Rome City Zoning Code
Complete index of all zoning chapters, sections, and subsections
ARTICLE 1
- GENERAL
Sections
- 1.1.2. - Authority. This Ordinance is adopted under authority of Article IX, Section II, Paragraphs III and IV of the Constitution of the State of Georgia, and pursuant to the Zoning Procedures Law (O.C.G.A. §§ 36-66-1, et seq.) and other applicable laws enacted by the General Assembly. All procedural requirements of O.C.G.A. § 36-66-5 are hereby adopted and included herein by reference.
- 1.2.3. - Effective date. This Ordinance shall take effect for each jurisdiction upon its adoption by, respectively, the City Council and the Board of Commissioners.
- 1.3. - Purpose and intent.
- 1.4.1. - General applicability.
- 1.4.2. - Exemptions.
- 1.4.3. - Nonconforming development. Lawful nonconforming uses, structures, lots and signs are declared by this Ordinance to be incompatible with land uses, structures, lots and signs that conform to the requirements of the zoning districts in which the nonconformity exists.
- 1.5.1. - Responsibility for interpretation.
- 1.5.3. - Use of words and phrases. For the purpose of this Ordinance, the following shall apply to the use of words and phrases:
- 1.5.4. - Meaning of words and phrases.
ARTICLE 2
- PROCEDURES
Sections
- 2.1.2. - Overview—Land development. The following presents a summary of the plans and procedures involved in the land development approval and construction.
- 2.2. - Zoning changes.
- 2.2.1. - Initiation.
- 2.2.2. - Sketch plan.
- 2.2.3. - Process for zoning changes. Before the Governing Body may take final action on a proposed zoning change, the Planning Commission shall hold a public hearing on the proposal.
- 2.2.4. - Standards for zoning changes.
- 2.2.5. - Withdrawal. Any applicant wishing to withdraw a proposed zoning change prior to final action by the Governing Body shall file a written request for withdrawal with the Director of Planning.
- 2.2.6. - Developments of regional impact.
- 2.2.7. - Effect.
- 2.3. - Land development project approval.
- 2.3.1. - Responsibility.
- 2.3.2. - Procedure for project approval.
- 2.3.3. - General standards.
- 2.3.4. - Site plan requirements.
- 2.3.5. - Evidence of project approval. Each site plan shall carry the following certificates printed or stamped on the plat.
- 2.4.1. - General requirements.
- 2.4.2. - Erosion and sediment control plan.
- 2.4.3. - Grading plan.
- 2.4.4. - Buffer plan. A buffer plan shall be prepared for any structural buffer required in accordance with the specifications and standards contained in Article 6 of this Development Code. Plans shall not be required for natural buffers, which are to be shown on the grading plan. The buffer plan shall show:
- 2.5.1. - Responsibility.
- 2.5.3. - Process for approval of development permit. An application for a development permit may proceed simultaneously with an application for site plan, but may not be issued prior to project approval of such plan by the Building Inspection Department.
- 2.5.4. - Required performance surety.
- 2.5.5. - Issuance of development permit.
- 2.5.6. - Expiration of development permit.
- 2.6.2. - Application process for a flood area permit.
- 2.7. - Driveway approval.
- 2.8.1. - Approval of technical codes and supplements for enforcement.
- 2.8.2. - Procedures to obtain a building permit. A building permit issued by the chief building official is required in advance of the initiation of construction, erection, moving or alteration of any building or structure unless such construction, erection, moving or alteration is exempted from permitting requirements by the building codes that have been adopted and are enforced by the City of Rome and Floyd County. No building permit shall be issued and no building shall be erected on any lot in the city or county unless access has been established in accordance with this Development Code. No building permits shall be issued before approval of the final plat. All structures shall comply with the requirements of this Development Code, whether or not a building permit is required.
- 2.8.3. - Certificate of Occupancy.
- 2.9.1. - Building permit required.
- 2.9.2. - Building inspection.
- 2.9.3. - Construction in flood area. Construction of a building for which a flood area permit was issued shall be governed by the following:
- 2.10. - Text amendments.
