Ogden City Zoning Code
ARTICLE VI
Erie Canal Preservation Overlay Zone
§ 300-39 Purpose.
The Erie Canal Overlay Zone provisions have the following purposes:
A.
To preserve natural, scenic and historic values along the Erie Canal.
B.
To preserve forests, wetlands and other green space.
C.
To protect the public health and safety.
D.
To regulate uses and structures along the canal on areas of steep slope to avoid increased erosion and sedimentation.
E.
To encourage compatible land uses along the canal.
F.
To recognize areas of significant environmental sensitivity that should not be intensely developed.
G.
To allow reasonable uses of lands while directing more intense development to the most appropriate areas of the community and the region.
§ 300-40 Delineation of district boundaries.
The boundaries of the Erie Canal Preservation Overlay shall include all lands within 400 feet north and south of the canal as it passes east/west through the Town, as measured from the New York State blue line, as defined in § 300-6.
§ 300-41 Regulated activities.
Development otherwise permitted in the underlying zone will be further regulated in accordance with the provisions of this article.
§ 300-42 Development standards.
A.
Hazards to water quality. No structure or building shall be used in such a way as to significantly threaten or cause significant pollution to the water quality of the canal or any other surface waters.
B.
Docks and piers. Access to the water from lots in any proposed subdivision shall be via a single common dock unless otherwise provided by the Planning Board.
C.
Preservation of vegetation. The following shall apply within the canal corridor:
(1)
Tree removal. The selected and dispersed cutting of vegetation for wildlife management, canal access or to create a view of the canal shall cause negligible adverse environmental impact, particularly with respect to the stability of the canal bank and the aesthetic character of the shoreline. No more than 35% of the number of trees six inches DBH (the diameter 4.5 feet above the ground) or larger shall be cut in any ten-year period. In second growth woodlands where there are relatively few trees of this diameter, no more than 25% of trees four inches DBH or larger shall be cut in any ten-year period. Additional trees may be removed if the applicant can demonstrate one or more of the following conditions:
(a)
It is clearly necessary for traffic safety.
(b)
It is clearly necessary for the development of an approved principal or accessory use or building, street, sidewalk, paved area, driveway, stormwater facility, utility or sewage system.
(c)
It is within 25 feet of the foundation of an approved structure.
(d)
It is diseased, dead or poses a clear danger to a structure, utility or public improvement.
D.
Buffer yards.
(2)
Buffers shall not include the existing street right-of-way, but may include areas within required setback areas.
(3)
The buffer zone shall not include structures, dumpsters, commercial or industrial storage or display, manufacturing or processing activity, loading and unloading areas or vehicular parking.
E.
Prohibited signs. The following signs are prohibited within the canal corridor:
F.
Easements. Easement shall be provided for public access to, on or between designated public trails and sites. Easements shall be of sufficient width to permit trail construction and screening.
G.
Public open space. In residential developments, a portion of the open space in the total development must be located on the canal side, allowing public access and use of the canal waterway.
H.
Prohibited uses. None of the following uses shall be allowed within the canal corridor:
I.
Minimum setbacks from the canal. The following minimum setbacks shall apply for uses adjacent to or across the street from the canal, unless a more restrictive requirement is stated elsewhere in this chapter.[1]
(1)
Where the lowest level of finished grade adjacent to the principal building is 24 inches or more below the high-water level of the canal, the minimum setback from the high-water mark of the canal shall be 150 feet for the principal building and 75 feet for accessory structures. Where the lowest level of finished grade adjacent to a principal building is less than 24 inches below the high-water level of the canal, the setback from the high-water mark of the canal shall be 75 feet for the principal building and 50 feet for accessory structures.
(2)
Campgrounds. Setbacks for recreational vehicle sites shall be the same as for structures, but the setback for tents may be halved. Buffers, vegetative thinning and replanting requirements shall be the same as for structures.
(3)
Structures. Structures demonstrated to be directly related to canal business/use may be authorized to develop within the required setback distances; however, the Planning Board may impose additional conditions as warranted and necessary.
§ 300-43 Development guidelines.
The following guidelines shall be observed for development in the canal corridor:
A.
Site plans shall reflect an awareness and sensitivity to canal features.
B.
Historic and environmentally sensitive areas shall be incorporated into plans submitted.
C.
Development shall not interfere with or in any way prohibit, hinder or discourage the public use of the canal trail.
D.
Front yards shall be designated by the Town during site plan review and shall be based upon visual aesthetics and impact from canal side and roadside.
E.
Private industrial, commercial or residential development located along the canal must provide for and incorporate into plans submitted public, resident and/or employee appreciation, recreation, enjoyment and use of the lands bordering the canal, as appropriate. Commercial canal-side front yards must incorporate public access and use as appropriate. Commercial development on canal-adjacent parcels are encouraged to develop the parcel to include a visual if not physical flow to the water's edge.
F.
Development at highways/bridge crossings shall be encouraged as canal-related businesses.
G.
A greenway buffer zone of not more than 75 feet nor less than 20 feet as measured from the blue line or trail easement, whichever is more distant from the water's edge. Vegetation shall be preserved as much as practical. If no or insufficient preexisting vegetation exists, developers shall provide a variety of functional and aesthetic types, heights and densities of plantings.