(a)

The provisions of this article shall apply in the business district B-2 and, as used in this article, the words "this district" shall mean the business district B-2.

(b)

The purpose of this district is to provide sufficient space for a wide variety of business, commercial, industrial and miscellaneous service activities.

(a)

In the general business district B-2, structures and land shall be used for one or more of the following uses:

(1)

Retail sales including antiques, reproductions, art galleries, wearing apparel, appliance sales with accessory services, groceries, books, magazines, cards, cameras, florists, gifts and souvenirs, hardware and paint stores with no outside storage, hobby and crafts, household furnishings, furniture, jewelry, music, records, video tapes, pharmacy and drugstores, radio and TV sales with accessory service, sporting goods, tobacco products, toys, gourmet items, health foods, candy, specialty foods, bakery, delicatessen, ice cream shops, liquor stores, bait, tackle and marine supplies with no outside storage, office equipment and supplies, pet store with no outside kennels, bike store with accessory service, piece goods, sewing supplies, optical goods, health aids and appliances, fish and seafood (retail only), department, variety, discount stores, auto parts and accessories (new only), shopping centers.

(2)

Business, professional and professional services including barber[shops] and beauty shops, broadcasting studio without on-site towers, apparel services such as dry cleaning pickup, laundromat, tailor, or shoe repair, funeral home, photographic studio and processing, repair of household items, banks and financial institutions, professional offices, business offices, hotels or motels, sitdown restaurants without drive-in facilities, tool and equipment rental without outside storage or display, music, dance, crafts, arts and similar instructional studios, interior decorators (but not paint contractors), upholstery shops.

(3)

Plant nursery, greenhouse, or landscaping contracting and storage, garden supply store.

(4)

Meeting halls, recreational or social uses operated by social, fraternal, civic, public or similar organizations.

(5)

Preschools, day care centers, nursery schools, technical, vocation or business schools.

(6)

Places of worship including accessory parochial schools, day care centers, and cemeteries.

(7)

Medical care facilities including hospitals and trauma centers.

(8)

Post office, government offices, library, museum, public safety facilities.

(9)

The outdoor display and sale of seasonal items, when deemed by the zoning administrator as an accessory use to a primary commercial use; as a primary use by a bona fide non-profit civic group organized and located in the City of Poquoson; or by a farmer's fruit or produce stand.

(10)

Private clubs, indoor theaters, health, exercise and fitness centers, bowling alley, skating rink, swimming pool, tennis or racquet sport facilities, whether indoor or outdoor.

(11)

Wires, poles, towers, pipes, meters and similar facilities which provide service connection between primary distribution lines or mains and individual residential, commercial, or industrial customers, or which are an integral and accessory part of subdivision or development, and sewage pump and lift stations.

(12)

Restaurants with drive-in facilities, if surrounded by commercially zoned parcels.

(13)

Storage yards meeting the following conditions:

a.

All site design standards shall be met;

b.

A storage yard is to be screened from public view on all sides by solid wood, vinyl, masonry fencing or other material deemed appropriate by the zoning administrator with a minimum height of six feet but not to exceed eight feet. Evergreens or shrubbery suitable for the purpose of screening and pursuant to article X, section 10-8 of this ordinance may also be used to meet this requirement. All required screening shall be continuously maintained in good condition to assure that its intended purpose is accomplished. This requirement may be waived by the zoning administrator based upon unique site conditions;

c.

For storage yards abutting a public or private street or a residential district, a 15-foot landscaped buffer shall be maintained between any required method of screening and the property line abutting the public or private street and/or residential district in accordance with article X, section 10-8 of this ordinance;

d.

For uses abutting residential districts no outdoor activity may be conducted between the hours 9:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.;

e.

Parking areas, if required, shall be surfaced in accordance with the city's site plan ordinance;

f.

Storage yard areas shall be surfaced with a dust free material;

g.

Material kept within a storage yard must be screened from public view in its entirety. Equipment and vehicles kept within the storage yard must be screened at 55 percent to be determined by height at the highest point;

h.

Vehicles and equipment kept within storage yards must be kept in good repair and working condition. Abandoned and/or unlicensed vehicles or equipment will not be permitted;

i.

