More than one main building may be located upon a lot or tract in the following instances:

The provisions of this exception shall not be construed to allow the location or erection of any building or portion of a building outside of the buildable area of the lot.

In any part of the county where an HR District is allowed, the developer, as a condition to the issue of zoning permits and the rezoning, shall dedicate the area adjacent to natural bodies of water to public use and shall grant an easement to said areas. An applicant for rezoning to HR shall include in his application the necessary documents to carry out these requirements.

The area adjacent to a natural body of water reserved for public use shall be from the low-water mark to an established dune line, where one exists, shall be no less than 300 feet from the low-water mark and shall be totally free of any structure of the applicant/developer.

The right-of-way and easement to the dedicated area adjacent to a natural body of water shall be 50 feet in width. Said right-of-way and easement shall extend from the nearest county or state road to the dedicated area. These fifty-foot parcels shall be required so as to conform to a Master Land Use Plan approved by the County Council. Where two applicants request zoning for adjacent tracts, they may meet these requirements by joint dedication.

Land so dedicated for public use shall not affect the residential-unit-per-acre ratio of an HR District and will be included in the total area for computing the number of allowable units in a townhouse or multifamily development.

Notwithstanding the provisions of Article XXVII of this chapter, the Director of Planning and Zoning may administratively grant a yard setback or building separation variance that does not exceed one foot of the yard setback or building separation requirements.

There shall be a fee of $50 to request an administrative variance. If the applicant has to eventually submit an application to Board of Adjustment, the applicant shall receive a credit of $50 towards the Board of Adjustment application fee. The applicant shall submit a survey signed and sealed by a surveyor licensed in the State of Delaware to the Director of Planning and Zoning in order to be considered for an administrative variance.

The Director of Planning and Zoning shall give written notice to adjacent property owners of the requested administrative variance and accept written statements for 10 working days from the date of mailing.

The Director of Planning and Zoning shall be governed by all the procedures, standards and limitations of this chapter applicable to the Board of Adjustment in granting variances, except the public hearing.

Within 30 working days after the administrative variance application is submitted and accepted, the Director of Planning and Zoning may approve the administrative variance or advise the applicant requesting the administrative variance that an application must be submitted to the Board of Adjustment. If any objection is received, the Director shall refer the application to the Board of Adjustment.

This administrative variance process shall not be applicable to manufactured home parks.

Notwithstanding the process outlined in Subsection E(1) through (6) above, upon submission of a survey signed and sealed by a surveyor licensed in the State of Delaware and proof satisfactory to the Director or the Director's designee of a prior error of Sussex County in administration of Chapter 115 of the Code of Sussex County, the Director or the Director's designee may administratively grant a yard setback or building separation variance. There shall not be any fee for this request, nor shall any notice to adjacent property owners be required.

A boathouse may not be used as a dwelling, guest house or servants' quarters, unless specifically permitted by other sections of this chapter.

The height of a boathouse shall not exceed 25 feet above mean high water.

No boathouse shall exceed 25 feet in width nor 50 feet in depth.

No boathouse shall be built beyond the established bulkhead line or closer than 10 feet to a side lot line.

Boathouses and boat slips, together with other accessory buildings, may occupy no more than 35% of a required rear yard.

Projection of docks, wharves and piers into waterways beyond the waterway line, lot lines or established bulkhead lines or the placing of mooring piles or buoys shall be limited by applicable county ordinances, state laws and applicable regulations of the United States Army Corps of Engineers, and in no case shall a dock, wharf, pier or pile project more than 10% of the width of the waterway.

Groins, levees, bulkheads, piling, breakwaters and other similar structures shall be erected and maintained in accordance with applicable location and construction standards of the county, the state and the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

The average minimum lot area per dwelling unit shall be 3,630 square feet, and no lot can be created with a lot area of less than 1,600 square feet.

Lot frontage, measured at the building line, for individual dwelling units of a townhouse may be reduced to not less than 16 feet.

For the purpose of the side yard regulations, a townhouse building shall be considered as one building on one lot with side yards of 20 feet. Any side yard adjacent to the line of a lot in a single-family residential district shall not be less than 20 feet.

Depth of front and rear yards of a townhouse must have an aggregate of not less than 40 feet. Distribution of the required aggregate of the front and rear yards total will be subject to site plan review. Any rear yard adjacent to the line of a lot in a single-family residential district shall not be less than 20 feet.