- 2.10.2. - Text amendment process. Before the Governing Body may take final action on a proposed text amendment, the Planning Commission shall hold a public hearing on the proposal.
- 2.10.3. - Standards for text amendments. The Planning Commission and each Governing Body shall consider the following standards in considering any proposal that would result in a change to the text of this Development Code, giving due weight or priority to those factors that are appropriate to the circumstances of each proposal:
- 2.10.4. - Effect.
- 2.11.1. - Types of appeals. Persons may appeal to the Board of Adjustments for relief under the following circumstances:
- 2.11.2. - Initiation.
- 2.11.3. - Appeals of an administrative decision.
- 2.11.4. - Special exceptions.
- 2.11.5. - Hardship variances.
- 2.11.6. - Flood protection variances.
- 2.11.7. - Process for granting appeals.
- 2.12. - Temporary suspension of permitting.
ARTICLE 3
- ZONING DISTRICTS
Sections
- 3.1.- Purpose of Article 3.
- 3.2.1. - Official Zoning Map.
- 3.2.2. - Changes to Official Zoning Map.
- 3.2.3. - Interpretation of boundaries.
- 3.3.1. - Establishment of districts.
- 3.3.2. - Purpose of zoning districts.
- 3.4. - List of permitted uses.
- 3.5.1 - Minimum lot size. Every property upon which a principal use may be located shall meet or exceed the following requirements for its respective zoning district except that the minimum lot size (square feet) requirements in column three of Table 3-3 shall have application only in the city; everything else in section 3.5.1 shall remain the same. Exception: The minimum lot size (square feet) requirements in column three of Table 3-3 shall not apply to a subdivision of land in designated redevelopment districts in the City of Rome.
- 3.5.2. - Minimum principal building setbacks. All principal buildings on a lot shall be set back from the street rights-of-way lines and property lines bounding the lot no less than the distances shown on the following table:
- 3.6.2. - Exceptions to height restrictions. The following structures are exempt from the height limitations:
ARTICLE 4
- RESTRICTIONS REGARDING PARTICULAR USES
Sections
- 4.1.- Principal uses.
- 4.1.1. - Agricultural and forestry.
- 4.1.2. - Automotive, truck, boat and trailer sales and service.
- 4.1.3. - Churches and other religious facilities.
- 4.1.5. - Communications, radio and TV towers. All towers must be set back from any adjacent (next to or across the street) lot or unrelated structure a distance equal to the height of the tower. Article 4.1.5 shall not have application to towers located in the County.
- 4.1.9. - Day care and kindergartens.
- 4.1.10. - Dry cleaning plants.
- 4.1.11. - Lodging.
- 4.1.12. - Manufactured homes. These regulations shall govern the use and operation of all manufactured homes used for residential purposes and manufactured home communities within the County. It is the intent of these regulations to empower the Planning Commission, the Fire Department, the County Health Department, and the Building Inspection Department to review the development of manufactured home sites and parks within the county for the purposes stated in this article.
- 4.1.13. - Personal care homes.
- 4.1.14. - Photographic studio.
- 4.1.15. - Quarrying and mining.
- 4.1.16. - Recreation and entertainment.
- 4.1.17. - Repair services.
- 4.1.19. - Sewage treatment plants.
- 4.1.22. - Temporary sales office for a subdivision. A temporary sales office, where otherwise allowed, shall meet the following criteria:
- 4.1.23. - Townhouse subdivisions. Townhouse developments in which each dwelling unit is to be located on a separate lot must comply with the following minimum requirements:
- 4.1.25. - Veterinary or kennels.
- 4.1.27. - Wholesale trade.
- 4.1.28. - Single-family attached dwelling.
- 4.1.29. - Accessory Dwelling Unit. Where otherwise permitted, an accessory dwelling unit must comply with the following minimum requirements:
- 4.1.30. - Mini-warehouses, adaptive reuses.
- 4.1.31. - Mobile food vehicle park. Mobile food vehicle parks shall comply with the following:
- 4.1.32. - Residential cluster option.
- 4.1.33. - Recreational Vehicle Park or Campgrounds.
- 4.1.34. - Sexually Oriented Businesses (City Only).
