Newcastle City Zoning Code

Arcades, pergolas, or other street-level coverings are encouraged on all building facades fronting on the plaza to provide weather protection and an articulated building facade.

Brick paving materials associated with the historic use of the site are encouraged. Other options can be unit-pavers or concrete with special texture, pattern, and/or decorative features. Decorative and visually interesting permeable pavements are also allowed.

Separation of active and passive uses is encouraged through placement of planters, street furniture, landscaping, different paving textures, and subtle level changes.

Lighting shall be low in height, preferably below 20 feet. The overall lighting in the plaza shall average at least four footcandles. The lighting plan should include pedestrian-oriented lights, such as globes and light bollards. Uplighting of trees is also encouraged. The color of light must be considered in the lighting design. High-pressure sodium, which has a pinkish cast, is recommended for general usage (very effective for lighting brick). Metal halide lighting is effective for uplighting foliage (makes it appear greener) and mercury vapor for lighting concrete. Low-pressure sodium, which casts a yellow light, is not recommended.

The plaza should be designed as part of a visual corridor/axis running from 132nd Avenue SE to the forested areas of Coal Creek Park.

A transition zone or buffer of approximately 10 feet will be left along the building edge where it abuts the plaza to provide an outdoor area for cafe seating and a planted buffer. This zone could be marked with a change in paving.

Subareas shall be created within the plaza with seating and landscaping out of the traffic flow.

The plaza should have an articulated edge (buildings, benches, landscaping, etc.) where feasible to provide visual interest and additional seating along the edges of the plaza where people may linger out of the traffic flow.

Pedestrian amenities shall be provided: seating, lighting, plants, drinking fountains, distinctive paving, artwork, and a focal point or water feature.

Edges of the plaza opening to pedestrian through-traffic should be defined without impeding traffic flow; i.e., with a planter or low seating wall, pergola with vines, water feature, or sculpture.

Some covered area along the perimeter (e.g., a vine-covered pergola) is strongly encouraged to provide protection from rain and/or sun.

One linear foot of seating (at least 16 inches deep) should be provided for every 30 square feet of plaza. Seating may include benches, low seating walls, steps, or, if properly designed, a planter edge or edge of a fountain.

The sun angle at noon and the wind pattern should be considered in the design of the plaza.

At least 50 percent of the total area of the building facade facing onto the plaza should be occupied by retail uses, preferably cafes and restaurants or other pedestrian-oriented uses.

The plaza should be large enough to hold a congregation of 300 people.

All buildings located along a public street should be oriented toward and have their primary entrances toward the public street.

On sites with pedestrian areas or a mid-block connection, orientation of windows and entrances should be designed to complement and enhance the experience for people on foot or bike.

Ground floor building entrances on the interior of the site should be accessible from the public sidewalk, pedestrian areas or mid-block connections.

Buildings should be encouraged to have upper-story activities overlooking the street.

Building orientation should consider future development on or adjacent to the building site, including shared access and potential linkages to such development (e.g., building entries) and building additions.

Building orientation should consider environmental factors such as solar access and wind direction to take advantage of energy reduction.

Break up larger buildings with facades that are perpendicular or at angles to the street to break up larger wall expanses and allow for creative use of space.

At least 50% of the total facade area shall be articulated by use of a change in plane, arrangement of facade elements, or a change in materials (including glazing) to break the building mass.

Streetfront facades must also conform to articulation guidelines based on street type (Table 18.22.050(B)(2)). Figure 18.22.050(B)(2) illustrates maximum nonresidential single use length and minimum nonresidential use depth standards that meet the requirements of Table 18.22.050(B)(2).

New buildings should be designed with a mix of wall areas with door and window elements in the facade.

Break up unvarying rectilinear forms into smaller, varied masses.

Each building design should consider a unique element that distinguishes it from other similar structures (e.g., ceremonial entranceway, limited towers or cupolas, cornices, window surrounds, etc.).

Vertical and horizontal building modulation should be used to add variety and to make large buildings appear to be an aggregation of smaller buildings.

Continuous two- or three-story street walls should be avoided by incorporating vertical and horizontal modulations into the building form.