Detached garages or carports shall not be permitted except as shown on the approved site plan, with approval shown for the same on site plan review.

Unless otherwise restricted by district regulations, not more than eight dwelling units shall be included in any one townhouse building, and the outside wall dimensions of the townhouse building shall not exceed 170 feet in width measured linearly from the outer edge of the townhouse building end units. In the case of staggered dwellings within a single townhouse building, the measurement shall be of the actual length of the entire townhouse building.

Required off-street parking space per family dwelling unit shall be provided on the lot of each dwelling unit or within an on-site parking area within the common area, or a combination of both, with approval subject to site plan review. Required off-street parking space of two spaces per apartment shall be provided on the premises of an apartment building.

A site plan complying with the requirements of Article XXVIII shall accompany an application for approval of a townhouse development.

No overall actual outside wall dimension of a building shall exceed 170 feet. The measurement shall be of the actual length of the entire multifamily building. Mixed-use buildings that contain nonresidential uses shall not be subject to the outside wall dimension requirement.

For the purpose of maintaining setback between buildings on the same site, the distance between buildings shall be 40 feet.

Accessory structures shall be subject to site plan review.

Individual units in a building which comes within the provision of the Unit Property Act[2] may be held in separate ownership.

For boundary line setbacks, refer to charts in Article XX of this chapter.

All buildings, parking areas and unloading areas shall be a minimum of 30 feet landward from the dune line. The additional yard requirement for buildings of more than three stories shall be added thereto.

"Waste material" does not include materials accumulated in an orderly fashion for useful purposes, such as firewood, compost piles and building materials in good condition, topsoil and earthfill, except that the accumulation of such material in a haphazard, disorderly or unsightly fashion shall be prima facie evidence of waste and/or a nuisance and/or a detriment to the use and/or value of adjoining property and/or to the health and/or safety of other persons or themselves.

Resource buffer widths shall be established in accordance with Table 1, with Zone A being closest to the resource.

Resource buffers are not required landward/adjacent to those portions of resources to be filled or developed with a valid U.S. Army Corps of Engineers or Delaware Department of Natural resources and Environmental Control permit.

No resource buffer shall overlay a tax ditch or tax ditch right-of-way. If a proposed development contains a tax ditch, with a right-of-way of less than the total resource buffer width, then that area of the resource buffer outside of the right-of-way shall be designated as Zone B.

The upland edge of all resource buffers shall be clearly marked with permanent in-ground markers and signage located at 100-foot intervals. Such signage shall be at least five inches by seven inches in size.

Resource buffer width averaging may be utilized but only within resources buffers adjacent to the same resource to adjust the required Zone B resource buffer width thereby allowing flexibility for the proposed development, so long as the overall square footage of the Zone B resource buffer is maintained.

Criteria for utilizing resource buffer width averaging:

All existing (i.e., at the time of application) conditions, including the vegetative land features, and the proposed conditions within the proposed resource buffer shall be identified on the preliminary site plan.

If a proposed development contains a resource, then the associated resource buffer shall conform to the following criteria based on vegetative features existing at the time of preliminary site plan submission:

All resource buffers identified on a final site plan shall be designated as a drainage and access easement permitting access by any future owners' association, federal, state or local agency and the public for the limited purpose of maintenance or monitoring of drainage capacity or conveyance by any future owners' association, federal state or local agency, and the public. In addition, a corresponding easement for access into each individual resource buffer established on the site shall, whenever possible, be provided from a public road or street within a proposed development.

If a resource buffer abuts or contains features such as ephemeral, intermittent or perennial streams which are not part of an established tax ditch and which convey drainage from or through a site proposed for development, a drainage assessment report shall be prepared by a registered Delaware professional engineer. As part of the preapplication process, Sussex County will determine the information to be included in the drainage assessment report. At a minimum, the drainage assessment report shall identify the following concerning measures needed for drainage conveyances:

Remedies required by Sussex County as a result of the drainage assessment report shall be shown on the final site plan.

