Utility transmission lines. Utility transmission lines approved by appropriate federal or state agencies may be located anywhere in the Village and shall not be subject to height limitations.

Radio or television. Transmission or receiving lines and facilities, but not studios or business offices, may be located on any lot if all structures are located a distance from all property lines equal to their height.

Agricultural fairgrounds in R-1 District. Buildings for the housing of animals for purposes other than agricultural display shall contain not more than 20 stalls and not more than 20 such animals shall be kept on the agricultural fairgrounds at any time, with the exception of fair week. Uses other than an agricultural fair or exhibition shall have prior written approval of the Board of Trustees of the Village of Palmyra.

Contractors’ sheds. Contractors’ buildings, trailers or sheds may be erected on a construction site to serve as an office, workshop or storage area during the construction of any authorized structure, following the issuance of a building permit. Such building shall not remain longer than 18 months unless a special permit for a longer period is granted by the Board of Appeals in accordance with Article VII. They may not be used as a residence, except as the quarters of a watchman.

Construction signs. Signs bearing information as to the nature of a new or altered building and the name of the contractors, architects, engineers and artisans engaged in the construction may be erected at the site of any authorized construction project during the period of construction only.

Fairs and carnivals. An outdoor fair or carnival may be conducted by a church, civic organization or similar nonprofit group on the premises of a building occupied by such organization for a period not exceeding three days in any calendar year, in any district, subject to the granting of a special permit therefor by the Board of Appeals in accordance with Article VII.

Special events. Any nonprofit, commercial or industrial operation in other than a residential district may celebrate, during not more than six days of any calendar year, or for any nonprofit operation not more than one month in any calendar year, a special promotional event, upon the granting of a special permit by the Board of Appeals in accordance with Article VII. During such period, it may use such signs and other devices as the Board shall find appropriate to the occasion and within the limits of the sign regulations.

Agricultural fair or exhibition. An agricultural fair may be conducted within the premises of an agricultural fairgrounds by a chartered agricultural society during a period of not more than seven consecutive days in any calendar year or such additional period of time as may be required by state regulations in order to qualify for premium payment. An exhibition of agricultural products and/or animals may be conducted by a chartered agricultural society for not more than one day in any week and for not more than nine weeks in any calendar year, unless the Board of Trustees of the Village of Palmyra shall approve additional events; such exhibition shall be conducted within the premises of an agricultural fairgrounds. For purposes of this subsection, a “week” shall mean a period of seven consecutive days commencing on Sunday and ending on the following Saturday.

General regulations.[1]

Exempt signs. The following signs shall be exempt from the provisions of this chapter. No sign shall be exempt from § 200-25A.

Prohibited signs. The following devices and locations shall be specifically prohibited:

Permits.

Specific sign requirements.

Signs for development complexes.

It shall be used only as an accessory use to a dwelling or to a special permit use in a residence district for the private use of the owner or occupant of such dwelling or building and his or her family, guests, or employees.

Any such pool shall be completely enclosed by a security fence not less than four feet in height, with all gates or doors opening through such enclosure equipped with self-closing and self-latching devices of a type approved by the Zoning Administrator, designed to keep and capable of keeping such gates or doors securely closed at all times when not in actual use.

Such pool shall be maintained in a manner sufficient to meet the bacterial standards established by the provisions of the New York State Sanitary Code relating to public swimming pools.

Such pool shall be equipped with an integral filtration system and filter pumps or other mechanical devices which shall be so located and constructed as not to interfere with the peace, comfort and repose of the occupants of any adjoining property.

No permission shall be granted for the installation of any swimming pool until the owner has filed with the Zoning Administration a statement by the Village Water and Sewerage Superintendent that provisions for the drainage of such pool are adequate and will not interfere with the public water supply system or existing sanitary facilities.

Any electrical installations necessary for the erection of a swimming pool must be inspected by the Board of Fire Underwriters or other qualified inspection agency approved by the Village.

Any swimming pool erected must comply with all setback and yard requirements for the district in which it is located. The dimensions used in any calculations must include decks or walkways that are adjacent to the pool.

The above regulations pertain to all types of swimming pools (aboveground or in-ground) and a building permit must be granted prior to its installation.

Area measurement. For purposes of measuring lot area, only that part of the depth which is no more than three times the average width of the lot may be utilized in calculations.

Lot area per family when other uses present. In computing the lot area available for residential use on a lot which has other uses, such as a dwelling use in addition to a retail use, the lot area occupied by the building containing the other use, together with the area of any required parking or off-street loading, shall first be deducted from the total lot area.

