The intent of the MX-C mixed-use commercial district is to:

(1)

To provide for the mix of residential, office, commercial, entertainment, and recreational uses;

(2)

To encourage medium to high density residential developments, as a component of the mixed-use district, with high walkability to non-residential destinations;

(3)

To allow for a variety of residential and commercial options, along with allowing a mix of uses within one building or in multiple buildings on one piece of property.

(Ord. No. 1-2017, § 2, 3-27-2017)

(a)

Minimum land area for any property or development applying for rezoning to the MX-C zone district must equal one acre or greater. This land area can include multiple abutting parcels under separate ownership, so long as all such parcels are being submitted under one application.

(b)

All uses conducted in this district shall be contained within structures, except as specifically allowed in this article.

(c)

Outdoor storage, outdoor displays, and outdoor sales are permitted only where specified herein.

(d)

Trash storage containers shall be screened from public view with the use of a solid fence, wall or hedge. "Solid fence" does not include a woven wire or chain link fence with filler or fabric, or snow fences. Screening materials shall be up to six feet tall (at least one foot above top of trash container), shall fully screen three sides of the trash area completely, and shall have an opaque gate along the fourth side. Trash storage containers shall additionally comply with the requirements of section 66-3 of this Code. Trash storage containers shall be located at the rear of the building, unless such placement is determined to be substantially not possible by the city manager.

(e)

Portable storage containers for residential uses are allowed in this district for a maximum of three consecutive days, to occur no more than twice each calendar year per residential unit, for the purpose of moving in or out of a unit. This does not preclude the use of dumpsters and portable storage containers during construction being conducted under a valid building permit issued by the city.

(Ord. No. 1-2017, § 2, 3-27-2017)

The following are permitted uses in the MX-C zone district:

(1)

Dwelling units: Two household dwelling units and multiple household dwelling units (minimum floor area, per unit, shall be 600 square feet);

(2)

Family foster homes;

(3)

Designated home-based business, as described in the RES-SF residential district regulations;

(4)

Independent living facilities;

(5)

Hotels and motels, not to include extended stay hotels and motels;

(6)

Office uses;

(7)

Medical and dental offices and clinics;

(8)

Office support service facilities, including light reproduction services;

(9)

Veterinary offices and small animal hospitals, without outside kennels or exercise areas;

(10)

Banks or financial institutions, with or without drive-through facilities;

(11)

Personal service establishments, including, but not limited to, laundry and pressing establishments, barbershops, beauty parlors, provided that the services of all such establishments are confined within a building;

(12)

Dressmaking, tailoring, upholstering and similar establishments and businesses of a similar nature;

(13)

Studios, including, but not limited to, art, photographic, dance, music;

(14)

Convenience stores and neighborhood retail, with no fuel sales;

(15)

Building supply/hardware stores with or without outdoor storage or displays, so long as such outdoor storage and displays consist of less floor area than the primary building's gross leasable area;

(16)

Retail sales, with outdoor display of items for sale permitted as an accessory use, only if outdoor display and sale of items are located within ten feet of the building;

(17)

Temporary outdoor seasonal "tent" or "sidewalk" sales, not to exceed 45 consecutive days, or a total of 90 days in any one calendar year, per property. Such sales may occur in areas extending beyond ten feet from a building and the area must be defined in the permit request. Seven consecutive days must occur between permitted events. No temporary outdoor seasonal sale can occur until a permit for such has been issued by the city;

(18)

Retail greenhouses, including the outdoor display and storage of planted or potted nursery stock in the side or rear yards;

(19)

Food trucks and similar vendors of food or beverage, which shall be located on privately owned parcels with lot owner's permission, which shall be placed on paved areas not used for parking or circulation, and which shall be for a temporary amount of time, as stated on the temporary use permit issued by the city;

(20)

Craft alcohol manufacturers, as a secondary use to food and drink establishments, occupying 65 percent or less of the building's gross leasable area;

(21)

Restaurants, craft brew pubs, retail bakeries, coffee shops, and tea rooms, with or without outdoor dining and beverage areas, and without drive-through facilities;

(22)

Taverns and nightclubs, with or without outside services;

(23)

Places of amusement and recreation, to include fitness facilities, movie theaters, playhouses, indoor and outdoor amphitheaters, bowling alleys, billiards halls, videogame and pinball game arcades, and similar uses as determined by the city;

(24)

Parking areas or parking structures, but only for temporary parking of seven days or less, and without a charge for parking;

(25)

Motor vehicle wash and/or detail establishment, staffed during all business hours;

(26)

Short-term bicycle and automobile rental, by membership only;

(27)

"Boutique" manufacturing, fabrication, and printing, with gross leasable area less than 4,000 square feet;

(28)

"Boutique" manufacturing, fabrication, and printing, with gross leasable area less than 6,000 square feet, including a component for on-premise retail sales of the items manufactured, fabricated, and printed on site.