Materials used for fencing shall be of a natural wood or neutral earth tone color, as provided for in the architectural review board's adopted color palette;

j.

Storage yards shall in no instance be located in a required front yard area and shall meet all front yard setback requirements;

k.

If any of the aforementioned conditions cannot be met, a property owner may file a conditional use permit pursuant to article I, section 1-7 of the zoning ordinance;

l.

Other conditions may be determined necessary by the zoning administrator.

(14)

Craft/micro brewery.

(15)

Brewpub.

(b)

In the B-2 general business district structures and land to be used for one or more of the following uses shall be permitted only after the issuance of a conditional use permit using the procedures in section 1-7 of this ordinance [appendix]. If a proposed use cannot be made acceptable through the establishment of conditions, a conditional use permit request may be denied by city council.

(1)

Auction establishments.

(2)

Hardware stores or tool and equipment rental shops with outside storage.

(3)

Lumberyards and building material sales.

(4)

Convenience stores.

(5)

Animal hospitals or veterinary clinic.

(6)

Automobile repair garages, rental and service establishments (including for motorcycles or recreational vehicles), automobile fuel and service station with minor repairs and gasoline stations without service bays.

(7)

Publishing, printing or engraving establishments.

(8)

Temporary uses such as carnival, circus, fair, or festival.

(9)

Open-air markets.

(10)

Amusement arcade, video game, pool, or billiard parlors.

(11)

Boat, farm equipment, mobile home sales or service.

(12)

Small engine repair.

(13)

Restaurants with drive-in facilities located adjacent to residentially zoned parcels.

(14)

Car wash.

(15)

Mini-storage warehouses.

(16)

Plumbing, electrical, mechanical, home improvement, painting, general contractor's shops and storage yards.

(17)

Cabinet maker's shops.

(18)

Utility transmission facilities other than normal distribution facilities, including telephone exchanges, pipelines, high voltage power lines, transmission lines and towers exceeding 40 feet in height, electric substations, distribution centers and/or transformer stations, water storage towers, and radio, television and microwave facilities exceeding 50 feet in height.

(19)

Marina.

(c)

The zoning administrator may allow a use which is not specifically permitted, provided that the use is similar in character to other uses which are listed as permitted. Specific characteristics which should be reviewed for similarity with those of permitted uses include locational requirements, operational characteristics, visual impact, and traffic generation. Appeals from the decision of the zoning administrator shall be as generally provided in section 1-4.

(Ord. No. 666, § 1, 2-24-1987; Ord. No. 1273, § 1, 5-29-2007; Ord. No. 1363, § 1, 4-12-2010; Ord. No. 1382, § 1, 2-28-2011; Ord. No. 1457, § 1, 4-22-2013; Ord. No. 1611, § 2, 3-25-2019; Ord. No. 1684, § 2, 5-24-2021)

Signs meeting the requirement of the sign ordinance [appendix D] of the City of Poquoson shall be permitted in this district.

(Ord. No. 550, § 3, 7-24-1984)

There are no area regulations for this district, except for off-street parking, which shall be in accordance with the provisions contained in this ordinance.

Setback lines in this district shall be no less than 80 feet from the center of any street right-of-way or no less than 50 feet from the edge of any street right-of-way, whichever is the greater of the two. No structure shall be located closer to the street than the setback line, except that signs which meet the requirements of the sign ordinance [appendix D] may be located in the front yard. In addition, unmanned accessory structures operated by a business having tenancy in the same shopping center complex, regardless of ownership of different parcels, may be located in the front yard.

(Ord. No. 549, § 6, 7-24-1984; Ord. No. 641, § 1, 9-23-1986; Ord. No. 710, § 1, 2-8-1988; Ord. No. 1653, § 1, 8-10-2020)

(a)

In this district, buildings may be erected up to 35 feet in height from the grade.

(b)

Church spires, belfries, cupolas, monuments, cooling towers, chimneys, flues, flagpoles, television antennae and radio aerials are exempt from this section.

The following requirements shall apply in this district:

(1)

There shall be a side yard not less than 15 feet in width on the side of a lot adjoining a residential district.

