Rockaway City Zoning Code
ARTICLE V
Residence Districts
§ 172-50 Permitted principal uses.
[Amended 5-14-1998 by Ord. No. 5-98; 11-10-2022 by Ord. No. 25-22; 9-11-2025 by Ord. No. 25-19]
The following shall be permitted principal uses in residence districts:
A.
Single-family dwellings in the R-1, R-2, R-3, and R-4 Districts.
B.
Two-, three-, and four-family dwellings in the R-4 District only.
C.
Garden apartments in the R-4 and R-5 Districts only.
D.
Home occupation for professional and medical offices in the R-1, R-2, and R-3 Districts only residing on the premises, provided that not more than 1/2 the floor area of one story of the dwelling is devoted to such use. This shall not be construed to permit funeral parlors or undertaking establishments. There shall be no display other than signs as permitted in Article IV, Signs.
E.
Public parks and playgrounds.
F.
(Reserved)
G.
Community residences and shelters for the developmentally disabled, for victims of domestic violence, for persons with head injuries and for the terminally ill pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-66.1.
H.
Family day-care homes per N.J.S.A. 40:55D-66.5b.
§ 172-51 Permitted accessory uses.
The following shall be permitted accessory uses in residence districts:
D.
Private swimming pools; provided, however, that said pool shall not be closer than 10 feet to any side or rear lot line and, on corner lots, no part of any private swimming pool shall be constructed within the required front yard setback for either street.
(1)
Artificial lights used or maintained in connection with a private swimming pool shall be so located and the illumination shielded so that the direct source of light is not visible from any adjacent property.
(2)
No private swimming pool shall be used other than as an accessory use to the permitted principal residential use.
F.
Customary and usual residential storage structures.
G.
Customary and usual residential appurtenances and structures such as patios, fireplaces, trellises, lamp posts and the like.
I.
Accessory uses customarily incident to the above uses, provided that they do not include any activity commonly conducted for gain unless specifically permitted in this section.
§ 172-52 Conditional uses.
[Amended 12-15-1997 by Ord. No. 14-97; 11-10-2022 by Ord. No. 25-22]
A.
The following shall be conditionally permitted uses in all Residence Districts, subject to compliance with the following requirements for each principal building:
C.
Public and private schools teaching academic subjects.
D.
Public libraries.
E.
Public utility facilities.
F.
Townhouse developments in the R-4 and R-5 Zone Districts only in compliance with § 172-55, Requirements for townhouses.
G.
Community residences and shelters for the developmentally disabled, community residences and shelters for victims of domestic violence and community residences and shelters for persons with head injuries pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-66.1 of the Municipal Land Use Law.
§ 172-53 Compliance with scheduled requirements.
§ 172-54 Requirements for garden apartments.
The following requirements shall apply to all garden apartment developments:
A.
Utilities. Each development shall be connected to the public sanitary sewer and water systems, as approved by the Borough Engineer. Fire hydrants shall be installed by the developer in adequate numbers and at locations recommended by the Borough Engineer.
B.
Height. No building containing apartment units shall exceed two stories in height; provided, however, that in no event shall any apartment structure exceed 35 feet in height.
C.
Yards. No building containing apartment units shall be closer than 35 feet to any abutting street right-of-way line nor closer than 35 feet to any other property line. Accessory structures and parking lots in the side and rear yards are permitted, provided that no accessory structure or parking lot is permitted in the driveway or a front yard.
D.
Distance between buildings. There shall be a minimum distance of 30 feet between all buildings containing apartments; provided, however, that no dimension of an open courtyard formed by either one building or a group of buildings shall be less than 60 feet. A minimum distance of 15 feet is required between accessory structures.
E.
Density. Each development shall have not less than 4,000 square feet average lot area per dwelling unit.
F.
Lot area. Each development shall have a minimum lot area of 48,000 square feet.
G.
Units per building. No garden apartment building shall contain more than 12 dwelling units.
H.
Parking. Each development shall meet the off-street parking provisions of § 172-114, Off-street automobile parking requirements.
[Amended 12-14-2023 by Ord. No. 23-24]
I.
Rooms. Each development shall meet the following requirements:
J.
Floor area. All dwelling units shall conform to the following minimum floor area requirements exclusive of porches, staircases, basements, breezeways, balconies and attached garages:
K.
Location. No dwelling unit shall be located above the second story of any structure.
L.
Facilities.
(1)
Each dwelling unit shall contain complete cooking, toilet and bathing facilities. Bedrooms shall be separately partitioned and enclosed.
(2)
Each dwelling structure shall contain readily accessible interior storage area, exclusive of any closets, of at least 500 cubic feet per dwelling unit.
(3)
Each dwelling structure shall contain clothes washing and drying areas of at least 10 square feet of floor area per dwelling unit.
M.
Landscaping and screening.
