Upper Gwynedd Township
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
ARTICLE VI
Off-Street Parking and Loading
§ 195-28 Parking facilities.
Required off-street parking facilities. Any building or other structure altered or used and any lot used or occupied for any of the following purposes shall be provided with at least the minimum off-street parking spaces set forth below, together with adequate driveways or other means of circulation and access to and from a street or way;
A.
For any of the following uses, the stated parking spaces shall be required, shall be of concrete or blacktop surface, and shall be located on the same lot therewith or, if approved by the Board of Commissioners, on land adjacent thereto.
(1)
Dwelling unit: two parking spaces on the same lot therewith.
(a)
Retirement, personal-care, continuing-care and life-care communities for the elderly: one parking space for each dwelling unit or equivalent dwelling, plus three parking spaces for every four employees on the largest shift.
(2)
Rooming house: one parking space on the same lot therewith for each room for rent and two for each family in occupancy.
(3)
Church, school, theater, public auditorium, assembly, meeting room or other similar place of assembly: one parking space for every three seats provided for assembly.
(4)
Stadium or other similar place of assembly: one parking space for every four seats or 80 inches of bench.
(5)
Hospital, convalescent home, sanitarium or other similar place: one parking space for every two beds, plus three parking spaces for every four employees on the largest shift.
(6)
Community center, library, museum or other similar place: one parking space for every 50 square feet of floor area in public use.
(7)
Medical and dental offices, clinics or similar places: five parking spaces per professional person, plus one space per each professional person and employee on the largest shift.
(8)
Home professional use, home occupation or similar use: two parking spaces per dwelling unit, plus one parking space for each employee and one parking space per 75 square feet of space used for the occupation.
(9)
Garden court apartment development: 2.4 parking spaces for each dwelling unit contained upon the premises. Such spaces shall not occupy any portion of the driveways or internal roadways serving the apartment complex.
(10)
Dwelling converted to apartments: two parking spaces for each dwelling unit.
(11)
Retail store, department store, shop or similar place, including restaurant without drive-through: seven parking spaces for every 1,000 square feet of gross floor area. When a C Commercial lot is developed for five or more establishments (with no more than one restaurant per each five establishments), overall parking may be reduced to a ratio of 5.5 spaces per every 1,000 square feet of gross floor area. If there is more than one restaurant per every five establishments, additional restaurants shall have parking of seven spaces per every 1,000 square feet of gross floor area. The other uses at the center shall remain at a parking ratio of 5.5. Convenience stores shall not be deemed a restaurant.
[Amended 5-29-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-004]
(12)
Supermarket: one parking space for every 50 square feet of store sales floor space.
(13)
Indoor theater: one parking space for every three seats.
(14)
Hotel, tourist home, motel or automobile court: one parking space for each rental unit.
(15)
Office building: one space for every 200 square feet of gross floor area.
[Amended 6-29-1992 by Ord. No. 92-11]
(16)
Restaurant, cafe, tearoom or takeout restaurant or similar place: one parking space for every three seats or 60 inches of bench, plus one parking space per employee on the largest shift.
(17)
Eating place for the sale and consumption of food and nonalcoholic beverages with drive-in service: one off-street parking space for every three seats or one off-street parking space for every 50 square feet of gross floor area, whichever requires the greater number of off-street parking spaces, plus one additional space for each employee on the largest shift.
(18)
Laboratory, industrial establishment or similar place: one parking space for every two employees or one parking space for each 250 square feet of total floor area, whichever is greater, but never less than three parking spaces, plus one parking space for each company vehicle.
(19)
Day-care homes, day-care centers, nursery schools or similar places: one parking space for every four students, plus one parking space per employee.
(20)
Recreational establishments, places of public or private assembly or similar use: one parking space for every three seats or, where capacity is not determined by number of fixed seats, one parking space for each 60 square feet of floor space devoted to patron use.
(21)
Funeral home: three parking spaces for every 150 square feet of gross floor area used or intended to be used for the operation of the business, plus one space per employee.
(22)
Other commercial buildings: one parking space per 150 square feet of floor area devoted to patron use, plus one parking space per employee on the largest shift.