New construction facades should generally be no more than two stories without articulating horizontally or vertically. Limited areas of vertical three-, four-, or five-story walls can be used to create vertical punctuation at key facades or downtown gateway intersections and where building heights permit. Activated streetscapes are important in these areas.

Consider the width-to-height ratio of bays in the facade. The placement of openings with respect to the facade's overall composition, symmetry, or balanced asymmetry should be carefully imitated.

A flat building facade shall incorporate details such as window trim, window recesses, cornices, changes in material, color or other design elements in an integrated composition. Some of the architectural features of the street-facing facade shall be incorporated into the rear and side elevations.

Upper story step-backs should avoid a rigid stair step or "wedding cake" approach.

There shall be the same or greater level of detail and articulation on the ground floor as on the upper floors of a building.

Building entrances should be visually emphasized with key vertical and horizontal elements, lighting, accent materials, etc.

Relate the roof forms of the new buildings to those found in the area. Duplication of the existing or traditional roof shapes and materials on new construction is one way of making new structures more visually compatible.

Consider overall building scale when designing roof cornicing and parapets.

Decks and/or balconies should be designed so that they do not significantly increase the apparent mass of the building within the required upper story step-backs. Residential or mixed use building facades visible from streets and public spaces should provide balconies of a sufficient depth to appear integrated with the building and not "tacked on."

Transparent window area or window displays along the majority of the ground floor facade.

Sculptural, mosaic or bas-relief artwork over the majority of the ground floor facade.

Public open space that complies with the standards of Chapter 18.15 NMC and applicable guidelines.

Shop Front Frontage Type. Shop fronts are facades placed at or close to the right-of-way line, with the entrance at sidewalk grade. This type is conventional for retail frontage and is commonly equipped with cantilevered awnings or similar shade-providing overhangs. Substantial glazing at pedestrian level encourages sidewalk activation. Most appropriate for active retail/commercial areas along Type 2 and 3 streets.

Flex Front Frontage Type. Flex frontages are designed so that ground floor retail and commercial uses may be used for temporary residential uses, and uses may be interchanged. The design flexibility allows for ground floor facades to transition between shop front requirements and residential uses.

Arcade/Gallery Frontage Type. Arcades are a flex frontage type where facades have an attached colonnade covered by upper stories. This type is ideal for future uses on the west side of 132nd. For building code considerations, this frontage type cannot cover the public right-of-way.

Forecourt Frontage Type. A forecourt is a public or semi-public exterior space partially surrounded by a building and open to a thoroughfare, within the shop front, gallery or arcade frontage. The space is suitable for gardens, outdoor dining, shared open space and public plazas and should be situated to maximize solar access.

Front Yard/Porch Frontage Type. Front yards and porches are only suitable for ground floor residential uses along Type 3 street types. The facade is set back from the right-of-way with a front yard. An encroaching porch may also be appended to the facade. A low fence or wall at the property line may be used to define the private space of the yard.

To maintain visual consistency, building materials used on the exterior of buildings should be traditional materials that are more durable. New development should incorporate durable materials such as brick, concrete, glass or stone into the design of the ground floor (street facing) facades.

Alternative materials should appear similar in scale, proportion, texture and finish to those used traditionally. Durability should be considered when alternative materials are reviewed.

Concrete and wood siding should be painted using a palette of earth tone or muted colors. Bright, neon-like colors are strongly discouraged.

Where possible, use materials indigenous to the region and/or manufactured or supplied locally and that have minimal adverse impacts to the environment.

Reserve bright colors for trim or accents.

Emphasize dark, saturated colors for awnings, and avoid garish and light colors that show dirt.

Avoid highly-tinted or mirrored glass (except stained-glass windows).

When used, sustainable technologies must be visually incorporated into the structure and should serve as a visual amenity to pedestrians.

Sustainable design elements are particularly appropriate on 132nd and Newcastle Way, where they will contribute to the city's identity and celebrate the city's unique sense of place in the region.

Consider passive heating and cooling techniques during building design.

Control solar heat gain and glare using external shading devices.

Consider designing rain gardens and green infrastructure projects as interactive or educational spaces that provide additional social functions on site, particularly when used to fulfill open space requirements.

Utilize low-maintenance and native plants to improve natural function and reduce resource usage.

