Provo City Zoning Code
14.45 R&BPS
Research and Business Park Support Zone
14.45.010 Purpose and Objectives.
(1) The purpose of the Research and Business Park Support (R&BPS) zone is to provide an aesthetically attractive commercial development environment exclusively for the support of an adjacent R&BP zone. It is the intention of this zone to provide the users of the R&BP zone with close, convenient commercial activities i.e., sleeping accommodations, restaurants, banking facilities, limited commercial activities. The general categories of uses allowed within this zone are more limited than other commercial zones. The essential purpose of this district is to achieve commercial development in a park-like setting that will compliment and appear part of the R&BP zone it supports. It should also be an economic asset to the owners, neighbors, and the community. This zone is more restrictive than other commercial zones in the City in order to have buildings which have architectural excellence and similarity with the R&BP zone structures, grounds which have an abundance of landscaping, and land uses which do not create air, ground, noise, and water pollution. The zone may be located adjacent to quality residential development and must be properly screened and beautified to create the highest degree of compatibility with the neighborhood, as well as the R&BP zone. The zone should always be located adjacent to a R&BP zone and a collector or arterial streets. The zone is to be characterized by attractively designed buildings and off-street parking lots situated among lawns, shrubs, and trees which give a “park-like” appearance. It is not the intent of this Chapter that an R&BPS zone should become a strip commercial development. Unless the General Plan calls for a Commercial Center near the R&BP zone boundary, commercial development shall not be allowed, particularly where the R&BP zone is surrounded by residential development.
(2) Objectives. The purpose of this Chapter is to establish rules, regulations, standards, and procedures for approval of all Research and Business Parks Support zones in order to:
(a) Strengthen and sustain the economic potential of the City and to create jobs.
(b) Advance and promote sound growth and the general welfare.
(c) Implement the adopted policies of the Provo City General Plan.
(d) Ensure efficient, safe, and aesthetic land development.
(e) Provide a commercial development that is architecturally and aesthetically pleasing and compatible with the surrounding residential areas and R&BP zones.
(f) Reduce traffic in the area of the R&BP development by providing adjacent commercial services for users of the business park.
(g) Preserve existing natural resources and give proper consideration to the physical constraints of the land.
(h) Provide for safe and efficient vehicular and pedestrian circulation.
(i) Provide for compliance with appropriate design standards to ensure adequate light and air, proper building arrangements, and minimum adverse effect on surrounding property.
(j) Ensure the provision of adequate water supply, drainage and stormwater management, sanitary facilities, and other utilities and services.
(k) Develop proper safeguards to minimize the impact on the environment, including but not limited to air and water pollution, hazardous waste contamination, noise levels, soil erosion and sedimentation, and natural resources preservation.
(Enacted 1994-15)
14.45.020 Permitted Uses.
(1) Permitted Uses. The following principal uses are permitted in the R&BPS zone:
(a) Restaurants, excluding free standing, fast food establishments.
(b) Financial, insurance, and banking services.
(c) Health maintenance and exercise facilities.
(d) Professional, business, and administrative offices.
(e) Day care center.
(f) Off-street parking and parking structures incident to approved uses.
(g) Recreation facilities such as parks, swimming pools, gymnasiums, tennis courts, athletic fields, or similar activities.
(h) Religious activities.
(2) Conditional Uses. The following uses and structures are permitted in the R&BPS zone only after a Conditional Use Permit has been issued, and subject to the terms and conditions thereof and the standards of Section 14.34.250, Provo City Code.
(a) Hotels which are limited to a height of fifteen (15) feet for every one-hundred (100) feet of set-back from a residential zone to a maximum height of ninety (90) feet from grade to the square, or ridge, of the structure (excluding minor projections).
(b) Retail commercial as an accessory use to a hotel or if it can clearly be demonstrated the retail use is a service or convenience to the uses of the business park.
