Landscaping requirements. Landscaping requirements are established in order to encourage, a coordinated landscape design incorporating the treatment of all open spaces, walks, access roads and parking areas in the business districts into a continuous, consistent and integrated design. Wherever possible, attractively landscaped open spaces shall be provided which will offer maximum usability to users of buildings and the general public. Such open spaces shall be located so as to take into consideration the existing views and land uses and the creation and preservation of centrally located landscaped areas and plazas. All open spaces, pedestrian walks, parking areas, traffic islands and interior drives shall be designed as an integral part of an overall site design, appropriately related to existing and proposed buildings, structures and open areas and in conformance with the following regulations:
(1) The landscape treatment of plazas, pedestrian areas, courtyards and similar areas shall include a mix of shade trees and other plant materials, such as ground cover and shrubs. Proper and appropriate regard shall be given to microclimate, the function of the landscaped area, aesthetics, existing plantings and required maintenance, in determining the species, scale and planting pattern.
(2) The visual impact of parking areas shall be screened and buffered from street view by interrupting continuous rows of parking spaces with plantings.
(3) Internal landscaping shall cover at least 10% of the area of any open grade-level parking lot of 20 or more spaces. Landscaped areas shall be dispersed throughout the parking lot.
(4) Grade-level parking areas, walks and other surface areas shall offer a variety of colors and textures which are in harmony with the nearby buildings and existing paved areas.
(5) Grade level parking areas shall provide pavement areas that are safe for pedestrian traffic and wheelchair traffic.
(6) Plantings along sidewalks shall occur with regularly spaced indigenous flowering trees, selected with regard to the quality, character and species of existing plantings on the street, the scale of the street, the width of the sidewalk, the need to provide for or maintain visibility of storefronts and the type of pedestrian or vehicular traffic.
(7) Shade trees provided within parking lots shall not be less than three inches in caliper and shall be of species indigenous to New York State.
(8) Flowering trees provided along storefronts and sidewalks shall not be less than two inches in caliper and shall be of species indigenous to New York State.
(9) All tree supplemental and replacement tree plantings shall be at least 10 feet to 12 feet tall and have a caliper of not less than 3 1/2 inches to four inches, unless the specific species indicates otherwise.