A proposed development shall be permitted to utilize the following options, consistent with § 115-193, Subsection B, Resource buffer width averaging, to incentivize the retention of forests, but only for those resource buffers adjacent to perennial nontidal rivers and streams, nontidal wetlands and intermittent streams:

A proposed development shall be permitted to utilize the following options to incentivize the retention or expansion of resource buffers or provide additional functional benefit of resource buffers forests, but only for those resource buffers adjacent to perennial nontidal rivers and streams, nontidal wetlands and intermittent streams:

For purposes of this Subsection G, "forest" shall mean: A vegetative community dominated by trees and other woody plants covering a land area of 10,000 square feet or greater. Forest includes: 1) areas that have at least 100 trees per acre with at least 50% of those having a two-inch or greater diameter at 4.5 feet above the ground and larger; and 2) forest areas that have been cut but neither stumps were removed nor the land surface regraded.

Resource and resource buffer management plan. Any proposed development where resource buffers are required shall submit a resource and resource buffer management plan, prepared by a qualified resource buffer management professional, that describes measures for maintaining or improving the resource and the resource buffer(s) on the site. The resource and resource buffer management plan shall be proffered as part of the supporting statement requirements of § 99-24, or at the time of preliminary site plan approval for any residential conditional use. The maintenance standards or management actions associated with the resource and resource buffer management plan shall be included as an obligation of the owners' association in the recorded declaration for any new development. The resource and resource buffer management plan shall describe how the resource buffer will be managed to maintain its functions and cite any measures to be implemented for the enhancement of resource buffers or their functions. It shall also include a narrative discussing the overall plan for access easements sufficient for expected short- and long-term maintenance and management needs.

Any perennial or intermittent stream within a proposed development that does not exhibit a positive conveyance (regardless of whether it is part of a tax ditch) shall be identified by phase on the detailed grading plan as follows:

The Planning and Zoning Commission shall be authorized, as part of the site plan review process, to grant preliminary or final site plan approval with modifications of, or exceptions to, the foregoing requirements upon the submission of a detailed and specific written request from the applicant with supporting documentation from a qualified wetland resource professional or qualified resource buffer management professional, but only upon the satisfaction of all of the following conditions:

The date of any modification or exception by the Commission shall be noted on the final site plan.

A fine of $10,000 per quarter acre of disturbance or part thereof shall be imposed; and

Resource buffer rehabilitation and replanting in the area where the violation occurred, in accordance with a mitigation plan approved by the Director that complies with the following:

No building or zoning permits shall be issued nor shall any inspections occur within the phase where the violation occurred (including, but not limited to building code and utility inspections) until the buffer rehabilitation is complete and approved by the Director.

Any lot created after the adoption of this section shall contain a minimum square area of one acre and a minimum lot width of 150 feet unless central water and sewer are provided.

Any lot created after the adoption of this section shall have a minimum frontage along any tidal water body, river or their major tributaries of 150 feet.

Any lot created after the adoption of this section which is served by central water and sewer systems may conform to the lot area requirements of the zoning district in which the lot is located, except the frontage required in Subsection B(2) above.

That findings are made by the Board of Adjustment which demonstrate that special conditions or circumstances exist that are peculiar to the land within the county and that a literal enforcement of provisions within the conservation zone, as designated by this section would result in unwarranted hardship.

That the variance request is not based upon conditions or circumstances which are a result of actions by the applicant, nor does the request arise from any condition relating to the land use, either permitted or nonconforming, on any neighboring property.

That the granting of a variance will not adversely affect water quality or adversely impact the tidal water bodies adjacent to the conservation zone. Variances will be in harmony with the general spirit and intent of the section and any subsequent regulations.

That applications for a variance will be made, in writing, to the Board of Adjustment on forms provided by the county, with a copy to the County Administrator.

The Route 1 Corridor:

The Route 13 Corridor:

The Route 113 Corridor:

The overlay zone.

The underlying zone.

Exemptions from the requirements of the CHCOZ District include:

Permitted accessory uses in the CHCOZ District shall be the same as in the underlying zoning district, except as modified by this section of the Zoning Ordinance.

Prohibited accessory uses in the underlying district shall be prohibited in the overlay zoning district.

For the purposes of this section, a "buffer" is defined as the area landscaped with native vegetative species, as provided for in Subsection E(6) below, between the road right-of-way line of the relevant corridor and the edge of paving and/or area of disturbance. The buffer is a part of and is included in the required setback.