(c) Other Similar and Compatible Uses. Other similar uses not specifically listed above may be approved by the Planning Commission, with the issuance of a conditional use permit, upon findings that the proposed use most closely fits within one of the listed categories, and that any expected impacts will be no greater than that similar use.
(d) 4715 Low Power Radio Communication Towers and Antennas.
(Enacted 1994-15, Am 1997-13, Am 1999-29, Am 2020-53, Am 2021-33)
14.45.040 Design Controls.
(1) Overall unity of site design shall be accomplished through:
(a) Architectural harmony of buildings and structures.
(b) Design integration of the common open space system and storm drainage system.
(c) Unifying themes in an overall landscaping plan, showing landscaped areas, as well as species, size, and numbers of plant materials.
(d) Unified design of street furniture, such as street signs, poles, light standards and luminaries, pedestrian benches, bus shelters, project entrances, perimeter fencing, pavement treatment, plazas, and handicapped curb ramps; housings for power facilities, telephone service boxes, and grouped mail box stanchions; illumination of buildings, outdoor sculptures and statuary, decorative fountains, walkway railings and steps.
(e) All storage of product and material used shall be in a completely enclosed building constructed with the same exterior finish as the main building. Refuse collection shall be conducted in a completely enclosed building constructed with the same exterior finish as the main building.
(f) All utilities shall be placed underground.
(g) All mechanical equipment incidental to any building, including roof mounted mechanical equipment, shall be totally enclosed or screened so as to be an integral part of the architectural design of the building to which it is attached or related.
(h) Loading operations shall either be conducted within the building or be screened so as to not be visible from a public street, and conducted in such a way that in the process of loading or unloading, no vehicle will block the passage of other vehicles on the service drive or extend into any other public or private drive or street used for traffic circulation.
14.45.050 Tract and Lot Area, Yard, Coverage, and Height Requirements.
(1) Perimeter Buffer Yards facing an existing or dedicated exterior access road shall be not less than forty (40) feet in depth.
(a) Screening in this buffer yard shall be accomplished with a landscaped berm at least four (4) feet in height.
(2) Perimeter Buffer Yards adjoining a residential zone boundary shall be not less than twenty-five (25) feet deep if screened with a decorative masonry wall at least six (6) feet high; and if not screened with a decorative wall, such yards shall be not less than one hundred (100) feet deep with landscaped berms at least six (6) feet in height.
(a) In yards where a screening wall is used, there shall be at least ten (10) feet of landscaping on the residential zone side, and at least fifteen (15) feet of landscaping on the business park side. Both areas of landscaping shall be maintained by the Commercial Developer.
(3) Buffer Yard along Provo River. A landscaped buffer yard one hundred (100) feet wide (measured back from the high water mark of each bank) shall be provided and maintained along the banks of the Provo River. This buffer area, if wooded, shall remain wooded, and if open, shall be planted with a mix of trees, grass, and shrubs to allow for adequate screening of view, noise and other activities.
(4) Building Setbacks. Buildings on all lots shall be set back a minimum of forty (40) feet from any dedicated street and twenty (20) feet from any other property line (except one hundred (100) feet when abutting a residential zone boundary).
(5) Required Open Space. All building and parking areas on any lot shall not occupy more than seventy percent (70%) of the total area of the lot. The remaining portion of the lot, not to be less than thirty percent (30%), shall be landscaped.
(6) Height. No lot or parcel of land in the R&BPS zone shall have a building or structure which exceeds a height of three (3) stories with a maximum of forty-five (45) feet and no building that is within one hundred (100) feet of a public street outside the park, or a residential zone boundary line shall be constructed to a height exceeding two (2) stories with a maximum of thirty-five (35) feet. Chimneys, flagpoles, elevator structures, or similar structures not used for human occupancy are excluded in determining height. Hotels as conditional uses shall limited as stated in this Chapter.
(7) Buildings Per Lot. More than one (1) main building may be placed on a lot.
(8) Building Separation. A separation of at least twenty (20) feet shall be maintained between buildings.