Substandard lots of record. Other provisions of this chapter notwithstanding, any parcel of land having access to a street and having an area or a width less than those prescribed for the district in which such parcel is situated may be used as a lot for any purpose permitted in such district, provided all of the following requirements are met:

Variation of requirement for large-scale housing development. The Village Zoning Board of Appeals/Planning Board is hereby empowered, as provided in § 7-738 of the Village Law, simultaneously with the approval of any subdivision, to confirm the zoning regulations of the land so platted or to make any reasonable change therein, in accordance with the procedures and safeguards set forth in § 7-738, providing no change is made in the overall density for the land so platted.

Exceptions to yard requirements. The following may project into required yards: steps or stoops not exceeding 24 square feet in area; eaves, cornices and belt courses not exceeding two feet; and open fire escapes not exceeding four feet six inches, except that no required side yard in a residential district shall be reduced to less than six feet by such fire escape extension.

Side yards on lots nonconforming in width. On a lot of record on the effective date of this chapter that is narrower than required in its zoning district, the side yard requirements may be reduced to the same percentage of the lot width that is required for a minimum width conforming lot; for example, if the yard required for one side is six feet on a sixty-foot lot, the yard may be reduced to five feet on a fifty-foot lot. However, in no event shall the side yard be less than five feet.

Fences. Except as provided in Subsection D, the requirements of this chapter shall not be deemed to prohibit any otherwise lawful fence or wall, provided that in any residential district no fence or wall shall exceed six feet in height.

Visibility at intersections. On a corner lot in any residential district, no structure, fence, wall, hedge or other planting shall be erected, placed or maintained at a height of between three and six feet above the curbline within the triangle formed by the street lines and a straight line joining said street lines at points 20 feet from the point of intersection.

Transition areas. When a lot in a Commercial, Highway Commercial or Industrial District abuts a lot in a residential district, there shall be provided on such Commercial, Highway Commercial or Industrial District lots on the side abutting the residential lot, an open space not less than 20 feet in width to serve as a buffer. Such yard shall not be used for any purposes other than landscaping. Alternately, there may be provided on the property line, an unpierced masonry wall not less than six nor more than 10 feet in height, which wall may be the wall of a building in which instance no yard shall be required, but no window, roof vent door or other building opening may be located within 20 feet of the residential zone lot line and no outdoor loading, commercial or industrial activities may take place in such restricted area.

Private garage in rear yard. A detached private garage, when otherwise permitted, may be erected in a rear yard but not closer to a street line than the buildable area of the lot nor closer than three feet to other rear or side lot lines, and it shall not occupy more than 1/3 of the required rear yard.

Utility sheds, prefabricated or stick-built, as stated in § 200-13C, may be located in the rear yard no closer than three feet to the rear or side lot lines or five feet to an existing building. The structure shall not exceed 150 square feet in area and its height shall not exceed 10 feet at its highest point.

Purpose. The purposes of this section, in addition to the general purposes of this chapter, are more specifically:

Required parking.

Permitted parking.

Use of front yards restricted.

Design and installation of parking areas. Any area used for off-street parking for more than five cars shall be designed, installed and maintained in accordance with the following standards:

Purpose. The purposes of this section, in addition to the general purposes of this chapter, are more specifically:

Required loading.

Collective provisions permitted. The collective provision and utilization of loading space may be accomplished, provided it is within the same block and not over 100 feet walking distance from a delivery entrance of all uses involved and provisions suitable to the Zoning Administrator are made to assure the continued provision of such use for all involved.

Exception for small lots. The provisions of this section shall not apply to a use on a lot less than 100 feet in either width or depth in a Central Commercial District when no alley, street, common driveway or other means of access is available other than on the frontage of the property.

Front yard use prohibited. Use of a required front yard for loading area shall not be permitted.

Design and installation of off-street loading areas. All off-street loading areas shall be designed, installed and maintained in accordance with standards for automobile access areas contained in § 200-34.

Purpose. In addition to the general purposes of this chapter, the specific purposes of this section are established in recognition of the general character of gasoline stations and their operations, to provide suitable measures for gasoline station design, construction and operation so as to adequately provide for public safety and convenience, preserve the convenient and efficient use of abutting properties and protect and enhance the attractiveness of the Village.

Lot area. There shall be an area not less than 10,000 square feet and not less than 100 feet in width devoted exclusively to the gasoline station use.

Yards.

Additional use regulations.

Inoperative vehicles. No inoperative vehicle shall be kept on the premises for longer than two weeks unless required for legal or insurance proceedings.

Storage. All supplies and material and waste material will be stored within structures or enclosed within fencing so as not to be visible from off the property.

Design of vehicle access areas. Design, installation and maintenance of driveways and vehicular access areas shall be in accordance with § 200-34.

