Walton Village City Zoning Code
ARTICLE V
Supplementary Regulations
§ 260-16 Height, area and bulk.
Purpose; area requirements.
The purpose of this section is to establish area requirements, including height and bulk for development, to protect the public safety and wellbeing.
Where more than 25% of the total floor area of any building in a commercial district is used for dwelling purposes in a building that may also contain nonresidential uses, the minimum height, area and bulk requirements for residential development applicable in the district in which such building is located shall apply, subject to the side yard modification for mixed uses contained elsewhere in this article. Where 25% or less of the total floor area of such building is used for dwelling, the building shall be subject to the height, area and bulk requirements applicable to nonresidential buildings in the district.
Modification of height regulations.
Except within an Airport Approach Zone, the height limitations of this Zoning chapter shall not apply to:
Belfries.
Chimneys.
Church spires.
Conveyors.
Cooling towers.
Elevator bulkheads.
Fire towers.
Water towers and standpipes.
Flagpoles.
Public monuments.
Ornamental towers and spires.
Commercial radio and television towers less than 125 feet in height.
Silos and grain driers or elevators.
Smokestacks.
Solar collectors and the equipment used for the mounting or operation of such collectors.
Stage towers or scenery lofts.
Tanks.
Except within an Airport Approach Zone, public and semipublic, or public-service buildings, hospitals, institutions or schools, when permitted in a district, may be erected to a height not exceeding 60 feet, and churches and other houses of worship may be erected to a height not exceeding 75 feet when the required side and rear yards are each increased by at least one foot for each one foot of additional building height above the height regulations for the district in which the building is located.
Notwithstanding other provisions of these regulations, the height of all structures and natural growth shall be limited by the requirements of the Federal Aviation Agency (FAA) and any airport zoning regulations applicable to such structures and natural growth.
Notwithstanding any provisions of this Zoning chapter, no places of public assembly, including, but without limitation, schools, churches, hospitals, theaters and assembly halls, shall be erected or otherwise located within any area that would be classified as an Airport Approach Zone within a distance of 11,000 feet from the end of any airport runway.
Lot area.
Requirements for lot area per family do not apply to dormitories, fraternities, sororities and other similar living quarters which are accessory to a permitted use and which have no cooking facilities in individual rooms or apartments.
Requirements for lot area per family do not apply to rental units in a hotel, motel, motor lodge or tourist home or rooms in a rooming house, boardinghouse or lodging house.
Yards and open space generally.
Whenever a lot abuts upon a public alley, 1/2 of the alley width may be considered as a portion of the required yard.
Every part of a required yard shall be open to the sky, except as authorized by this article and except ordinary projections of sills, belt courses, window air-conditioning units, chimneys, cornices and ornamental features, which may project to a distance not to exceed 24 inches into a required yard.
More than one main building may be located upon a lot or tract in the following instances; the provisions of this exception shall be construed to allow the location or erection of any building or portion of a building outside the buildable area of the lot:
In the event that a lot is to be occupied by a group of two or more related buildings to be used for residential purposes, there may be more than one main building on the lot when such buildings are arranged around a court, provided that said court between buildings that are parallel or within 45° of being parallel shall have a minimum width of 30 feet for one-story buildings, 40 feet for two-story buildings and 50 feet for buildings of three stories or more, and in no case may such buildings be closer to each other than 15 feet.
Where a court is more than 50% surrounded by a building, the minimum width of the court shall be at least 30 feet for one-story buildings, 40 feet for two story buildings and 50 feet for three-story buildings.
Front yards.
Where an official line has been established for the future widening or opening of a street or major thoroughfare upon which a lot abuts, then the depth of a front or side yard shall be measured from such official line to the nearest line of the building. Where no official line is established, the right-of-way of any major thoroughfare shall be assumed to extend at least 30 feet on each side of the center line of the existing right-of-way for the purpose of measuring front yards required by the Zoning chapter.
On through lots, the required front yard shall be provided on each street.
There shall be a front yard on each side of a corner lot in any district; provided, however, that the buildable width of a lot of record at the time of passage of this Zoning chapter shall not be reduced to less than 30 feet.
Open, unenclosed porches, platforms or paved terraces not covered by a roof or canopy and which do not extend above the level of the first floor of the building may extend beyond the minimum setback for that zone.
Where the street frontage in a block, or within 400 feet of the lot in question, is partially built up, the minimum front yard for a new building shall be the average of the existing front yards on either side thereof in the same block with a variation of five feet permitted; provided, however, that no front yard in a residential district shall be less than 20 feet or need more than 75 feet. Where 40% or more of the street frontage is improved with buildings that have no front yard, no front yard shall be required for the remainder of the street frontage.
Side yards.
Open, unenclosed porches, platforms or paved terraces not covered by a roof or canopy and which do not extend above the level of the first floor of the building may extend or project into the side yard not more than six feet.
Where a building in a commercial district is subject to the height, area and bulk requirements applicable to residential development under § 260-13, the side yard requirements for residential development shall be applied only to the lowest floor (and all floors above it) which contains more than 25% of its area used for dwelling. All floors shall be subject to side yards required by these regulations for commercial buildings adjacent to residential districts.
For the purpose of the side yard regulations, a group of business or industrial buildings separated by common or party walls shall be considered as one building occupying one lot.
