Shelton City Zoning Code

All sites hereafter used to provide parking for five or more vehicles shall be developed and maintained in accordance with the requirements of this chapter.

Off-street parking shall be provided in conformance with this chapter whenever a building is erected, relocated, expanded, the net floor area is increased, or a building’s or site’s use is changed, except as otherwise provided for in Sections 20.40.070 and 20.40.090.

Changes in the configuration or circulation patterns of parking lots must be approved by the planning director.

No building permit or business license shall be issued until the requirements of this chapter have been met or provided for to the satisfaction of city.

Required parking facilities shall not be eliminated or reduced unless there is a change in use or other factors that would require fewer parking stalls, or alternative facilities are provided in conformance with this chapter.

Single-family or two-family dwelling: on the same parcel as the use being served;

Multiple-family dwelling: within two hundred feet;

Nonresidential uses in residential districts: within one hundred fifty feet;

Hospital, convalescent or nursing home: within three hundred feet;

Retail: within six hundred fifty feet;

Other uses: within eight hundred feet.

Access.

Surfacing and Drainage. Parking lots and maneuvering areas shall have all weather, dust-free surfaces unless otherwise approved by the director of public works. Gravel or crushed rock surfaces may be approved by the director of public works consistent with Section 20.40.060 if, considering the proposed lot’s projected frequency and duration of use, vehicle turnover, location, and other relevant factors, he determines that it would be in the public interest. All parking areas shall provide storm drainage facilities as approved by the director of public works.

Markings and Signage. Parking stalls, direction of travel, crosswalks, and entrances and exits shall be clearly identified.

Parking Stall Size. Each off-street parking stall shall be of at least the following minimum size:

Landscaping and Screening.

Barriers. Wherever the front or rear of a parked vehicle would abut a public right-of-way, a barrier, approved by the director of public works, shall be erected to prevent encroachment upon the right-of-way. Wheel stops may be required to protect landscaped areas, walkways, or adjoining property.

Walkways. Any internal walkway shall have an unobstructed width of at least four feet and shall be elevated six inches above the lot surface.

Lighting. Any parking lot lighting shall be designed and directed to prevent glare and illumination from affecting adjoining property and motorists.

Maintenance. It shall be the responsibility of the owner to maintain the parking area including removal of debris, snow and ice, and weeds; removal and replacement of dead trees and shrubs; trimming of hedges and shrubs; and repair, maintenance or replacement of drainage control facilities, traffic control devices, signs, lights, walls, fences, and surface materials.

A property owner may designate up to forty percent of the required parking stalls for compact vehicles.

Parking lots with greater than twenty stalls shall designate a minimum ten percent for compact vehicles.

Compact stalls shall be clearly identified with pavement markings.

The planning department may authorize joint use of parking facilities under the following conditions:

Spaces required:

Assignment of Spaces. Where joint use parking is allowed, assignment of parking spaces to individual buildings or uses is prohibited.

Binding Agreement. A lease, deed, contract, covenant, easement, or other binding agreement, approved by the city attorney, establishing joint use of a parking lot shall be submitted to the planning department and recorded with the county auditor at the applicant’s expense.

Termination of Joint Use. In the event that a joint use parking agreement is terminated, those businesses or uses in need of parking shall have one hundred twenty days to secure on-site parking or other joint use parking facilities in conformance with this chapter. If sufficient parking is not provided, the use, or that portion of the use out of compliance with this chapter, shall be terminated upon the expiration of the one-hundred-twenty-day period.

Central Business District. Uses occupying structures located on the south side of Railroad Avenue between First and Fifth streets, the north side of Cota Street between First and Third streets and between Fourth and Fifth streets, the south side of Cota Street between First and Third streets and along Second, Third, and Fourth streets and the eastern side of Fifth Street between Railroad Avenue and Cota Street are hereby exempted from the parking requirements related to a change of use contained in Section 20.40.070. The owners of these properties shall, upon a change of use or an expansion of net floor area, provide off-street parking within nine hundred feet of their property boundary for the use’s employees and the owners at the rate of one parking space per employee/owner, in addition to any other parking requirements, unless it can be clearly demonstrated to the hearing examiner that fewer parking spaces would adequately serve the use. The property or business owner shall provide the planning department with a deed, lease, or rental agreement indicating that the required parking spaces have been provided.

The hearing examiner may waive or alter the parking requirements contained in this chapter, consistent with the public interest and the provisions of Chapter 20.50, wherever strict compliance is physically impossible or clearly impractical, and it is demonstrated that the use’s parking needs will be adequately served.

The hearing examiner may also reduce parking requirements if evidence is presented that through the use of car pooling, public transportation, or other means that fewer parking spaces are needed to serve the use.

The hearing examiner may reduce the parking requirements for joint use parking lots consistent with the provisions of Section 20.40.080(B)(3).

When determining the number of required parking spaces for a particular use or building results in a fractional space, any fraction less than one-half shall be disregarded and any fraction of one-half or more shall be counted as one space.

For purposes of calculating the required parking spaces, the square footage of a building shall be the net floor area excluding restrooms, closets, hallways, maintenance and cleaning supply rooms, and equipment and machinery rooms not used directly in the manufacture, production, storage, or sale of goods or provision of services.

For purposes of determining parking requirements for multilevel structures, the following formula shall be used to compute net floor area:

In a stadium, auditorium, church, or other place of assembly, each twenty inches of bench seating shall be counted as one seat for the purpose of determining the parking requirements.

When a parking requirement is stated in terms of employees, it means the maximum number of employees who will be at the site at one time either on a single shift or an overlap of shifts.

The parking requirement for mixed uses shall be the sum of the individual requirements based upon the amount of square footage devoted to each use (see Table 20.40.100).