Purpose. Abandoned, junked, discarded and unregistered motor vehicles upon privately owned property within the Village of Palmyra are detrimental to the safety, health and public welfare. They constitute a nuisance to children and are a peril to their safety. They are a fire hazard and a source of fire and explosions. They depreciate the value of the neighboring properties.

Notice. If the provisions of these supplementary regulations relating to the parking and storage of certain automotive vehicles is violated, the Zoning Enforcement Officer or the Village Police Department shall serve written notice, either personally or by mail, upon the owner, occupant or person having charge of any such land, upon which any such motor vehicle is deposited, parked or stored.

Placement of motor vehicles on private lands. It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation, either as owner, occupant, lessee, agent, tenant or otherwise to deposit, or cause or permit to be deposited, an abandoned, junked, discarded or unregistered motor vehicle on any private land within the corporate limits of the Village of Palmyra. Unregistered motor vehicles may be stored or displayed in areas of the Village that are zoned for this purpose and in areas where such use is a preexisting use. In residentially zoned property, the storing or parking of unlicensed or inoperable motor vehicles shall be permitted in completely enclosed buildings.

Penalty. Any owner, occupant, lessee, agent or tenant who shall neglect and refuse to remove said abandoned, junked, discarded and unlicensed motor vehicle or vehicles, as directed by law, or who shall fail or refuse to comply with the provisions of any notice herein provided for, or who shall violate any of the provisions of this section or who shall resist or obstruct authorized agents, servants, officers or employees of the Village of Palmyra in the removal of any motor vehicles, shall be deemed violating this section and shall be subject to a penalty not exceeding $250 or a term of imprisonment not exceeding 15 days, or both, for each and every violation.[1]

Effective date. This section shall take effect immediately upon its adoption and filing in accordance with the provisions of the statutes of the State of New York.

Permit required. No work, other than site clearance and grading, may be performed in the installation or altering of any of the following vehicle access areas, except on the written approval of plans therefor by the Zoning Administrator in conjunction with the issuance of a building or use permit:

Plan required. A plan for proposed improvements shall be prepared at a scale of not more than 50 feet to one inch in a manner specified by the Zoning Administrator. Such plan shall show, at a minimum, the following information, both as existing and proposed for the entire area within 100 feet of the point of entry of access drives or 50 feet from any part of the proposed improvements:

Design standards for vehicle access areas.

Minimum floor area. No single-family dwelling shall henceforth be constructed, nor shall any existing single dwelling be reduced in area, so as to contain less than 800 feet of floor area usable for living purposes and 300 square feet of storage area usable for storage. No dwelling unit in a two-family or multiple-family dwelling shall henceforth be constructed, nor shall an existing dwelling unit in such building be reduced in area, so as to contain less than 600 square feet of floor area usable for living purposes and 100 square feet of floor area usable for storage purposes.

Usable open space. No multiple-family dwelling or dwelling group shall be constructed as a separate use or as part of a building containing commercial or other uses, except there be provided 500 square feet of usable open space on the lot for each dwelling unit.

Community open space. On any lot containing more than 12 dwelling units, there shall be provided a community open space containing not less than 200 square feet of land area per dwelling unit. This space may be counted as part of the required usable open space.

Cellar occupancy prohibited. It shall be unlawful to occupy all or any part of a cellar for sleeping purposes.

Basement occupancy. Any basement area used for living purposes shall have not less than two means of egress, at least one of which shall be a door giving access to an open area whose surface is at least eight inches below the level of the door. Each basement room used for living purposes shall have a window area, opening to the outside, equal to not less than 0.1 of the floor area of such room.

Room size. No dwelling unit shall henceforth be constructed unless it shall have at least one room having a floor area of not less than 132 square feet, a clear height of seven feet and a clear horizontal dimension of at least eight feet. No existing dwelling unit shall be altered so as to provide less than the above standard.

Slope of yards. No building containing dwelling units shall henceforth be constructed, nor shall any existing building be altered, so as to contain dwelling units unless the surface grade of the front yard at the front wall of such building be more than one foot above the established grade of the sidewalk. Where a sidewalk grade has not been established, the surface grade of the front at the front wall of the dwelling shall be not less than one foot above the center line of the street measured at the midpoint between the side lot lines of the lot. Where there is unusual difficulty in meeting this provision, the Zoning Administrator may accept a substitute gradient, provided that no minus gradient is established within 15 feet of the front wall or within six feet of either side of the rear wall of the dwelling.

Stripping of topsoil. No person shall strip, excavate or otherwise remove topsoil for sale or for use other than on the premises from which such topsoil was taken, except in connection with the construction or alteration of a building or structure on such premises for which a building permit has been issued.

Major excavating, grading or filling. Major excavating, grading or filling as defined herein shall not take place in any district, except by a duly constituted public body, unless a special permit therefor has been granted by the Board of Appeals.