A "building setback" is defined as the minimum distance from the road right-of-way line of the relevant corridor to the nearest building edge. For purposes of this section of the Zoning Ordinance, the setback shall be measured as described in Table 1, Note 7, in the General Table of Height, Area and Bulk Requirements.[1]

Setbacks and buffers will be required for all developments in the CHCOZ District in accordance with the following table:

Permitted uses within the required buffer include:

Permitted uses in the setback, outside of the buffer, are those uses permitted in the underlying zone, including but not limited to lawns, parking areas, driveways and stormwater management structures.

Landscape requirements.

Access from the designated corridor shall be subject to the approval of the Delaware Department of Transportation.

Access drives and service roads should be designed to minimize queuing of entering or exiting vehicles.

Shared driveways shall be used where feasible.

Access driveways should accommodate pedestrian traffic through the use of depressed curbs.

When properties are bound by two or more roadways, access shall be obtained from the lower roadway classification unless a traffic study, approved by DelDOT, determines that the operation or safety of an adjacent intersection is degraded.

The following improvements shall be shown on the site plan:

The Coastal Area shall include all lands designated as the "Coastal Area" in the adopted Sussex County Comprehensive Plan dated March 19, 2019, or as subsequently amended.

Where the boundary of the Coastal Area is formed by a roadway, the overlay zone shall be deemed to include the contiguous property on the far side of the roadway, provided that depth of the Coastal Area on contiguous property shall not exceed 600 feet.

All rezoning, subdivision, business and industrial site plans and conditional use applications involving one or a combination of the following shall be subject to the process and performance requirements as described hereinafter:

The applicant shall submit an environmental assessment and public facility evaluation report and sketch plan (report) to the Director of Planning and Zoning, a copy of which will be forwarded to the Office of State Planning Coordination and members of the Technical Advisory Committee for review and comment. The sketch plan shall address the following issues for the property to be developed and, where appropriate to the context, for the contiguous property. Information submitted by the applicant shall at a minimum contain the following:

The Director of Planning and Zoning shall prepare (with input from the County Administrator) guidelines describing the application process and the form and content of information to be submitted by the applicant and shall review all applications, plans, assessments and other information submitted and prepare a written report summarizing his findings and the comments of state agencies and other County offices. The Planning and Zoning Commission shall make a determination as to whether adequate information has been presented for the project to proceed. A completed report shall be required prior to any preliminary plan approval for a development subject to this section. Approval of the report does not constitute final approval of the commenting agencies.

Uses permitted in the Coastal Area will be those uses permitted in the underlying zoning category as established by the Sussex County Zoning Ordinance.

Uses prohibited in the underlying zone are also prohibited in the overlay zone.

The maximum density shall be the allowable density of the underlying zoning district for developments using a central water and wastewater collection and treatment system. "Central sewer system" means centralized treatment and disposal facilities as defined in § 115-194A. Within the Coastal Area, clustering of single-family detached lots to a minimum lot size of 7,500 square feet is permitted in all residential zoning districts using a central water and sewer system. For dwelling units using on-site individual wastewater disposal systems, the allowable density shall be based upon a minimum lot size of 3/4 of an acre. The applicant has the option of clustering the lots to a minimum lot size of 1/2 of an acre where soil conditions are suitable as determined by DNREC, provided, however, that the number of lots or dwelling units permitted shall not exceed the number permitted in the underlying district. For purposes of this subsection, the "allowable density" shall be determined by calculating the lot area and the area of land set aside for common open space or recreational use but shall exclude any area designated as a tidal tributary stream or tidal wetlands by § 115-193.

For areas within the Conservation Zone, as currently defined in the Sussex County Zoning Ordinance, the minimum lot size and dimension requirements in the Conservation Zone shall apply.

Residential developments utilizing the cluster option of Subsection C(3) above within the AR-1 and AR-2 Residential Zoning Districts shall comply with the requirements set forth in § 115-25F of the Sussex County Zoning Code.

Single-family residential lots of record as of the date of this section.

Existing developments and developments which have filed for approval as of the date of this section.

Only one wind turbine shall be allowed per lot under this subsection.

Any wind turbine shall be set back a minimum distance that is equal to the turbine height from each adjoining property line. “Turbine height” means the height of the tower plus the length of one blade.

The wind turbine shall comply with the height restriction stated in § 115-179A.

The wind turbine shall comply with the airport hazard zoning regulations.