Solar panel installations shall minimize glare reflected onto adjacent properties.

All overhanging elements shall be at least eight feet above the adjacent sidewalk or grade.

Storefront and ground floor windows should be designed to provide excellent visual connections between the sidewalk and commercial space and provide "eyes" on adjoining streets and public spaces.

Storefront windows should be symmetrically placed within the overall building face, with a recommended window-to-wall ratio similar to neighboring and existing district buildings.

Storefront and ground floor windows of nonresidential uses should be highly transparent with windows of clear vision glass beginning at no higher than two feet above grade and at least 10 feet above grade.

Buildings must incorporate upper-story windows which face the street and are transparent.

Upper-story windows with a vertical emphasis are preferred; windows which are twice as tall vertically as they are wide represent a more traditional design.

Upper-story windows should be symmetrically placed with one another as well as with the overall building facade.

Aligning upper-story windows with those of neighboring buildings is preferred.

The use of opaque and false windows is inappropriate.

Construct entry gateways into downtown that frame views into downtown and create visual cues and sense of arrival.

Use public art to establish gateway features that strengthen the character and identity of downtown. Use landscaping, signs, structures or other features that identify the neighborhood.

A corner landmark consisting of a combination of open space and architectural building design features should be provided to identify downtown.

At the southeast corner of Newcastle Way and Coal Creek Parkway, a neighborhood gateway feature such as open space or plaza with signage should be integrated with site design.

Public art pieces should be located in highly visible locations, downtown gateways, pedestrian gathering areas, and at the intersection of pathways and walkways.

Public art pieces that are functional or interactive should be encouraged.

Both permanent and temporary installation/exhibit space should be incorporated into the design of new development.

Good pedestrian circulation is critical. A clear path from the sidewalk to the building entrance is required for all sites.

For sites with large parking lots, clear pedestrian circulation routes within the lot from stalls to the building entrances should be provided. In addition, a raised concrete pavement should also be provided in front of the entrance as a loading or waiting area so the entrance will not be blocked by parked vehicles.

Parking lot design should be clear and well organized. Space should be provided for pedestrians to walk safely in all parking lots. Parking lots should have few dead-end parking lanes and provide drive-through configurations with channelized queuing space at the entrances and exits to parking lots to prevent cars from waiting in the street.

Share parking and service access with adjoining developments to minimize land devoted to circulation and parking. Pedestrian access between parking lots on adjacent properties should be provided.

Shared parking and service access could be located between buildings when feasible.

Design service and delivery parking spaces that minimize disruption to traffic flow and operations.

Minimize parking and service frontage along public streets, public spaces and pedestrian pathways.

Create landscaped buffers (e.g., a row of coniferous trees or double row of deciduous trees) between pedestrian paths and parking lots and service areas to mitigate the negative visual impacts.

Parking lots must use landscaping to reduce their visual impact.

Locate parking lots to maximize opportunities for spaces catering to higher pedestrian and bicycle use to have maximum access to sunlight.

Minimize the number of driveways by restricting curb cuts and by encouraging property and business owners to combine parking lot entrances and coordinate parking areas.

Structured Parking.

Bicycle Parking.

Street trees shall be provided at a spacing of one tree every 30 feet in minimum four-foot-wide tree grates or landscape areas (six-foot-wide on pedestrian-oriented streets). Turf grass is not acceptable in planting areas. Tree spacing may be averaged; provided, that trees are no less than 15 feet apart.

Street tree species shall be approved by the city.

Street trees shall be pruned to be free of branches below six feet from the ground for surveillance purposes.

Use city-approved standardized fixtures for benches, trash receptacles and bike racks located in the public right-of-way.

Furnishings shall not be placed in the clear zone or in any way that might hamper pedestrian movements.

Note: Approved furnishing information is available from the public works department.

Seating.

Use city-approved standardized fixtures for sidewalk lighting.

All sidewalks and pedestrian connections shall meet a minimum average 5.38 lux illumination level.[1]

All sidewalks and pedestrian connections shall not exceed a 20 lux illumination level.[2]

All pedestrian lighting fixtures with luminaires above 12 feet shall be full-cutoff type fixtures (as defined by the IESNA).

