Off-street parking and loading for all uses shall be provided as specified in this section.

20.1

Design Standards.

a)

Size. Each individual parking space shall be at least nine (9) feet by eighteen (18) feet.

b)

Accessways. Each parking space shall have direct access to a driveway or maneuvering lane. Accessways or driveways having no adjacent parking shall be at least twelve (12) feet in width for each direction of traffic. The width of accessways having adjacent parking shall be at least twenty-four (24) feet for ninety-degree (90°) parking, eighteen (18) feet for sixty-degree (60°) parking and thirteen (13) feet for forty-five-degree (45°) parking. Access to sixty-degree (60°) and forty-five-degree (45°) parking shall be one-way.

c)

Turning Radius. Parking lots shall be designed to accommodate passenger vehicles. The turning radius of all driveways and maneuvering lanes shall be at least twenty-four (24) feet.

d)

Grade. Driveways or accessways to parking areas for nonresidential uses, and parking areas for multifamily development, shall have a grade of ten (10) percent or less. All parking areas for nonresidential uses, and for multifamily developments, having a capacity of more than five (5) vehicles shall have a grade of five (5) percent or less.

e)

Traffic Islands. Parking lots with four (4) or more rows of parking shall contain islands to direct and control circulation.

20.2

Other Standards.

a)

Paving/Drainage. All parking lots having a capacity of more than four (4) spaces shall have a paved binder aggregate (a hot applied bituminous material or concrete product) bituminous surface or an alternative, properly bound all weather surface acceptable to the Planning and Zoning Commission. Storm water shall not be permitted to drain on to adjacent property.

b)

Lighting. The circle of illumination of any outdoor lighting shall be confined to the parking area. Lights shall be shielded or directed so that the source of light is not directly visible from the street or surrounding property.

c)

Marking. Parking spaces in all lots except for dwellings of four (4) families or less shall be marked with paint or otherwise individually delineated.

d)

Buffer. Parking lots in commercial or industrial districts that abut property in a residential district shall contain a suitable buffer of fencing, landscaping or other means to provide a reasonably opaque barrier along the property line. Buffer shall proportionate to the chosen buffer design with a minimum width of ten (10) feet.

e)

Use. Parking lots shall be used for the short-term parking of vehicles of occupants, employees, and patrons of the principal use. Storage of unused motor vehicles, trailers, boats, inventory, equipment and the like is prohibited.

20.3

Number of Spaces Required.

a)

Dwellings. Two (2) spaces per dwelling unit.

b)

Retail, Personal Services and Office. Five (5) spaces per one thousand (1,000) square feet of floor space in actual use for the purpose. Storage areas, hallways, stairs, and the like shall not be included for calculating parking requirements.

c)

Manufacturing. One (1) space for each five hundred (500) square feet of floor area. Determination of manufacturing technology can reduce the required number of parking spaces

d)

Warehouse, Distribution, Wholesale. One (1) space for each one thousand five hundred (1,500) square feet of floor area.

e)

Uses Having Fixed Seats. One (1) space for each four (4) seats. This requirement may be based upon expected percent of occupancy rather than total seats if the applicant can supply reliable supporting data.

f)

Eating/Drinking Places. One (1) space for each seventy-five (75) feet of floor area used for eating or drinking. Area of kitchen, storage and the like shall be excluded for purposes of calculating parking requirements. Establishment involving only take out service shall provide at least five (5) parking spaces per one thousand (1,000) square feet of gross floor area used for preparation and service of products.

g)

Hotels/Motels. One (1) space for each guest unit.

h)

Automotive Services. One (1) space for each employee plus one (1) space of each service bay.

i)

Cultural, Entertainment and Recreational Uses. One (1) space for each four (4) seats or service units. This may be based upon anticipated occupancy if reliable supporting data is provided, subject to the approval of the appropriate zoning official such as the Zoning Enforcement Officer, the Town Planner or the Town Building Official.

j)

Uses Not Specified. As determined by the applicant based on an analysis of parking needs as related to the scale of the operation subject to the approval of the appropriate zoning official such as the Zoning Enforcement Officer, the Town Planner or the Town Building Official.

k)

Reserved future parking. If the actual demand or need for off-street parking spaces for office park use can be shown to the applicable Planning and Zoning Commission's satisfaction to be actually less than the minimum required number of parking spaces for said use, the commission may permit the reservation of up to twenty-five (25) percent of the required spaces for future parking needs. Such reserved spaces shall be standard-sized, shown on the site plan and labeled "future parking," but landscaped for the present. The Commission may require the future construction of said reserved spaces, or portion thereof, within three (3) months of written notice to do so based upon a change in parking demand, a change of use or a change in traffic safety circumstances as determined by the commission. The Commission may consider evidence of actual use and need in parking areas for similar uses, and other evidence presented by the applicant that would provide a reliable basis for the Commission's determination of actual need

20.4

Joint Use. Properties containing multiple uses, under the same ownership or control may share parking for up to one-half (½) of the total required spaces provided that peak parking demand for the individual uses takes place at a different time with the approval of a Special Permit from Planning and Zoning Commission.