Wind turbines shall be assembled, installed and maintained in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. The applicant shall submit an engineering certification for the foundation and windmill structure in regards to the construction of the wind turbine. A County inspector shall verify the construction according to these specifications.

The owner of the wind turbine shall completely remove all aboveground structures within 12 months after the wind turbine is no longer used to generate electricity. The owner shall provide proof of operation if requested by a County inspector.

A wind turbine that is not attached to a building shall not be climbable for at least the first 12 feet above the ground level, unless it is surrounded by a fence with a minimum height of six feet. Wind turbine(s) shall have appropriate lighting pursuant to § 115-194.2H.

As an alternative to the one wind turbine allowed by the above subsections, a lot may include three wind turbines if the total height to the tallest extended part of each wind turbine above the surrounding ground level of each wind turbine is not more than 50 feet. This subsection may allow wind turbines that are either ground-mounted or roof-mounted.

All new electrical lines to wind turbine(s) shall be placed underground, unless the wind turbine is integrated with a building.

No advertising, signs or similar decorative items that can be read from beyond the property line shall be permitted on wind turbines and/or their supports.

If a new wind turbine is proposed within 200 feet from a building listed on the National Register of Historic Places, then a mix of native deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs shall be planted between the wind turbine and such building to filter views of the wind turbine from the building.

Any wind turbine shall be set back a minimum distance that is equal to the turbine height from each adjoining property line. “Turbine height” means the height of the tower plus the length of one blade.

The wind turbine(s) shall comply with the airport hazard zoning regulations.

Wind turbine(s) shall be assembled, installed and maintained in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. The applicant shall submit an engineering certification for the foundation and windmill structure in regards to the construction of the wind turbine. A County inspector shall verify the construction according to these specifications.

The owner of the wind turbine(s) shall completely remove all aboveground structures within 12 months after the wind turbine(s) is (are) no longer used to generate electricity. The owner shall provide proof of operation if requested by a County inspector.

A wind turbine that is not attached to a building shall not be climbable for at least the first 12 feet above the ground level, unless it is surrounded by a fence with a minimum height of six feet. Wind turbine(s) shall have appropriate lighting pursuant to § 115-194.2H.

There shall be a minimum lot area of five acres.

This subsection shall limit the maximum number of wind turbines that have a maximum total height including the extended blade of more than 50 feet above the average surrounding ground level. A maximum of one such wind turbine shall be allowed for each five acres of lot area per parcel. If more than five such wind turbines are proposed on a parcel, then a special use exception shall be required from the Board of Adjustment.

Wind turbines allowed under this section shall meet the requirements of § 115-194.4A(9) through (11).

Any wind turbine shall be set back a minimum distance that is equal to the turbine height from each adjoining property line. “Turbine height” means the height of the tower plus the length of one blade.

The owner of the wind turbine(s) shall completely remove all aboveground structures within 12 months after the wind turbine(s) is (are) no longer used to generate electricity. The owner shall provide proof of operation if requested by a County inspector.

A wind turbine(s) that is not attached to a building shall not be climbable for at least the first 12 feet above the ground level, unless it is surrounded by a fence with a minimum height of six feet. Wind turbine(s) shall have appropriate lighting pursuant to § 115-194.2H.

Accessory electrical facilities are allowed, such as a transformer.

There shall be a minimum lot area of five acres.

The wind turbine(s) shall comply with the airport hazard zoning regulations.

Wind turbine(s) shall be assembled, installed and maintained in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. The applicant shall submit an engineering certification for the foundation and windmill structure in regards to the construction of the wind turbine. A County inspector shall verify the construction according to these specifications.

The applicant shall submit a site plan showing proposed driveways, wind turbines and wood areas proposed to be cleared.

The applicant shall submit a professional study to analyze the maximum A-weighted noise levels outside of the nearest existing occupied dwellings and the total hours per year that such dwellings will be subject to shadow flicker.

This subsection shall limit the maximum number of wind turbines that have a maximum total height including the extended blade of more than 50 feet above the average surrounding ground level. A maximum of one such wind turbine shall be allowed for each five acres of lot area per parcel. If more than five such wind turbines are proposed on a parcel, then a special use exception shall be required from the Board of Adjustment.

Wind turbines allowed under this section shall meet the requirements of § 115-194.4A(9) through (11).