1.

Use of building or land: Except as hereinafter provided, no building or land shall hereafter be used or occupied and no building or part thereof shall be erected, moved, or altered unless in conformity with the regulations herein specified for the district in which it is located.

2.

Number of families: Except as hereinafter provided, no building shall hereafter be erected or altered to accommodate or house a greater number of families than is specified herein for the district in which such building is located.

3.

One main building to a lot: Every building or structure hereafter erected in any residential district shall be located on a lot of record and in no case shall there be more than one main building on one lot unless otherwise provided in this Ordinance.

4.

Vacation of streets and public ways: Whenever any street, alley or other public way is vacated by official action of the governing body of the Parish of St. Charles, the zoning district adjoining each side of such street, alleys, or public way shall automatically extend to the center of same and all area included therein shall then become subject to all appropriate regulations of the extended districts.

5.

Fences: Fences shall comply with the following requirements:

a.

Fence height measurements shall include the chain wall in cases where a fence is positioned on top a chain wall.

b.

Residential fences erected within the required front yard setback shall not exceed four (4) feet in height above the finished grade of the fenced property adjacent to the fence.

c.

No fence shall be erected so as to block vehicular travel sight lines as defined in AASHTO (American Association of State Highway and Transportation Official Manual).

d.

No fence will be permitted on corner lots within twenty (20) feet of the intersection with said twenty (20) feet to be measured from the property corner along the front and side property lines. In cases where corner lots do not have a lot corner (lots with a radius located at the intersection), no fence will be permitted within a triangular area bounded by a point created by the intersection of the projection of the front and side property lines and two (2) points along these lines measured twenty (20) feet back from the point created by the described intersection.

e.

Required commercial/industrial fences serving as a buffer to existing adjacent residential districts or uses shall be measured from the highest finish grade on the commercial/industrial side of the fence. In no case shall the measurement taken from the finished grade on the residential side of the fence be less than the minimum required buffer fence height.

f.

The required buffer fences shall be maintained and kept in good repair at all times. (Ord. No. 82-6-7, § II, 6-7-82; Ord. No. 82-6-8, § II, 6-7-82; Ord. No. 87-12-20, 12-21-87; Ord. No. 98-8-13, 8-17-98; Ord. No. 11-5-10, § I, 5-16-11; Ord. No. 19-2-3, §§ I, II, 2-4-19; Ord. No. 19-2-13, § I, 2-18-19; Ord. No. 19-3-13, § I, 3-25-19)

6.

Swimming pools: No certificate of zoning compliance shall be issued for the construction of a swimming pool unless the swimming pool is to be constructed with a minimum of five (5) feet clearance (excluding walkways and/or aprons) between it and adjacent rear or side property lines and with the minimum front setback of the applicable zoning district. In-ground pools must be enclosed by a fence with a minimum height of four (4) feet. Fences shall be designed to provide complete enclosure with access gates that are operative and functional and that can be locked. Above-ground pools must be equipped with the proper stairs, ladders, gates, or fencing, which will prevent a small child from entering the pool area. (Permit fee as indicated in the appendix.) (Ord. No. 82-6-7, § II, 6-7-82; Ord. No. 82-6-8, § II, 6-7-82)

Editor's note— Appendix A is not printed herein.

7.

Shrubs and trees.

a)

No shrubs or trees shall be positioned to block any vehicular travel sight line.

b)

Buffer zone plant materials:

_____

(Ord. No. 82-6-9, § III, 6-7-82)

8.

In the residential (R) Districts no vehicle with more than two (2) axles or with a payload capacity in excess of two thousand (2,000) pounds may be parked on the drive or in the front yard, being the area between the front of the residence and the front property line. (Ord. No. 87-1-17, 1-5-87)

9.

Special exception uses and special permit uses. The following general rules apply to all uses approved under this subsection:

1.

Approval of a special exception or special permit use authorizes only the particular use for which the approval is issued.

2.

No use authorized by a special exception or special permit may be enlarged, extended, or relocated, unless an application is made for approval in accordance with the procedures set forth in this section.

A.

Special exception use—Procedure.

1.

An application for a special exception use shall be submitted to the Department of Planning and Zoning. Applications shall include all plans, surveys, illustrations, and documents which completely describe the proposed use.

2.

The Planning Department shall review the application using the evaluation criteria found in Section C.

3.

A decision by the Planning and Zoning Director or his designee shall be issued in writing to the applicant either approving, denying, or approving with conditions to the request.

4.

Should the Planning and Zoning Director find that the literal enforcement of one (1) or more provisions of the ordinance is impracticable or will exact undue hardship because of peculiar conditions pertaining to the land in question, the application may be forwarded to the Planning Commission to request a waiver with a supporting resolution from the Parish Council.

B.

Special permit use—Procedure:

1.