(2)

There shall be a rear yard not less than 30 feet in depth on the rear side of a lot adjoining a residential district.

(a)

Landscaping may be required within any established or required front setback area in this district. The plans and execution must take into consideration traffic hazards.

(b)

Sufficient area shall be provided to adequately screen permitted uses in this district from residential districts and for off-street parking incidental to the industry and its employees and clients.

(c)

Any such buffer zone required shall be of such width and length as may be necessary to adequately screen the property involved and be planted with suitable shrubbery, evergreens or trees having a height of not less than six feet at the time of the planting thereof. The expense for any such buffer zone shall be paid by the landowner of the property upon which the buffer zone is located. Upon failure of the landowner to establish and maintain such a buffer zone by and from the time of the completion of any construction for which a permit is issued as to such property, the city may install and maintain such buffer zone and the expenses incurred by the city in so doing shall be chargeable to and paid by the owner of the property and the expenses so incurred shall constitute and be a lien upon the property to be collected by the city as taxes and levies are collected.

(d)

A required buffer zone shall utilize one of the below options and will be considered by the planning commission and city council during site plan or subdivision review: ^[5]

(1)

Suitable shrubbery, evergreens or trees.

(2)

Wood, chainlink fence, cement block, brick or other materials for a fence or wall.

(3)

Any combination of natural and manmade materials.

All permanent buildings in this district must be constructed on the building site using materials of a permanent nature. All other buildings not pertaining to the nature of the intended business use must be removed. Trailers shall not be considered as permanent buildings for business use.

Service drives or other areas shall be provided for off-street loading and in such a way that, in the process of loading or unloading, no truck will block the passage of other vehicles on service drive or extend into any other public or private drive or street used for traffic circulation.

For purposes of safety of travel, there shall be no structures, fences, shrubbery or other obstructions to vision more than 3½ feet above the curb level, within the area enclosed by the property line of corner lots and a line joining points at a distance of ten feet from their intersections.

The following provisions shall apply to shopping centers in this district:

(1)

Permitted uses: Commercial uses serving the needs of a community, such as retail drugstores, department stores, food sales, wearing apparel shops, auto and home appliance services, barber[shops] and beauty shops, offices and personal and professional services. Consideration shall be given to the size, location, service area and traffic patterns of the proposed shopping center.

(2)

In order that the purpose of the shopping center shall be realized, the land and the buildings and appurtenant facilities shall be in a single ownership, or under the management or supervision of a central authority, or they shall be subject to such other supervisory lease, ownership, control or agreement as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this section.

(3)

The aggregate plan area of all buildings proposed shall not exceed 25 percent of the entire lot area of the project. All buildings shall be located not less than 60 feet from all street lines adjoining the shopping center site. Structures meeting the requirements of Section 10-5 may be located in the front yard.

(4)

Parking spaces shall be provided meeting the requirements of the site plan ordinance.

(5)

The drives, parking areas, loading areas and walks shall be paved with hard all-weather surface material meeting specifications of the zoning administrator.

(6)

Any part of the project area not used for buildings or other structures, loading or accessways shall be landscaped with grass, trees, shrubs or pedestrian walks.

(7)

The shopping center buildings shall be designed and built as a whole, unified and single project, but may, however, be built in stages in accordance with a construction timing schedule approved by the city council. If the approved schedule is not met, the council may, after expiration of a period of three years from the date of final approval of the shopping center in question, study conditions and changes of conditions in the original request and, after a report by the planning commission, the council may reduce the size or eliminate the unfinished portions of the shopping center.

(8)

Before recommending approval of a shopping center, the planning commission may make reasonable additional requirements as to utilities, drainage, landscaping and maintenance thereof, lighting, signs and advertising devices, screening, accessways, curb cuts, traffic control, height of buildings and setback of buildings. If required by the city council, a surety bond shall be filed for, or deposited in escrow with, the city, in a sum sufficient to insure completion of such special requirements as may be imposed by the council.

(Ord. No. 635, § 1, 8-11-1986; Ord. No. 758, § 1, 10-10-1989; Ord. No. 1653, § 1, 8-10-2020)

Signs shall meet the applicable regulations of the sign ordinance, appendix D.