Whenever any provision of this ordinance imposes more stringent requirements, regulations, restrictions, or limitations than are imposed or required by the provisions of any other law or ordinance, the provision of this ordinance shall govern.

No building or structure, or part thereof, shall hereinafter be erected, constructed, reconstructed, or altered and maintained, and no new use or change shall be made or maintained of any building, structure, or land, or part thereof, except in conformity with the provisions of this ordinance.

All streets, alleys, and railroad rights-of-way, if not otherwise specifically designated, shall be deemed to be in the same zone as the property immediately abutting such streets, alleys, or railroad rights-of-way. Where the centerline of a street or alley serves as a district boundary, the zoning of such street or alley, unless otherwise specifically designated, shall be deemed to be the same as that of the abutting property up to such centerline.

No building shall be erected, converted, enlarged, reconstructed, or structurally altered; nor shall any building or land be used, designed, or arranged for any purpose other than is permitted in the zoning district in which the building or land is located.

For every lot or parcel in the unincorporated area of the county there is to be only one principal use per lot. However, the number and type of secondary and accessory uses per lot or parcel depends upon the zoning district.

Any building established as a part of a group development project which cannot properly be served by emergency or service vehicles from an abutting street shall be made accessible to such vehicles by a paved driveway having roadbed width of not less than 20 feet, exclusive of parking spaces.

A so-called "grandfather clause" is a very open and often misinterpreted term. In this ordinance there are only two items that resemble what many refer to as a "grandfather clause." These are substandard lots or nonconforming uses.

III.7.1 Substandard lots. Any residentially zoned lot which was of record at the time of the adoption of this ordinance that does not meet the requirements of this ordinance for yards or other area may be utilized for single residence purposes upon administrative approval by the city council through the variance process set forth in article XI, section 1.

III.7.2 Nonconforming buildings and uses. Any lawful use of the land or buildings existing at the date of passage of this ordinance and located in a district in which it would not be permitted as a new use under the regulations of this ordinance is hereby declared to be a "nonconforming use" and not in violation of this ordinance at the date of adoption of this ordinance; provided, however, that a nonconforming use shall be subject to, and the owner shall comply with, the following regulations:

a.

The nonconforming use of land, which exists when this ordinance becomes effective, may be continued provided that:

1.

No such nonconforming use of land shall in any way be expanded or extended.

2.

If such nonconforming use of land or any portion thereof is discontinued for six months or changed, any future use of such land shall be in conformity with the provisions of this ordinance.

b.

No building which houses a nonconforming use which has been destroyed or damaged by fire, explosion, act of God, or by public enemy to the extent of 75 percent of its market value, exclusive of the foundation at the time such damage occurred, shall thereafter be made to conform with the provisions of this ordinance. If such damage is less than 75 percent of its market value before said damage occurred, exclusive of the foundation, then such structure may be restored to the same nonconforming use as existed before such damage; provided, however, that a building permit to initiate restoration must be obtained within six months of the occurrence of damage; otherwise, the provisions of section 14.03 will apply.

c.

Any nonconforming use of land or building which has become vacant or remains unoccupied owing to abandonment or discontinuance for a period of six months shall thereafter conform to the provisions of this ordinance.

In all zoning districts other than the central business district, no fence, wall, hedge, or shrub planting which obstructs the sight lines at elevations between two and 12 feet above the roadways shall be placed on any corner lot within the triangular area formed by the street property lines and a line connecting them at points 25 feet from the intersection of the street lines, or in the case of a rounded property corner, from the intersection of the street property lines.

No lot shall be reduced in size so that lot width, yard requirements, lot area per dwelling unit, or other requirements of this ordinance are not maintained.

The following requirements apply to land use of residential districts. Also listed are protective screening requirements for development abutting one or more residential districts:

III.10.1 Accessory residential buildings. Accessory buildings, except as otherwise permitted in this ordinance, shall be subject to the following regulations:

a.

Where the accessory building is structurally attached to a main building, it shall be subject to and must conform to all regulations of this ordinance applicable to main or principal buildings.

b.

In no instance shall such a building be nearer than five feet to any adjoining side lot line or rear lot line.

c.

No detached accessory building shall be located closer than 15 feet to any principal building.

d.

In the case of double frontage lots, accessory buildings shall observe front yard requirements on both street frontages wherever there are any principal buildings fronting on said streets in the same block or adjacent blocks.

e.

When an accessory building is to be located on a corner lot, said building shall not project beyond the front yard line required on the lot of such corner lot.

f.

Garages/carports. In any residence zone, no garage or carport shall be erected closer to the side lot line than the permitted distance for the dwelling, unless the garage or carport shall be completely to the rear of the dwelling, in which event, the garage or carport may be erected five feet from the side and rear lot line.

III.10.2 Prohibited uses in all residential districts. In order to uphold public safety and preserve a suitable quality of life for the residents of Unadilla the following uses are prohibited in all residential districts. Under no exception are the following uses to be permitted in residential zoned districts:

a.

It shall be [a] prohibited use in all residentially zoned districts to park or store wrecked or junked vehicles, power-driven construction equipment, used lumber or metal, or any other miscellaneous scrap or salvageable material in quantity.

b.

Tractor-trailer combinations, tractors, or trailers shall not be placed or stored in residentially zoned districts.

c.

Kennels.

d.

Livestock or poultry.

III.10.3 Protective screening. In order to provide adequate protective screening for residential areas adjacent to or near nonresidential areas, the following regulations shall apply.

a.

All property zoned for commercial, office-institutional, and industrial uses shall have a buffer strip along any rear and side property line abutting a residential district.

b.

A landscaped greenbelt, nor [not] less than 20 feet wide, shall be provided and maintained along its entire length, including alleys. Such greenbelt shall be planted with deciduous trees, evergreens, flowering trees, or ornamental trees, designed or intended to provide a visual screen at the boundaries of conflicting land uses.

c.

The remainder of the landscaped area which is not planted with the aforementioned stock shall be in well-kept lawn. All landscaping shall be maintained in a healthy growing condition.

d.

All planting plans shall be first submitted to the administrative assistant for approval as to suitability of planting materials and arrangement thereof in accordance with the provisions of this ordinance.

Satellite receiving dish antenna shall be allowed in all zoning districts. However, in all residential zones, the following requirements will apply.

III.11.1 Location and installation. Antenna will be erected in a rear yard and the setback requirements from the property line will be the same as those required of an accessory building. Location of the antenna must be approved by the administrative assistant of the city before installation can begin.

III.11.2 Nonconforming dish or antenna. A property owner who has in place a nonconforming antenna at the effective date of this ordinance may continue to maintain the antenna.

To ensure that all lands within the City of Unadilla are always under the city's zoning powers, an appropriate zoning classification will be executed and made a part of the property annexation process. If the annexation is requested by anyone other than the City of Unadilla, the applicant will pay the appropriate fees for a zoning petition. In any case, however, the zoning of all annexed properties will follow the same zoning policies and procedures as outlined in this ordinance.