(1)
All outdoor areas shall be landscaped as required by the Land Use Board at site plan approval. All parking, service and storage areas for trash and recyclables shall be adequately screened and shielded from adjacent residential areas and located on the site as approved by the Land Use Board.
[Amended 12-13-2012 by Ord. No. 26-12]
(2)
Interior development roads and pedestrian walks shall be provided with shade trees. Open spaces adjacent to and between buildings, border strips along interior development roads and areas along the side of pedestrian walks shall be graded and seeded to provide a thick stand of grass or other plant material ground cover. Approaches to garden apartment dwelling structures and entrance areas shall be attractively shrubbed.
N.
Lighting. Site lighting shall be provided to illuminate the premises at night and all wiring shall be laid underground. All lighting fixtures shall be so located and shielded so that the direct source of light is not visible from any residential areas as approved by the Land Use Board.
[Amended 12-13-2012 by Ord. No. 26-12]
O.
Architecture and construction. The architecture employed shall be aesthetically congruous with the surrounding area, as approved by the Land Use Board. All buildings shall be constructed in accordance with the Uniform Construction Code.[1]
[Amended 12-13-2012 by Ord. No. 26-12]
(1)
The exterior of each building wall of each garden apartment dwelling structure shall be of solid brick or stone, brick, stone, aluminum or vinyl facing or other comparable durable building materials as permitted by the Uniform Construction Code and as approved by the Land Use Board. Exposed cinder block shall not be used for the exterior facing of any structure.
(2)
The exterior of all accessory structures shall harmonize architecturally with and be constructed of materials of a like character to those used in principal structures.
(3)
All stairways shall be constructed and contained within the apartment buildings.
(4)
There shall be between each garden apartment dwelling unit a soundproof fire wall constructed according to the specifications approved by the Borough Engineer and Construction Official as set forth in the Uniform Construction Code.
(5)
Each structure containing one or more dwelling units shall be provided with more than one exterior entrance from said structure.
P.
Trash disposal. Every garden apartment development shall provide for a screened and accessible dumpster area for regular trash and garbage disposal. In addition, there shall be provided on each site separate containers or bins for residents to deposit glass, aluminum, newsprint and other recyclables to comply with mandatory recycling regulations.
§ 172-55 Requirements for townhouses.
[Amended 12-13-2012 by Ord. No. 26-12]
Townhouses shall be permitted as a conditional use within the R-4, R-5, O-B and H-C Zone Districts of the Borough of Rockaway. Townhouse developments shall be subject to site plan review and approval by the Land Use Board and subject to the following development standards and conditions:
Bulk and Dimensional Requirements | ||
|---|---|---|
Minimum | Tract | Individual Lots |
Tract size | 2 acres | -- |
Lot area | -- | 2,000 square feet2 |
Lot width | 250 feet1 | 20 feet2 |
Lot depth | 250 feet | 100 feet2 |
Front yard | 60 feet | 25 feet2 |
Side yard | 25 feet | 20 feet2,3 |
Rear yard | 50 feet | 25 feet2 |
Maximum | Tract | Individual Lots |
|---|---|---|
Building coverage | 20% | 50% |
Site coverage | 40% | 70% |
Density (d.u./ac.) | 64 | 1 |
Building height | 35 feet | 35 feet |
Building length | 160 feet | -- |
1Notes: The minimum tract lot width of 250 feet shall be measured at the required front yard setback and at the tract's street frontage. In no event shall the average tract lot width be less than 200 feet, which shall be measured within the minimum required lot depth of 350 feet. |
2These figures apply to the individual lots for each townhouse unit. In the event that the individual dwelling unit lots are not to be subdivided in fee simple but are to be part of a condominium association arrangement or part of a rental plan, the required area for each dwelling unit shall be designated on the site plan as an imaginary line conforming to the lot requirements indicated. |
3The minimum side yard requirements for individual townhouse lots apply only to end units on the buildings. |
4If the computation of maximum site density results in a fraction of a dwelling unit of 0.5 or greater, the total may be rounded to the next higher number to permit a full unit. |
§ 172-56 Site design and performance standards.
A.
Architectural compatibility.
(1)
Each development shall have a compatible architectural theme throughout. The developer shall indicate to the Land Use Board how the following considerations have been incorporated into the design:
[Amended 12-13-2012 by Ord. No. 26-12]
(a)
Landscaping and buffering techniques.
(b)
Building orientation to the site and to other structures.
(c)
Topography.
(d)
Natural features such as wooded areas.
(e)
Drainage courses.
(f)
Soil conditions, including susceptibility to erosion.
(g)
Topographic relief.
(h)
Individual dwelling unit design in townhouses or the design of segments of individual structures in apartments, such as varying unit widths, staggering unit setbacks, different exterior materials, changing roof lines and roof designs, altering building heights and changing types of windows, shutters, doors, porches, colors and vertical or horizontal orientation of the facades singularly or in combination.