14.45.060 Performance Standards.
(1) In the R&BPS District, no permitted or conditional use shall be so conducted as to cause the discharge of any harmful waste materials into or upon the ground; into or within any sanitary or storm sewer system; into or within any water system or water; or into the atmosphere; and no use or activity shall be conducted or permitted which is dangerous or offensive to persons or property by reason of the creation of a fire, explosion, or other physical hazard, or by reason of air pollution, odor, smoke, noise, dust vibration, radiation, or fumes. In addition, no use shall be permitted or conducted where the same creates a public or private nuisance.
(2) Without limiting the generality of the preceding paragraph, the following specific standards shall apply in the R&BP zone:
(a) Incineration. There shall be no incineration on any site of any waste material.
(b) Vibration. There shall be no activity on any site which causes ground vibration which is perceptible, without instruments, at the boundary line of the lot.
(c) Air Pollution. There shall be no emission on any site of air pollutants in excess of levels permitted by the Utah Bureau of Air Quality. Water vapor is not considered a pollutant. The normal venting of a building shall not be prohibited.
(d) Noise. In no event shall the peak intensity of sound exceed a sound level in excess of the following noise limits:
(i) Continuous and intermittent noises shall not exceed 85 dBA during the day, and 55 dBA during the night. “Day” shall be from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. “Night” shall be from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. All measurements shall be taken in accordance with Provo City Code governing Public Disturbances.
(e) Wastes. The quality and nature of industrial wastes shall not overburden the public sewage disposal facilities or cause odor and unsanitary effects beyond the property line. Nor shall such wastes be discharged into the ground, or any surface or subsurface waterways. Disposal of all hazardous wastes shall comply with all applicable federal and state Regulations. Sewage shall also comply with all local, state, and federal regulations.
(f) Stormwater. Stormwater management shall be incorporated into the development plans so that the rate of storm water runoff from the sites will not be increased as a result of the proposed development; the facilities shall be designed to control the storm water runoff from at least a twenty five (25) year return frequency storm as certified by a Professional Engineer.
(Enacted 1994-15)
14.45.070 Parking, Loading and Access Requirements.
(1) Parking Spaces Required. Off-street parking for office space shall be provided at the ratio of three and eighty-five hundredths (3.85) spaces per one thousand (1,000) square feet of gross building floor area, plus one (1) space for each company car parked overnight on the premises.
(2) Parking Layout and Construction Standards. All parking spaces, parking areas and driveways must be constructed in accordance with standards established in 14.37.090, 14.37.100 and 14.37.110.
(3) Parking Setbacks. All parking areas shall be set back a minimum of twenty-five (25) feet from all dedicated public streets and ten (10) feet from all other property lines.
(4) Screening of Parking Areas. A landscaped berm at least four (4) feet high (maximum slope of 1:2.5), or massed plantings of sufficient height shall be utilized to screen and buffer parking and loading areas from adjoining public access streets.
(5) Interior Parking Lot Landscaping. A ten (10) foot wide landscape strip shall be provided between every double loaded row of parking. Planting islands shall be provided throughout the lot at the ends of parking rows. These strips and islands are to be planted with shade trees, low shrubs, and ground cover. Landscaping shall be used to define circulation routes and separate traffic on site for safety, as well as aesthetic purposes.
(6) Structured Parking. Any structured park-in above the finished ground elevation shall have the same setback requirements as outlined for buildings, and shall be architecturally integrated through use of the same or similar materials, colors, rhythm, landscaping, etc.
(7) Structure Height. Freestanding parking structures shall comply with the same height requirements for main buildings.
(8) Emergency Access. Suitable access for emergency equipment shall be provided to all buildings and areas.
(9) Primary Access. Local residential streets shall not be used for access to an R&BPS development. Access must be from a designated collector or arterial street.
14.45.080 Landscaping and Screening.
All landscaping shall be installed and maintained in conformance with a landscape plan which has been approved by the Planning Commission. The following minimum standards have been established to ensure quality and consistent development throughout the Park.
