Southampton Township
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
12-3.11 TC
Town Center District.
[Amended 11-17-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-09; 11-17-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-11; 2-20-2024 by Ord. No. 2024-01]
a.
Purpose. The purpose of the Town Center district is to protect the integrity of the existing cultural environment within this district. The following regulations are intended to protect the architectural, historic, and use characteristics of the town center.
b.
Permitted uses.
1.
Detached single-family dwellings.
2.
Attached two-family dwellings.
3.
Retail commercial establishments.
4.
Educational facilities.
5.
Personal and professional service establishments and offices.
6.
Public and semi-public recreation facilities and open space.
7.
Restaurants.
8.
Mixed uses of any of the above.
c.
Conditional Uses.
1.
Apartment dwellings.
(a)
The number of apartment dwellings shall not exceed two per dwelling.
(b)
Each apartment shall have a separate water and sewer connection.
(c)
All apartment dwellings shall be located on the second and/or third floor of a structure that will include a commercial or office use on the first floor.
(d)
Each apartment shall be a minimum of 650 square feet in area.
2.
Home occupation as per Subsection 12-4.14 and the following conditions:
(a)
A resident of the property conducts the occupation where the business is located.
(b)
There is no outward appearance of the business on the property, excluding the signage provisions of Subsection 12-5.15, and the occupation does not involve retail sales on the property.
(c)
There shall be no alteration of any buildings used for the home occupation in such a way that renders the structures unusable or incompatible with any uses normally permitted on the property.
(d)
Equipment used in the home occupation shall not interfere either visibly or audibly with the reception of radio or video equipment used by adjoining neighbors or cause substantial fluctuations in the line voltage outside of the home occupation.
(e)
The home occupation shall not exceed 1,000 square feet, or 25% of the total habitable square footage of the dwelling exclusive of any basement.
(f)
A day care provider that cares for five or less children, excluding the day care provider's own children, less than five years old is not subject to regulation within this section. If the provider is caring for children that do not meet the aforementioned requirements, all regulations within this chapter shall apply.
d.
Accessory uses.
1.
Garages, which shall be no larger than 1,260 square feet and may be either attached, detached, or a property may have one of each, provided the impervious coverage maximum is not exceeded. Garages shall not be converted to living quarters.
2.
Tool sheds and outside storage sheds shall be limited to a maximum of 1% of the total lot area and be setback a minimum of three feet from any property line except at major roads. Setbacks from major roads shall be 1/3 of the lot depth or lot width. Accessory uses shall be architecturally compatible with the principle structure.
3.
Private residential swimming pools.
e.
Development criteria - single-family dwellings.
1. | Lot area: | 12,000 square feet minimum |
2. | Lot depth: | 150 feet minimum |
3. | Lot frontage: | 80 feet minimum; 100 feet maximum |
4. | Side yard: | 6 feet minimum |
5. | Front yard: | 10 feet minimum |
6. | Rear yard: | 40 feet minimum |
7. | Build-to line: | 10 feet with a 5-foot variation |
8. | Building coverage: | 25% maximum |
9. | Impervious coverage: | 50% maximum |
10. | Parking: | If on-site parking is provided by an enclosed garage then it shall be located in the rear yard with access from a lane or an enclosed garage accessed from the front street or from a side yard driveway. If the garage is accessed from a side street, the front facade of the garage shall be set back at least 10 feet from the side yard building line. The driveway shall not be closer than 3 feet to the side yard property line. A shared driveway may be implemented as an alternative with a maximum 12-foot width and a minimum 3-foot wide planting strip between the dwelling and driveway. |
f.
Development criteria: attached two-family dwellings.
1. | Lot area: | 4,000 square feet minimum |
2. | Lot depth: | 100 feet |
3. | Lot frontage: | 40 feet |
4. | Side yard: | 7.5 feet each |
5. | Front yard: | 10 feet minimum |
6. | Rear yard: | 35 feet |
7. | Build-to line: | 10 feet with a 5-foot variation |
8. | Building coverage: | 50% maximum |
9. | Impervious coverage: | 70% maximum |
10. | Parking: | If on-site parking is provided by an enclosed garage then it shall be located in the rear yard with access from a lane or an enclosed garage accessed from the front street from a side yard driveway. If the garage is accessed from a side street, the front facade of the garage shall be set back at least 10 feet from the side yard building line. The driveway shall not be closer than 3 feet to the side yard property line. A shared driveway may be implemented as an alternative with a maximum 12-foot width and a minimum 3-foot wide planting strip between the dwelling and driveway. |
g.
General regulations: single-family, two-family dwellings.
1. | Building height: | 2 1/2-story minimum 3 1/2-story maximum |
2. | All dwellings shall be constructed 2 feet above the ground level. | |
3. | All porches, except for porches that are replaced within the same footprint, shall be at least 6 feet deep and 10 feet in length. | |
h.
Development criteria: retail/commercial and services.
1. | Building height: | 2 stories minimum 3 1/2 stories maximum |
2. | Front yard: | 0 feet minimum 5 feet maximum |
3. | Rear yard: | 10 feet minimum from building to curblines or rear parking lot/alley |
4. | Side yard: | 0 feet minimum 15 feet maximum with alley for rear yard parking access |
5. | Build-to line: | 0 feet |
i.
General regulations: retail/commercial and services.
1.
The maximum lot coverage shall be 60%, plus an additional 10% for amenity items such as courts, plazas, and landscaping and similar design features.
2.
The buildings shall have commercial use on the ground floor, and may have residential or commercial, or a combination of both on the second, third or dormer floor, if provided.
3.
On corner lots the lot width shall be a minimum of 32 feet.
4.
On corner or interior lots, one story porches, entrance hoods, one or two story bays, greenhouses, stoops, awnings, canopies and roof overhangs are permitted in the front yard.
5.
Permitted encroachments include awnings that do not extend more than five feet from the facade, balconies for housing on second floor not to extend more than five feet from the facade, towers on all corner buildings with specific approval from the Land Development Board.
6.
On corner lots, the permitted encroachments in the side yard facing the street shall be the same as the front yard.
7.
If residential units are provided, parking for the residential units shall be provided on-site. The depth of any on-site parking area shall not be greater than 25% of the lot depth, and shall be located at the rear of the site.
8.
Housing above retail or service establishment must be a minimum of 650 square feet in area. A separate residential entrance must be provided.
9.
The total floor area for all nonresidential uses within a structure shall not be more than 3,000 square feet.
j.
General regulations.
2.
The minimum front yard setback shall be increased if the buildings located within 200 feet and in the same block frontage are all set back a distance greater than 10 feet, and in this situation the front yard setback shall be no closer to the street than the building within this two-hundred-foot distance which is closest to the street line.
3.
Similarly, the front yard setback may be decreased to less than 10 feet if the prevailing setback of existing buildings within 200 feet in the same block frontage is less than 10 feet, and in this situation the front yard setback shall be considered to be the average of the existing setbacks within this two-hundred-foot distance.