street level.

All service canopies, such as gasoline pump canopies, drive-thru lanes, service functions, and accessory structures shall be located away from the intersections. The overall site layout shall include locations where these uses are compatible with residential developments and increased landscaping or screening to further separate these uses from adjacent residential developments.

Service windows and stacking lanes for drive-thru business shall not face public rights-of-way.

Loading and delivery service areas shall be located and designed to minimize their visibility, circulation conflicts, and adverse noise impacts to the maximum feasible extent. They shall be screened with portions of the building, architectural wing walls, freestanding walls, and landscaping. They shall not be located in required setback areas.

Street corners shall be developed with building entrances, public plazas, or small parks that make it an active portion of the development.

All utility lines (power, phone, cable, etc.) shall be placed under ground except where deferrals have been recommended by the City Planning Department and approved by the Planning and Zoning Commission. All connections from trunk lines to individual structures shall be underground.

Architectural and/or landscape elements shall be designed to provide shade on south and west exposures to protect patrons in plazas, patios, and/or other public spaces.

Accessory structures such as trash enclosures, utility services, and heating/cooling systems shall be screened from view of neighboring building sites and roadways and shall be constructed to reduce noise transmission to acceptable levels (in accordance with Section 8.03.003) at adjoining properties and public spaces. Materials to screen around these systems shall match or compliment adjacent building materials. Gates shall not allow for view of the contents of the enclosure.

Satellite receivers or transmitters, television antennas, radio antennas, or other receiving devices shall be screened from public view.

Sidewalks shall be provided along both sides of all public streets.

There shall be pedestrian crosswalks at all intersections[.]

Sidewalks shall be wide enough to facilitate pedestrian movement and pedestrian amenities such as outdoor seating, landscaping, and street furnishings.

Pedestrian access to all adjacent public open spaces shall be required.

Areas where pedestrian access will be denied shall be so defined by appropriate signage, changes of paving materials, bollards, or other barriers.

New buildings shall be made compatible with adjacent development. Many of the older buildings in downtown Navasota establish a consistent rhythm of height, width, and storefront elements along the street. New structures shall continue this rhythm by expressing similar dimensions.

The floor to ceiling height of ground floor space shall be ten (10) feet or greater, and shall match, or closely align with, adjacent structures where feasible.

Buildings with exterior walls greater than fifty (50) feet in horizontal length shall be constructed using a combination of architectural features and a variety of building materials and landscaping near the walls. Walls which can be viewed from public streets shall be designed using architectural features and landscaping (abutting the building) for at least fifty (50) percent of the wall length. Other walls shall incorporate architectural features and landscaping for at least thirty (30) percent of the wall length.

Low slope single ply membrane roofs may be designed when a parapet and cornice are used to conceal the roofing material and act as structural expressions of the building facade and its materials.

Where sloped roofs are used, main roofs shall be 4:12 minimum to 14:12 maximum slope with symmetrical gable or hip configuration. Eaves shall be continuous except at sheds and dormers. Shed roofs shall be attached to the main building wall or roof ridge with a minimum 3:12 slope. Eaves shall overhang at least eighteen (18) inches and shall be visibly supported by exposed rafter ends or braces.

Variations in rooflines shall be incorporated. Parapets, dormers or other features shall be used to conceal rooftop mechanical equipment, wall packs and conduits on all sides of the structure.

Air handling units, condensers, satellite dishes and other equipment placed on the roof shall not be visible from the street, and instead shall be screened by building elements so they are shielded from sight. Roof mounted equipment shall be visually minimized with painted colors and finish complementary to the overall building design.

Slate, ceramic and concrete tiles, concrete and wood simulated shakes, and composition roofing (with at least a twenty-five (25) year warranty) are acceptable roofing applications. Preformed metal roofing and textured metal with a matte finish may be used with Planning and Zoning Commission approval on some buildings.

Buildings shall have masonry finish except for fenestration on 100% of front, side and rear walls with four (4) hour firewalls dividing attached buildings.

The facades of new buildings shall be broken down with bays, small scale windows and other details to emulate smaller scale structures. Buildings shall incorporate wall recessions or projections at a minimum of five (5) feet in depth. These projections or recessions shall cover at least twenty-five (25) percent of the total building facade.

All sides of the building shall be designed with consistent architectural and facade elements. Break up the roofline silhouette through the use of large cornices, changes in parapet heights, or other techniques such as awnings, bulb-outs, reliefs, and fenestration. New structures shall include banding, a change of materials, or relief patterns that respond to the cornice lines and window locations on adjacent buildings.

At least fifty (50) percent of the total facade shall use such features such as windows, awnings, entryways, columns, architectural relief and other facade ornamentation and detailing to discourage long expanses of bare wall.

New buildings shall be considerate of, and where possible, make use of traditional materials and colors used on older buildings in the downtown area.

Long lasting, durable materials such as tile, brick, or stone shall be used along the street frontage. The proper use of accent colors on windows and doors shall be used to add interest to individual buildings while maintaining the traditional character of the entire district. Attractive materials shall be used on all sides of the building, providing an aesthetically pleasing “360-degree” appearance.