(1) At the time of rezoning and preliminary project plan approval, an overall landscaping plan shall be submitted showing typical landscaping (including type, size, number, and location of plant materials) for the following areas: park entrances, perimeter buffers, open space easements and common areas, and streetscape landscaping. Detailed landscape plans for individual lots shall be submitted at the time of project plan approval for individual buildings. Landscape improvements for common open space features shall be developed at each phase of the project.
(2) A minimum of thirty percent (30%) of the commercial development and individual lots shall be maintained in permanent landscaped open space.
(3) Internal circulation roads shall be landscaped with street trees and streetside planters. A minimum ten (10) foot width shall be landscaped adjoining the right-of-way of any such street or road. The streetscape planting shall be consistent throughout the park to provide a unifying landscape theme. Details for these areas shall be submitted with the overall landscape plan at the time of preliminary plan approval.
(4) Existing significant trees, tree stands, natural vegetation, and wildlife habitat shall be integrated into the site landscape plan to the maximum extent possible. Preliminary landscape plans shall identify all trees five (5) inch caliper or larger.
(5) Landscaped berms shall be constructed along all perimeter public access street frontages.
(a) The height of the berms shall be at least four (4) feet, and shall be sculptured (i.e.,) varied in height, with enclaves, protrusions, etc.
(b) The slope of the berm shall be such as to be mowable with a standard rider mower.
(6) Perimeter Street Trees. Large mature trees should be planted along perimeter public access street frontages.
(a) These trees should be three (3) to five (5) inch caliper trees, planted at least ten (10) feet from the sidewalk.
(b) The recommended species are Sycamore, Shademaster Honey Locust, Sunburst Honey Locust, Little Leaf Linden, or Norway Maple planted thirty-five (35) feet on center.
(7) Tree Distribution. In order to maintain the park-like atmosphere intended for a Research and Business Park Support zone, thirty (20) trees to the acre should be used as a minimum standard in developing the planting plans.
(a) Tree Size. Fifty percent (50%) of the deciduous trees shall be two (2) inch to two and one-half (2.5) inch caliper. Thirty percent (30%) of the deciduous trees shall be one and one-half (1.5) inch to two (2) inch caliper. And twenty percent (20%) of the deciduous trees shall be three (3) inch or more.
(b) No deciduous trees of less than one and one-half (1.5) inch caliper will be accepted, nor will evergreen trees less than six (6) feet in height be accepted. No bare root stock will be accepted.
(8) Shrub Size. The following mix of shrub sizes shall be used to insure a quality landscape: seventy percent (70%) of the shrubs planted shall be at least five (5) gallon size stock. Thirty percent (30%) of the shrubs planted shall be at least one (1) gallon size stock.
(9) Sprinkling and Irrigation. All plantings shall be serviced by an acceptable irrigation or sprinkler system, and maintained in a healthful living condition. Dead plant materials shall be replaced as necessary within the first year of planting.
(10) Landscaping Around Buildings. A perimeter landscape strip at least ten (10) feet wide shall be placed around all buildings (accept for approved walk, patios or similar approved features).
(11) Landscaping Objectives. Landscaping plans shall be prepared with a view toward accomplishing the following design objectives. Plans will be approved or denied based on how well these objectives are satisfied.
(a) Enhance the visual environment by:
(i) Adding visual interest through texture, color, size and shape, etc.
(ii) Enhancing perspective by framing views complimenting architecture, screening and creating points of interest and activity.
(b) Ensure Public Safety by:
(i) Guiding the circulation of cars and people.
(ii) Controlling access to parking lots.
(iii) Making traffic diverters prominent.
(iv) Creating street identification by varying the species, height, and location of landscaping.
(c) Minimize noise and glare.
(d) Conserve energy.
(e) Complement architecture by landscaping around buildings.
(f) Screen areas of low visual interest.
14.45.090 Signs.
All signage shall be installed and maintained in accordance with the standards contained herein.