(Ord. No. 1-2017, § 2, 3-27-2017)

The following uses are allowed in the MX-C zone district only upon approval of a conditional use permit as provided herein:

(1)

Assisted living facility;

(2)

Colleges, trade schools, and universities;

(3)

Day care centers;

(4)

Farmers' markets;

(5)

Membership clubs;

(6)

Nursery schools;

(7)

Public or private meeting halls;

(8)

Restaurants, craft brew pubs, retail bakeries, coffee shops, and tea rooms, with or without outdoor dining and beverage areas, with drive-through facilities, subject to the regulations contained in this article;

(9)

Temporary use for a fair or carnival not to exceed seven consecutive days, or a total of 14 days in any one calendar year, per property. At least seven consecutive days must occur between permitted events. No temporary fair or carnival can occur until a permit for such has been issued by the city;

(10)

If the use at the time of rezoning is not an allowed MX-C use, a conditional use permit may be granted to allow the owner of the land and/or business(es) to change ownership while maintaining that existing use. A conditional use permit issued pursuant to this subsection is null and void if the use changes, or if the use is abandoned for one year or more. Any subsequent uses must be in conformance with an MX-C use.

(Ord. No. 1-2017, § 2, 3-27-2017)

The maximum building coverage per lot or parcel in this district shall be 70 percent.

(Ord. No. 1-2017, § 2, 3-27-2017)

(a)

Abutting properties.

(1)

For the purposes of this section, properties that are separated by streets or public rights-of-way (excluding alleys), shall not be considered "directly abutting."

(b)

Parking areas.

(1)

Designated parking areas shall be set back at least ten feet from all property lines and roadways (public and private).

(2)

This ten-foot setback shall also function as a landscaped buffer area. No pavement or structures shall be in this area.

(3)

A waiver of the ten-foot setback may be requested to eliminate this setback if adjacent lots and their parking areas will be designed to appear and function as a unified development. Such waivers are approvable by the city manager.

(c)

Front setbacks.

(1)

Front setbacks shall be zero feet along local level roads, as defined by AASHTO. Structures adjacent to local level roads shall be no more than ten feet from the right-of-way.

(2)

Front setbacks shall be five feet along all collector and arterial level roads, as defined in AASHTO. Structures adjacent to collector and arterial level roads shall be no more than 20 feet from the right-of-way.

(d)

Rear setbacks.

(1)

Rear setbacks shall be a minimum of ten feet between buildings within the MX-C zone district.

(2)

Rear setbacks shall be a minimum of ten feet when abutting a non-residential zone.

(3)

Rear setbacks shall be a minimum of 20 feet when abutting a residential zone.

(e)

Side setbacks.

(1)

Side setbacks within the MX-C zone district shall be a minimum of zero feet.

(2)

Side setbacks where the MX-C zone district abuts a non-residential zone shall be a minimum of ten feet.

(3)

Side setbacks where the MX-C zone district abuts a residential zone shall be a minimum of 20 feet.

(Ord. No. 1-2017, § 2, 3-27-2017)

Maximum density shall not exceed 35 dwelling units per acre in this district.

(Ord. No. 1-2017, § 2, 3-27-2017)

(a)

The maximum building height permitted in this district shall be 50 feet.

(b)

The maximum height for a development adjacent to single-family, duplex, and multi-family zones, or land being used as such, shall not exceed 25 feet. This requirement shall apply to any part of the development within a buffer area of 100 feet around the property line of an existing residential use.

(c)

The maximum height for a development adjacent to the South Platte River north of West Oxford Avenue or adjacent to any portion of Bear Creek shall not exceed 25 feet. This requirement shall apply to any part of the development within a buffer area of 250 feet from the centerline of these waterways. The maximum height for a development adjacent to the South Platte River south of West Oxford Avenue shall not exceed 25 feet within a buffer area of 100 feet from the centerline of this waterway. All development must comply with the city's current building code, FEMA regulations, and the F-floodplain overlay district.

(d)

For any development that is located partially within one of these buffer areas and partially outside of the buffer area, the aforementioned height restrictions shall only apply to the parts of the development that occur within the established buffer area. Building height is a maximum of 50 feet outside of the buffer area.

(Ord. No. 1-2017, § 2, 3-27-2017)

(a)

If multi-family residential units are included as a component of any development in this district a ten percent reduction in the combined number of off-street parking spaces required for both the residential and non-residential uses of the development may be applied to that development at the discretion of the city manager.