- 4.2. - Accessory uses and structures.
- 4.2.1. - Minimum setbacks.
- 4.2.2. - Relationship to principal use.
- 4.2.3. - Customary accessory uses to a dwelling. Each of the following uses is considered to be a customary accessory use to a dwelling and may be situated on the same lot with the principal use to which it serves as an accessory.
- 4.2.4. - Automobile, truck and trailer lease and rentals.
- 4.2.5. - Fences and free-standing walls.
- 4.2.6. - Manufacturing and fabrication uses.
- 4.2.7. - Night watchman residence.
- 4.2.8. - Outdoor display areas.
- 4.2.9. - Outdoor storage. Outdoor storage, where the use is otherwise permitted, is limited as follows:
- 4.2.10. - Private use airport or heliport. As an accessory use approved as a Special Use, a private use airport or heliport shall meet the following minimum standards:
- 4.2.13. - Small wind energy systems.
- 4.2.14. - Mold-poured concrete products.
- 4.2.16. - Distillery, winery, or brewery.
- 4.2.17. - Solar farms and solar panels.
- 4.3. - Highly restricted.
- 4.3.1. - Manufacturing that produces:
- 4.3.2. - Other prohibited industrial uses:
ARTICLE 5
- SIGN REGULATIONS
Sections
- 5.1.1. - Purpose of Article 5. This Article sets out the standards that control the number, type, and placement of signs on an individual property or building. In addition to the general purposes of this Ordinance, the purposes of these sign regulations are as follows:
- 5.2.1. - Regulated signs.
- 5.2.2. - Prohibitions.
- 5.2.3. - Exemptions.
- 5.3.1. - Requirements applying to signs in all zoning districts.
- 5.3.2. - Computation of sign area. In order to determine compliance with the maximum allowable sign areas permitted under this Article, the area of a sign shall be considered the area of the sign structure unless otherwise stated. The area of a sign structure and a sign face shall be computed as follows:
- 5.4.1. - By zoning district. The following table presents the maximum number, size, height, and other restrictions relating to specific signage that are permitted by right in each zoning district.
- 5.4.2. - Additional signage.
- 5.4.3. - Uniform sign plan required.
- 5.4.4. - Modifications to sign restrictions.
- 5.5.1. - Abandonment defined.
- 5.5.2. - Sign removal.
ARTICLE 6
- SUBDIVISION AND PROJECT STANDARDS
Sections
- 6.1.1.- Purpose of Article 6. This Article sets out:
- 6.1.3.- Standards incorporated by reference
- 6.1.4.- Subdivision development overview.
- 6.2.- Preliminary plat and development plan approval for subdivisions.
- 6.2.1.- Responsibility.
- 6.2.2.- Procedure for project approval.
- 6.2.3.- General standards.
- 6.2.4.- Preliminary plat requirements.
- 6.2.5.- Development plan requirements.
- 6.2.6.- Evidence of project approval. Each preliminary subdivision plat shall carry the following certificates printed or stamped on the plat.
- 6.2.7.- Issuance of development permit.
- 6.3.1.- Responsibility.
- 6.3.2.- Procedures for final plat approval.
- 6.3.3.- General standards.
- 6.3.4.- Final plat requirements. The final subdivision plat shall contain the following information:
- 6.3.5.- Private subdivision requirements. In addition to all other requirements of this Section, private subdivisions shall comply with the following:
- 6.3.6.- Surveyor and owner certificates. Each Final Subdivision Plat shall carry the following certificates printed or stamped on the plat and signed and dated in black ink.
- 6.3.8.- Certificate of final subdivision plat approval. The following shall be stamped or printed on the final subdivision plat for execution upon its approval by the Planning Commission.
- 6.4.2.- Minimum requirements. The following improvements shall be provided by the developer or at the developer's expense in every subdivision or development.
- 6.4.3.- Private subdivisions. Private subdivisions shall meet all requirements and standards that apply to public subdivisions except as follows:
- 6.4.5.- Streets.
- 6.4.6.- Guarantee in lieu of completed improvements.
- 6.4.7.- Acceptance of public improvements.