Lighting fixtures above 12 feet shall have full cut-off design (as defined by the IESNA) to direct light downward.

Lighting intensity shall be between three and 20 lux.[3]

Surface parking must be screened from the public right-of-way by one or a combination of the following:

All plant materials and other physical elements used for parking lot screening shall provide clear views between three and eight feet above the ground surface for surveillance purposes.

Note: Alternatives may be considered if designs meet the intent of the guideline and gain city approval.

Locate primary entrances* so that they are visible from the public right-of-way. The entry should be marked by architectural elements such as canopies, ornamental lighting fixtures and/or fixed seating that offer visual prominence.

Primary entrances shall have direct access to public sidewalks.

Entrances may be set back from the property line up to 10 feet.

* Primary entrances are the principal customer entrance(s) to a building.

Required fenestration shall include clear vision glass.

Required fenestration coverage applies to the area between two and 12 feet above grade for all ground floor facades of streetfront buildings, and for at least one ground floor facade of each rearward building.

Ground floors shall be a minimum of 12 feet in height measured from the finished floor to finished ceiling, and 15 feet gross height (measured from finished ground floor to bottom of joists or slab on next floor up).

Mixed use and commercial buildings shall provide weather protection over all adjacent public sidewalks and pedestrian connections so that 75% of the length of the building frontage and adjacent sidewalk has weather protection.

Weather protection shall be placed between eight and 12 feet above the sidewalk level and be a minimum of six feet in depth. Twelve feet of clearance shall be maintained for permanent building projections, such as cantilevers, decks, and balconies. Eight feet clearance is acceptable for removable awnings and canopies.

Note: Alternatives may be considered if designs meet the intent of the guideline as determined by the director.

For buildings above 30 feet in height:

For building facades longer than 100 feet and that are visible from the public right-of-way:

Wainscots or kick plates below storefront windows made of products that create texture, pattern and shadow lines.

Projecting window sills, regularly spaced pilasters or similar features that add dimension and form to an otherwise flat wall plane.

Projecting canopies or arbors, or recessed entry bays.

Commercial-grade window assemblies with wide and deep mullions.

Buildings with pitched roofs shall have a minimum slope of 4:12 and a maximum slope of 12:12.

Buildings with flat roofs shall have projecting cornices to create a prominent edge when viewed against the sky. Cornices shall be made of a different material and color than the predominate siding of the building, except that brick siding may include matching brick cornices.

The use of vegetated roofs is allowed to reduce stormwater runoff; provided, that roofline reflects the above-stated requirements.

Rooftop mechanical equipment shall be screened from the view of adjacent public streets and abutting properties by an extended parapet wall or other roof forms that are integrated with the architecture of the building.

Ground level mechanical equipment shall be screened using vegetation screening or structural screens that are integrated with the materials and colors of the building.

Vegetation, such as trees, shrubs, ground cover and/or vines adjacent to and covering at least 50% of the wall surface.

Artwork, such as bas-relief sculpture, murals, or trellis structures covering at least 50% of the wall surface.

Seating area with special paving and seasonal plantings.

Masonry materials with architectural detailing, reveals, pilasters or other means of rustication techniques.

Note: Blank walls are any walls greater than four feet in height, visible from a public right-of-way or open space, that have no ground level windows or doors for a distance of 30 feet or more.

At ground level, parking structures shall comply with guidelines addressed under subsection (B)(6) of this section, Ground Level Architectural Details.

Upper levels of structured parking should be screened or treated architecturally by window openings, plantings designed to grow on the facade, louvers, expanded metal panels, decorative metal grills, spandrel (opaque) glass, and other devices, as approved, that meet the intent of this section.

Lighting within structured parking should be placed so that glare and light trespass are minimized. The lamps shall not be visible from the public right-of-way.

The use of vegetation planters and vegetated roofs is encouraged on the top level of parking structures to reduce stormwater runoff.

Bay windows.

Roof decks or balconies on upper stories.

Corner entrance.

Crowning features to a tower form, e.g., wide cornices, projecting parapets, pitched roof.

Bevel, notch or rounded corner.

Note: Alternatives may be considered if designs meet the intent of this section.