An application for a special permit use shall be submitted to the Department of Planning and Zoning. Applications shall include all plans, surveys, illustrations, and documents which completely describe the proposed use.

2.

The Planning Department shall review the application using the evaluation criteria found in Section C.

3.

The Planning Commission shall conduct a public hearing on the proposed special permit use.

a.

Based upon the evidence presented at the public hearing, the Planning Commission shall evaluate the application against the evaluation criteria in Section C below.

b.

The Planning Commission shall approve, approve with conditions, or deny the application.

c.

For those special permit uses requiring a supporting resolution of the Parish Council, the Planning Commission's approval shall be forwarded to the Parish Council.

4.

Waiver to zoning regulations for special permit uses.

a.

Should the Planning and Zoning Director find that the literal enforcement of one (1) or more provisions of the ordinance is impracticable or will exact undue hardship because of peculiar conditions pertaining to the land in question, the application may be forwarded to the Planning Commission to request a waiver with a supporting resolution from the Parish Council.

b.

Financial hardships shall not be considered as valid criteria for any such waiver to existing regulations.

c.

Any application for special permit which contains a request for a waiver shall contain a specific reference to the request and state the reasons that the request be granted.

d.

The Planning Commission, with a supporting resolution of the Parish Council, may grant a waiver to these regulations only when such requests meet the conditions of this subsection and are not detrimental to the public interest.

C.

Evaluation criteria. Those uses requiring approval for either a special exception or a special permit use shall be evaluated by the criteria below. These criteria are to be considered illustrative and not restrictive. Other criteria may be considered though not specifically listed below if said criteria affect the general health, safety, and welfare of the public.

1.

Compliance with the current St. Charles Parish Comprehensive Plan.

2.

Compatibility with existing uses on abutting sites in terms of site development, building design, hours of operation, and transportation features related to safety and convenience of vehicular and pedestrian circulation.

3.

Adequacy and convenience of off-street parking and loading facilities and protection of adjacent property from glare of site lighting.

4.

Potentially unfavorable impacts on other existing uses on abutting sites to the extent such impacts exceed those impacts expected from a permitted use in the zoning district.

5.

Protection of persons and property from erosion, flood or water damage, fire, noise, glare, and similar hazards or impacts.

6.

A site development plan shall be required as part of the application process. The following design criteria shall be evaluated on the plan:

a.

Required yards and open space.

b.

Ingress and egress to property.

c.

Parking and loading areas.

d.

Location of garbage facilities.

e.

Landscaping, buffering, and screening.

f.

Signage.

g.

Height and bulk of structures.

h.

Location and direction of site lighting.

D.

Conditions of approval may be applied to ensure compatibility of the proposed use with existing uses in the same district and surrounding area.

E.

Any special exception use or special permit use which does not commence construction or operation within twelve (12) months after the date of approval shall expire. One extension not to exceed six (6) months may be granted at the Planning and Zoning Director's discretion.

F.

Any special exception use or special permit use that ceases operation for a period of six (6) months shall expire unless otherwise specified by law.

G.

Notice. The Planning and Zoning Department shall post a sign on the affected property which calls attention to the Planning Commission's public hearing at least ten (10) days prior to that hearing date. Similar notification shall also be posted at the principal office of the Department of Planning and Zoning. The public hearings shall be advertised in the official journal of the Parish at least three (3) times on at least three (3) separate weeks, and at least fifteen (15) days shall elapse between the first publication and the date of the hearings. Notice of the time and place of the public hearing shall be sent by certified mail not less than ten (10) days in advance of the hearing to all abutting property owners.

H.

Revocation. A special exception or special permit use may be revoked by ordinance of the Parish Council after a public hearing finding that any of the following conditions or events have occurred:

1.

Violation the terms and conditions of the approval.

2.

Uncorrected violations of the zoning ordinance.

3.

Violation of the Parish Code of Ordinances.

4.

A request is made by the property owner to revoke the use.

(Ord. No. 09-3-3, § 1, 3-2-09; Ord. No. 15-7-5, § II, 7-6-15)

10.

Waiver or variance to zoning regulations for special permit uses. Should the Director discover that specific aspects of an application for special permit fail to conform to the regulations contained in this ordinance, he may choose to forward the proposal for formal consideration by the Planning Commission and Parish Council if the literal enforcement of one or more provisions of the ordinance (i) is impracticable, or (ii) will exact undue hardship because of peculiar conditions pertaining to the land in question. Financial hardships shall not be considered as valid criteria for any such waiver or variance to existing regulations. Any application for special permit which contains a request for a waiver or variance shall contain a specific reference to the request and state the reasons that the request be granted. The Planning Commission, with a supporting resolution of the Council, may grant a waiver or variance to these regulations only when such requests meet the conditions of this subsection (i, ii) and are not detrimental to the public interest.

(Ord. No. 93-12-6, 12-6-93; Ord. No. 08-3-5, § 2, 3-24-08)