- 6.5.2.- Conformance to the Comprehensive Plan.
- 6.5.4.- Blocks.
- 6.5.5.- Lots.
- 6.5.6.- Streets.
- 6.6.1.- Street access and right-of-way.
- 6.6.3.- Sidewalks.
- 6.6.4.- Curb and gutter.
- 6.6.5.- Easements. Easements shall be required in connection with subdivisions or developments for the following purposes, among others:
- 6.6.6.- Utilities.
- 6.6.7.- Pavement cuts.
- 6.6.8.- Lighting. To reduce light trespass, obtrusive light, and light pollution; to conserve energy and resources; to reduce extreme variations of illumination, to which elderly drivers are particularly sensitive; and enhance enjoyment of the night sky, the following standards shall apply to all exterior lighting with an illumination level about 230 lumens in residential zones and 500 lumens (600 lumens for fluorescent) in nonresidential zones:
- 6.6.9.- Cemeteries and burial grounds.
- 6.7.1.- General.
- 6.7.2.- Minimum width of right-of-way.
- 6.7.3.- Vertical and horizontal alignment of streets.
- 6.7.4.- Dead-end streets.
- 6.7.5.- Alleys and service drives. Alleys may be provided in residential blocks where the subdivider produces evidence satisfactory to the planning commission of the need for alleys. Where an alley has been specifically authorized or required by the Building Inspection Department, it shall comply with the following minimum design standards:
- 6.7.6.- Half streets. Half streets are prohibited. Whenever a street is planned adjacent to the proposed subdivision tract boundary, the entire street right-of-way shall be platted within the proposed subdivision.
- 6.7.7.- Pavement design.
- 6.7.8.- Curb and gutter.
- 6.7.9.- Storm drainage.
- 6.7.10.- Curb ramp design standards. In order to comply with the curb ramp design standards established by the Americans with Disabilities Act, all new construction funded by the City of Rome shall require installation of curb ramps. All new private commercial development, multi-family development, and residential subdivision development shall require curb ramp installation. When existing sidewalks or intersections are disturbed by utility repair or installation, curb ramps shall be installed, and existing curb ramps shall be repaired.
- 6.8.- Off-street parking.
- 6.8.1.- Central business district and urban mixed use parking.
- 6.8.3.- Combination of required parking spaces. The required parking spaces for any number of separate uses may be combined in one lot but the required spaces assigned to each use may not be assigned to another use, except as follows:
- 6.8.4.- Proximity of off-street parking spaces to use.
- 6.8.5.- Requirements for design of parking lots.
- 6.8.6.- Off-street parking requirements by use. In all zoning districts other than the C-B-C zoning district, the minimum number of off-street parking spaces required for each type of land use shall be determined by the following, in addition to the number of spaces required for handicapped parking:
- 6.9.2.- Access easement provisions.
- 6.9.3.- Relief. The Governing Body's Manager or Director of Public Works or their designee may grant an exception to the requirements of this article upon a determination that the proposed land use is such that adverse impact of the required easement on use of the property would outweigh the reduced impact on the public street provided by the reciprocal easements; or that changes in grade or other physical obstacles make interparcel connection unreasonable.
- 6.10.1.- Approval required. No curbs or medians on public streets or rights-of-way shall be cut or altered for access without a curb cut permit issued by Public Works Department.
- 6.10.2.- Driveway connections.
- 6.10.3.- Limitations on access.
- 6.10.4.- Swale ditches within unincorporated areas of the county.
- 6.11.- Sight triangle.
- 6.12.1.- General.
- 6.12.5.- Slopes and shoulder improvements.
- 6.12.6.- Street construction and utilities.
- 6.12.7.- Traffic control devices and street lights.
- 6.13.1.- Exemptions.
- 6.13.2.- Minimum requirements for erosion and sedimentation control.
- 6.14.- Flood damage prevention.
- 6.15.1.- Applicability and exemptions.
- 6.15.3.- Stormwater Management Plan.
- 6.15.4.- Hydrologic and hydraulic analysis.
- 6.15.5.- Stormwater detention facilities.