Blank walls of expansive, undifferentiated surfaces without window or door openings are not allowed. Blank wall surfaces, especially at the ground floor level where they front public streets or alleys, are to be enhanced with varied materials, varying colors, and mural treatments or divided into bays.

Awnings along street frontages shall be incorporated in the design. Awnings on adjacent buildings shall be complimentary to one another in size, scale, and color. Awnings shall be coordinated with signage, lighting, and street trees.

All exterior metals and plastics (vents, flashing, gutters, etc.) shall be screened from view, painted or treated to blend in with the adjacent surrounding material.

All glass, plastic, or other transparent skylight or solar device shall be treated to eliminate reflective glare. Clear, bronze, or gray glazing is preferred over white translucent. Flat skylights are preferable to domes. Solar collectors may be incorporated; however, the collectors shall be screened from view. In addition, the majority of the mechanical portion of the system must be contained within the structure and not be positioned on the roof.

Reflective glass is prohibited.

Elevated decks with occupied areas below shall have supports of not less than 6 x 6 dimensions. Built-up wing walls or built-up columns (clad with siding material) both in conjunction with landscape screening shall be incorporated.

All first floor decks which are more than twenty-four (24) inches above grade shall have skirt (screening) walls. These walls shall be recessed eighteen (18) to twenty-four (24) inches from the deck/porch edge to create shadow lines.

Information regarding the design, number, location and intensity of all exterior lighting fixtures shall be provided at time of site plan review, including (but not limited to) exterior wall, pendant, architectural accent, parking lot, walkway, site, and landscape lighting.

Lighting fixtures shall be designed to direct light down onto the site and away from neighboring property. Lighting shall be designed to include cut-off shielding to minimize the negative effects of light pollution.

Site lighting shall be even across public spaces, avoiding dark or overly bright areas.

The lighting scheme shall provide for seasonal and holiday lighting of public spaces.

Use of excessively bright lighting or lighting that blinks, flashes, or changes intensity is prohibited.

Lighting for pedestrian safety shall illuminate changes in grade, path intersections, and other areas along paths which, if left unlit, would cause the user to feel insecure. The required minimum level of illumination along pedestrian paths between destinations is one-half (0.5) footcandles. At pedestrian destination points such as entryways, plazas, and courtyards, lighting levels shall achieve illumination of one (1) footcandle.

Illumination for parking areas shall achieve a lighting level of one (1) footcandle on the parking lot surface.

Lighting for parking areas and drive aisles shall be located in landscaped areas.

Parking lot lights, security lights, and other lights on a development site shall not exceed a height of twenty-five (25) feet above the site’s finish grade.

Refer to Article XVIII, Schedule of On-site Parking Requirements.

On-street parking may be used to satisfy parking requirements in the CBD except for parking for Hotels/Motels or Conference and Convention Centers, which must provide for sufficient off-street parking for customers and staff. All on-street parking is considered common to the CBD, and shall not be allocated to separate establishments.

Parking lots shall be adequately lit and include pedestrian amenities such as trash receptacles.

Sidewalks and landscape aisles shall be located perpendicular to the main building to facilitate the flow of pedestrians from the parking lot to the building in a safe and efficient manner.

Parking areas shall be connected whenever possible through the use of cross-access easements.

Parking lots shall be screened from view along sidewalks and roadways through the combined use of free forming berms, low masonry walls, and plantings.

Parking lot designs shall provide for the necessary parking spaces and related landscaping and pedestrian access. At least one paved, continuous, and direct pedestrian walkway (a minimum of five (5) feet wide clear, no bumper overhang) through the parking lot to the building shall be provided.

Parking lot designs shall avoid dead-end aisles. Where a dead-end aisle is unavoidable, adequate space for unimpeded turnaround must be provided.

A minimum of one (1) canopy shade tree per twelve (12) parking spaces is required in all parking lots, to be planted in islands, medians, and perimeter areas adjacent to lots (excluding streetscape tree plantings). Physical shade structures may be utilized for shading parking lot areas in lieu of shade trees with review from the City Planning Department and approval by the Planning and Zoning Commission.

No landscaped area within a parking lot shall be less than one hundred sixty (160) square feet.

Islands shall contain an eighteen (18) inch wide concrete or decorative paver curb along the inside of the island abutting the parking stalls to allow patrons to avoid treading over landscape.

Where parking spaces abut landscaped islands, medians, or perimeter curbs or sidewalks, the length of spaces shall be shortened by eighteen (18) inches to account for the car overhang, and the width of the sidewalk or landscape strip increased by that same amount.

Landscape designs shall be prepared by a qualified professional, and at a minimum, enhance the visual appeal of the built environment, screen undesirable views, strengthen the pedestrian scale, provide a buffer between auto and pedestrian environments, provide shade in public spaces and parking lots, help define the site, provide congruency with the existing neighborhood, and break up large areas of hard surface.