(1) Only the following signs shall be permitted:
(a) Identification Signs. One (1) identification sign displaying the name and address only may be installed at each entrance to the park. Such signs shall not exceed sixty-four (64) square feet in sign copy area, although the monument may be larger. Such signs shall be set back from street right-of-way lines at least twenty-five (25) feet. This is to be a monument sign on footings and foundation, and shall be an integrated architectural feature of the zone. Pole mounted signs shall not be permitted. Backlit or spot lighting of the sign face is permissible.
(b) Monument Signs. Such signs shall not exceed thirty-two (32) square feet in area. Their maximum height above street grade shall not exceed five (5) feet. Such signs shall be set back from street right-of-way lines at least twenty-five (25) feet.
(c) Building Wall Signs. One (1) building wall identification sign shall be permitted for each building and shall be installed below the roof line. Such signs shall not exceed thirty two (32) square feet in total area as measured by a rectangle around the outside of the lettering and/or the pictorial symbol and calculating the area enclosed by such a line. The sign shall not project more than twelve (12) inches from the face of the building. Painted wall signs shall not be permitted. Only back-lit electronic signs shall be permitted. Non-illuminated or back-lit awnings shall not be permitted.
(d) Real Estate Signs. One (1) temporary sign constructed to advertise the sale or lease of a facility, shall be permitted per tract or lot frontage, and shall not exceed an area of six (6) square feet per lot frontage and thirty-two (32) square feet per tract frontage.
(e) Construction Project Signs. One (1) sign may be erected per park frontage in conjunction with construction projects and used for the purpose of publicizing the future occupants of the building or park. No such sign shall exceed an area of thirty-two (32) square feet and shall be removed before a final inspection is granted by the Building Inspector.
(f) Directional Signs. Directional signs may be erected for the purpose of facilitating or controlling the efficient or safe movement of pedestrians or vehicles on or into private property, and shall be located on the properties to which they pertain. No such sign shall exceed six (6) square feet in area and three (3) feet in height.
(g) Hotel Identification Wall Signs. [This Subsection shall be added by further amendment at a late date.]
14.45.100 Other Requirements.
14.45.110 Project Plan Approval.
(1) Concurrent with any request to rezone property to the R&BPS zone, a preliminary project plan as required by Section 15.03.300, Provo City Code, shall be submitted to the Provo City Planning Commission.
(2) The preliminary project plan shall be submitted to the Municipal Council with any necessary zone changes.
(3) Prior to the construction of any building or structure in the R&BPS zone, a project plan shall be submitted and approved. Said plans shall be drawn to scale, and shall include all information required in Section 15.03.310, Provo City Code, as well as plans for all signs. The developer shall also furnish the City with title insurance for all streets deeded or dedicated to the City in order to guarantee clear title to all public rights-of-way.
(4) Failure to submit a project plan within two (2) years of the approval of the preliminary project plans shall be sufficient cause for the Planning Commission to initiate a review of the PD zoning and the preliminary plan to determine if the prior approvals should be reversed.
14.45.120 Planning Commission Approval.
The Planning Commission shall recommend approval or denial of the zoning petition and preliminary development plan to the Municipal Council. The recommendation of the Planning Commission may contain conditions, limitations, or amendments to the preliminary development plan to insure that the Research and Business Park Support zone is integrated into its surroundings and serves the public interest to the greatest extent possible. The Commission shall be guided in its decision by the policies of the General Plan and the standards and conditions of this Chapter. The Planning Commission shall also review and approve any request for a Conditional Use Permit as provided in Sections 14.45.020(3) and 14.45.050(9), Provo City Code. Approval of a conditional use shall be subject to the standards contained in Section 14.02.040, Provo City Code.
14.45.130 Municipal Council Approval.
The Municipal Council after holding a public hearing may approve or disapprove a petition for a Research and Business Park Support zone. The Council shall be guided in its decision by the policies of the General Plan and the standards and conditions of this Chapter.