(1)

ADA parking requirements will not be reduced by this ten percent credit. The amount of ADA spaces will follow the original amount of parking required.

(b)

If any required parking spaces are provided on another parcel (i.e., off-site), a legal shared parking agreement shall be required and must be reviewed by the city for approval. All off-site or shared parking spaces must be within 400 feet of the parcel being developed. The 400-foot distance is measured from edge of parcel to edge of parcel.

Availability of parking spaces to be shared must be proven by one of the following:

(1)

By providing a parking study showing that the amount of parking spaces to be shared are available during all business hours in the shared parking lot;

(2)

By showing that businesses using the shared parking do not have overlapping hours of operation (no parking study needed);

(3)

By providing calculations of:

a.

The required amount of parking for businesses on the site containing the parking lot to be shared.

b.

The amount of parking spaces located within the parking lot to be shared.

c.

The required amount of parking for businesses requesting the shared parking agreement.

In order to be approved, parking agreements must be binding in perpetuity. However, parking agreements will become null and void if:

• Non-overlapping business hours become concurrent business hours;

• Businesses change use on the shared parking site requiring a higher parking ratio;

• Parking spaces shown to be available per the parking study are no longer available;

• The parking lot is changed to a different use (i.e., made into a building, open space, etc.).

Upon nullification of a shared parking agreement, a new shared parking agreement must be obtained or parking must be provided on-site within 90 days or a notice of violation may be issued.

(Ord. No. 1-2017, § 2, 3-27-2017)

The minimum usable open space percentage shall be ten percent in this district. Usable open space may contain any of the following:

(1)

Outdoor dining areas, open to all patrons of the development;

(2)

Fountains surrounded by a 20-foot diameter, or greater, space for gathering;

(3)

Public outdoor amphitheaters, playgrounds, plazas (grassy or hardscaped), and park areas, covered or uncovered;

(4)

Roof gardens or other rooftop amenity usable by patrons or residents;

(5)

Green roofs, accessible or inaccessible to patrons or residents;

(6)

Landscape areas not otherwise required by this Code at least ten feet wide and 30 feet long;

(7)

Preserved tree areas;

(8)

And other similar open space areas, as approved by the city manager.

Minimum usable open space shall not contain any of the following:

(1)

Sidewalks;

(2)

Required landscape buffer areas;

(3)

Parking lots, loading areas, and vehicle circulation areas;

(4)

Outdoor amenities belonging to specific businesses;

(5)

Areas in public rights-of-way;

(6)

Drainage swales and other drainage areas;

(7)

Areas of steep slope;

(8)

Floodplains and blue line streams.

(Ord. No. 1-2017, § 2, 3-27-2017)

The intent of the MX-C zone district is to encourage pedestrian activity and unified development. The following design standards require that MX-C zone district developments adhere to specific criteria for exterior walls, entrances, and drive-thru facilities. These standards are required in addition to, but not in place of, any other design criteria found in the city's zoning or building codes.

(1)

Each mixed-use development shall use at least one of the following techniques:

a.

Use of uniform street lights;

b.

Use of uniform street furniture;

c.

Use of uniform trash and recycling receptacles;

d.

Use of uniform landscape planters;

e.

Use of uniform wayfinding signage.

(2)

Exterior walls.

a.

Ground floor facades facing public or private streets shall have windows, columns, awnings, entrances, display windows and architectural elements, or any combination thereof, along no less than 60 percent of their length.

b.

Upper story portions of buildings shall have windows, columns, balconies, and architectural elements, or any combination thereof, along no less than 40 percent of the facade length.

c.

Front, side, rear, and upper portions of facades of individual buildings must be treated with the same materials and colors.

(3)

Entrances.

a.

Primary customer entrances shall be at least ¾ glass lite and be located on primary facades, or on the corner of primary and secondary facades. They shall be easily accessed by pedestrians. Entrances shall be articulated using any of the following: awnings, recesses, or other animating features.

b.

Loading and service entrances shall be located on the side or rear of buildings. Loading areas shall be screened so that they are not visible from any street or neighboring properties.

(4)

Drive-thru facilities, if approved as a conditional use, shall be oriented as follows:

a.

Ordering and receiving windows shall be located on the non-primary entrance facade.

b.

Menu boards shall be located at the side or rear of the building.

c.

Windows and menu boards must be buffered from the view of all streets and neighboring properties using evergreen hedges that grow six to eight feet tall, and are at least three feet tall at time of planting.

d.

Hedges must be planted close enough to form a connected screening wall within five years of planting.

(Ord. No. 1-2017, § 2, 3-27-2017)