- 6.15.6.- Maintenance responsibilities.
- 6.15.7.- Stormwater performance surety.
- 6.15.8.- Acceptance of facilities.
- 6.15.11.- NPDES requirements. All construction of off-site or on-site improvements shall adhere to National Pollution Discharge Elimination system (NPDES) best management practices to prevent deleterious material or pollutants from entering the City or County storm drain systems.
- 6.16.1 - Buffers required. A buffer shall be required in any multi-family or nonresidential development project along a side or rear lot line that abuts a less intense zoning district, as follows:
- 6.16.2.- Buffer design standards.
- 6.16.3.- Minimum buffer requirements. A buffer required by this Ordinance shall meet the following criteria:
- 6.16.4.- Buffer modifications.
- 6.17.1.- Landscape strips.
- 6.17.2.- Parking lot trees. Deciduous shade trees shall be provided within any parking lot designed or intended to accommodate five cars or more, in accordance with the requirements of this Section.
- 6.17.3 - Landscaping plan. For each multi-family residential and nonresidential development where front yard or side yard landscaping is required, a landscaping plan shall be approved as part of the permitting process. The landscaping plan shall show all existing and proposed features, including trees, buffer, and other relevant features of the landscape that will be part of the final landscape design. Native plan materials, protection of existing trees and vegetation, and retention of existing natural features should be integrated into the landscaping plan to the maximum extent possible.
- 6.18.1.- Applicability.
- 6.18.2.- Measurement standard: "Tree units."
- 6.18.3.- Significant tree: Defined.
- 6.18.4.- Number of trees upon completion of development.
- 6.18.5.- Criteria for replacement trees.
- 6.19.1.- Watershed protection.
- 6.19.2.- River corridor buffer.
- 6.19.3.- Wetlands protection.
- 6.19.4.- Groundwater recharge area protection.
- 6.20.2.- Applicability. The Residential Cluster Subdivision Option is available for the following zoning districts:
- 6.20.4.- Land reserve area requirement.
- 6.20.5.- Development standards.
- 6.20.6.- Required documents. An application for Planning Commission approval of the cluster option subdivision shall include the following documents. Planning Department Staff shall ensure the completeness of the submitted documents.
- 6.20.9.- Variances and special exceptions. Not withstanding the provisions of Article 2.11, variances, special exceptions, or appeals from any of the requirements, standards, and conditions of this article must be approved by the Planning Commission.
ARTICLE 7
- ADMINISTRATION AND ENFORCEMENT
Sections
- 7.1.- Purpose of Article 7.
- 7.2. - Schedules and fees.
- 7.3.2. - Membership of the planning commission.
- 7.3.3. - Organization of the planning commission.
- 7.3.4. - Proceedings of the planning commission.
- 7.3.5. - Powers and duties of the planning commission.
- 7.4.1. - Establishment.
- 7.4.2. - Proceedings of the Board of Adjustments.
- 7.4.3. - Powers and duties of the Board of Adjustments.
- 7.5.1. - Enforcement officer.
- 7.5.2. - Land development activities.
- 7.5.3. - Land use and site design standards.
- 7.6.1. - Penalties for land development violations.
- 7.6.2. - Penalties for violation of land use provisions or site design standards.
ARTICLE 9
- OVERLAY ZONING DISTRICTS
Sections
- 9.1.- Purpose of article.
- 9.2. - Establishment and designation.
- 9.3.3. - South Rome Overlay District Defined. The South Rome Overlay District shall include that property designated by the City of Rome as the South Rome Redevelopment Area. The overlay district shall be further divided into six distinct redevelopment areas: Hillsboro Residential Neighborhood, Etowah Heights Area, Blacks Bluff Neighborhood, Northern Commercial Mixed-use, Central Commercial Mixed-use, and Southern Commercial Mixed-use.
- 9.3.4. - Underlying Zoning Districts in Designated Areas. This section establishes appropriate underlying zoning district designations for each redevelopment area. Underlying zoning districts are shown in Table 9-1.
- 9.3.5. - Design Requirements in Designated Areas.
- 9.3.6. - Permitted Uses in Designated Areas.