(23)
Open area used for commercial purposes or recreational purposes: one parking space for every 1,500 square feet of area or fraction thereof.
(24)
Self-service storage facility: one parking space per 200 square feet of gross floor area of office space plus two parking spaces per apartment unit.
[Added 7-28-2003 by Ord. No. 2003-11]
(25)
Convenience store: one parking space for every 100 square feet of the first 3,000 square feet of gross floor area. Thence one parking space for every 150 square feet of additional gross floor area. Required parking shall not include those spaces assigned to fueling positions. The width of the aisle way surrounding the convenience store building shall be not less than 28 feet in width.
[Added 3-11-2024 by Ord. No. 2024-01]
B.
Reserve parking. The Board of Commissioners may authorize up to 50% of the required parking to be held in reserve as open space and not paved until and unless so ordered by the Board of Commissioners. Such reserve parking shall be fully engineered, and areas shall not be counted as any open space otherwise required, and the location and design must conform to the Code of Upper Gwynedd Township. A reserve parking agreement approved by the Township Solicitor shall be executed by the parties, and a violation of said agreement shall be a violation of the use and occupancy permit issued by the Township, and said permit shall be revoked.
[Added 6-29-1992 by Ord. No. 92-11]
§ 195-29 Parking space sizes.
[Added 3-25-1991 by Ord. No. 91-3]
Use Groups (7), (11), (12) and (13), (16) and (17)[1] shall provide a parking space of 10 feet in width by 20 feet in length and having an area of 200 square feet. All other use groups shall provide a parking space of not less than nine feet in width by 18 feet in length and having an area of 162 square feet. Parking space length may be further reduced as provided in § 195-30 of this chapter.
[1]
Editor's Note: See § 195-28A(7), (11), (12) and (13), (16) and (17).
§ 195-30 Special design requirements.
Parking lots in all districts shall be operated and maintained in accordance with the following conditions:
A.
No parking shall be permitted within five feet of any lot boundary line.
B.
They shall be surfaced with concrete, asphaltic concrete or asphalt and maintained in good condition free of weeds, dust, trash and debris.
C.
They shall be provided with entrances and exits so located as to minimize traffic congestion and the effect of headlight glare.
D.
Where necessary, they shall be provided with wheel or bumper guards so located and arranged that no part of any parked vehicles will extend beyond the boundaries of the parking lot.
E.
Proper drainage, on and off the parking site, and curbing, where appropriate in the opinion of the Township, shall be provided.
F.
Lighting facilities shall be so arranged that they neither unreasonably nor unnecessarily disturb occupants of adjacent residential properties nor interfere with traffic by either location or glare. Plans shall be submitted in accordance with § 195-9P of this chapter.
G.
(Reserved)[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Subsection G, regarding planting strips, was repealed 9-17-2024 by Ord. No. 2024-03.
H.
In any case where a special exception or variance is granted which reduces the setback requirements for Commercial, Shopping Center or Industrial Districts, a fence shall be required as directed by the Board of Commissioners.
I.
The length of a parking space may be reduced to 17 feet under one of the following circumstances:
[Added 3-25-1991 by Ord. No. 91-3]
(1)
Angled parking of 60° is utilized.
(2)
The forward curbed edge of a parking space shall overhang a landscaped area having a width of not less than four feet.
§ 195-31 Reduction of facilities.
Off-street parking facilities existing at the effective date of this chapter shall not subsequently be reduced to an amount less than required hereunder for a similar new building or new use. Off-street parking facilities provided to comply with the provisions of this chapter shall not subsequently be reduced below the requirements of this chapter.
§ 195-32 Off-street loading facilities.
In addition to required off-street parking spaces, the foregoing uses shall be provided with adequate off-street loading space. No loading docks or facilities of any kind shall be located on the front of any industrial or commercial building.
§ 195-33 Interpretation of provisions.
Nothing contained in this article shall authorize or permit the establishment of a parking lot or parking facilities in conjunction with a commercial or industrial use in other than either commercial or industrial zones.
§ 195-34 Handicapped parking.
The requirements of this chapter shall be subject to all state and federal laws, statutes, rules and regulations in regard to facilities for handicapped parking.