(2)
All buildings shall be compatibly designed architecturally whether constructed all at one time or in stages over a period of time.
B.
Those portions of all front, rear and side yards that are not used for off-street parking shall be attractively planted with trees, shrubs, plants and grass lawns and shall be continuously maintained.
C.
Buffering shall be provided as follows:
(1)
Buffer strip. A landscaped buffer strip shall be established and maintained along all tract property lines. Such buffer strips shall be a minimum of 15 feet in width, except that a buffer strip along the front tract line shall be a minimum of 20 feet in width.
(2)
Screening and buffer strip. Whenever a townhouse development permitted herein abuts any single-family residential zone or use or any nonresidential use, the buffer strip required shall also contain screening such as dense hedges, decorative fencing or landscaped earth berms. Whenever a buffer strip is required it shall:
(a)
Be landscaped by the planting of grass and/or ground cover, shrubs and trees. Two shrubs and one tree shall be provided for each 500 square feet of area, or fraction thereof, of the buffer strip. If the buffer strip is naturally wooded in its entire width, it shall remain in its natural condition in place of the required shrubs and trees, and a perpetual conservation easement created to assure that the area will remain in its natural state.
(b)
Not contain parking areas or other accessory structures or uses except for decorative purposes or passive recreational purposes. Driveways necessary to serve off-street parking are permitted to cross required buffer strips.
(c)
Screening. Whenever screening is required, it shall, as a minimum, consist of dense hedges of deciduous, and at least 50% evergreen shrubbery, planted at 30 on center in a single row or at five feet on center in each of two staggered rows. If all evergreens are used, they may be planted at five feet on center in a single row or at 10 feet on center in each of two staggered rows. Plants shall be a minimum of six feet tall at the time of planting or, subject to Land Use Board approval, a solid fence or naturally durable material, such as cedar, cypress or redwood, not less than five feet tall and open to the ground not more than four inches above ground level, may be installed; or, subject to Land Use Board approval, a landscaped earth berm not less than five feet in height may be constructed.
[Amended 12-13-2012 by Ord. No. 26-12]
D.
Shade trees. Shade trees shall be planted along all public streets and interior drives of townhouse developments as follows:
(1)
Trees shall be of nursery stock of an approved species, grown under the same climatic conditions as found at the location of the development. Trees shall be of symmetrical growth, free of insect pests and disease, suitable for street use and durable under the maintenance contemplated.
(2)
The average trunk diameter measured at a height of six feet above the finished grade level shall be a minimum of two to three inches, depending on good practice with reference to the particular species planted. Trees shall be planted at intervals of 40 to 50 feet apart, depending upon the species, along both sides of the street or drive, as the case may be.
(3)
All planting shall be done in conformance with good nursery and landscape practice.
E.
Planting strips and islands. All planting strips or islands within street rights-of-way and interior site areas shall be finish-graded, properly prepared and seeded or sodded with lawn grass in conformance with good nursery and landscape practice. In the alternative, for maintenance purposes, they may be landscaped and stabilized with appropriate ground cover, decorative stone, bark or other suitable material as will be approved by the Land Use Board.
[Amended 12-13-2012 by Ord. No. 26-12]
F.
Off-street parking. No parking space shall be located within 15 feet of any side or rear property line of the tract nor within 20 feet of the front property line of any tract. All parking areas shall be designed in conformity with the requirements of Chapter 171, Land Subdivision and Site Plan Review, and § 172-114, Off-street automobile parking requirements.
[Amended 11-10-2022 by Ord. No. 25-22; 12-14-2023 by Ord. No. 23-24]
G.
Site lighting.
(1)
Site lighting shall be provided in all areas of townhouse developments which are accessible to the public as follows:
Area/Use | Average Maintained Footcandles |
|---|---|
Parking lots and access drives | 0.4 to 1.0 |
Pedestrian ways and sidewalks | 0.5 |
(2)
All lighting from fixtures shall be shielded and cutoff at property lines adjoining residential zones and areas so that the lamp or refractor is not visible from these areas or adjoining roadways. All sky-glow effects shall be prohibited. The maximum permissible luminaire mounting height shall not exceed 15 feet above ground level.
H.
Public utilities. Each townhouse development shall be served by public water and sewers. All electrical utilities, phone, CATV or other utility services shall be installed underground. Any public water, sewer or drainage utility easement shall be a minimum of 20 feet in width. All other utility easements shall be located and dimensioned in consultation with the companies or agencies providing the service.
I.
Trash disposal. Each townhouse development shall provide for a screened and accessible dumpster area for regular trash and garbage disposal. In addition, there shall be provided on each site separate containers or bins for residents to deposit glass, plastic, aluminum and newsprint and other recyclables to comply with mandatory recycling regulations.