The minimum depth of the side yards for schools, libraries, churches, community houses and other public and semipublic buildings in residential districts shall be 25 feet, except where a side yard is adjacent to a business or industrial district, in which case the depth of that yard shall be as required in the district regulations for the district in which the building is located.
Rear yards. Open fire escapes, outside stairways and balconies and the ordinary projections of chimneys and flues may project into the required rear yard for a distance of not more than five feet, but only where the same are so placed as not to obstruct light and ventilation.
Corner visibility. No sign, telephone booth, bus shelter, fence, wall, hedge, planting or other obstruction to vision extending to a height in excess of three feet above the established street grade shall be erected, planted or maintained within the area of a corner lot that is adjacent to the lines of the intersecting street lines whose tangent lengths measure 20 feet from the point of intersection.
Accessory buildings and structures.
Except as herein provided, no accessory building shall project beyond a required yard line along any street.
Filing station pumps and pump islands may occupy the required yards; provided, however, that they are no less than 15 feet from street lines.
Fences and walls.
[Amended 7-12-2010 by L.L. No. 2-2010]
A fence or wall not more than 3 1/2 feet in height from the ground may be constructed for any required front and side yard. After a distance of no less than 20 feet from the sidewalk or curb, if a sidewalk is not available, the fence or wall, including the structural members, may increase to a maximum of seven feet front ground level. If 20 feet of space from the sidewalk or curb is not available, the Code Enforcement Official has the discretion to allow an increase to occur within the twenty-foot requirement. The maximum vertical clearance between the ground level and the bottom of the fence or wall shall be no more than two inches, measured on the side of the fence or wall which faces away from the applicant's property.
All fences or walls must be erected within the property line of the applicant/owner and not within any public right-of-way.
No fence or wall shall be erected so as to encroach on public property or encroach upon property owned by any person or entity other than the applicant/owner.
No fence or wall shall be erected so as to encroach on a public right-of-way or interfere with vehicular or pedestrian property or visibility by pedestrians or operators of motor vehicles at corner lots or where any vehicle enters a roadway.
Any fence or wall which the Code Enforcement Official reasonably determines may cause a nuisance, a fire hazard, a dangerous condition or any obstruction to persons and equipment in combating fires or may endanger public safety is hereby prohibited.
A fence or wall shall be constructed and installed so as to have the good side facing the public or private property adjoining that of the applicant/owner. Fence or wall posts shall be placed on the owner's side of the fence.
All fences must follow the natural contour of the ground. If there is a drop or rise in the land along the fence line, the ground can be raised or lowered to maintain the level of the fence. The first and last section must remain level.
The following types of fences are expressly prohibited: barbed wire and electrically charged fences, except underground fences used to confine animals.
Accessory swimming pools, open and unenclosed may occupy a required rear or side yard if they are not located closer than five feet to a rear or side lot line. A walk space at least three feet wide shall be provided between pool walls and protective fences or barrier walls. Every swimming pool shall be protected by a safety fence or barrier and shall have provisions for adequate discharge of water when a pool is drained or damaged. The Code Enforcement Official must approve all fences, barriers and water discharge systems.
Permitted accessory storage of a boat, boat trailer or camp trailer shall not be conducted in a front yard, and when not in use each shall be covered appropriately with protective covers or tarps.
Accessory buildings, including aboveground swimming pools, that are not part of a main building, although they be connected to an open breezeway, may be constructed in a rear yard, provided that such accessory building or aboveground swimming pool does not occupy more than 30% of the area of the required rear yard and provided that it is not located closer than five feet to any lot line.
Solar energy systems and equipment may occupy a required rear or side yard, provided that they are approved by the Code Enforcement Official and are not located closer than five feet to any lot line.
§ 260-17 Satellite dish antennas.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
The proliferation of the construction and installation within the Village of Walton of satellite antennas, satellite dishes, parabolic dishes and other similar equipment and devices must be controlled so as to protect the health, safety and welfare of the citizens of the Village of Walton and, to the maximum degree possible, coordinate and control the same so as to preserve and protect the aesthetic qualities of the Village of Walton and its environs. Accordingly, this section is enacted to accomplish this stated purpose and intent.
As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
Any parabolic dish, satellite dish, antenna or other device or equipment of whatever nature or kind, the purpose of which is to receive television, radio, microwave or other electronic signals from space satellites.
Any concave, circular or dish-shaped device designed for receiving communication or television signals from space, but does not include conventional television, radio and amateur radio antennas.
No person shall cause, suffer or permit the erection and/or maintenance of any satellite dish upon any lands within the Village of Walton unless in conformity with the provisions as set forth in this section.
Limitations.
Dimensions.
The diameter of the satellite dish shall not exceed nine feet.
When separately supported, the total height of the satellite dish shall not exceed 12 feet, unless approved as a special exception by the Zoning Board of Appeals.
The satellite dish shall be located only in the rear yard, and no portion of the dish shall be closer than 10 feet to any property line.
When roof-mounted, the satellite dish shall be located on a portion of the roof sloping away from the front of the lot, unless approved as a special exception by the Zoning Board of Appeals. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if no adequate signal can be received by the satellite antenna in a location permitted by this chapter, the antenna may be sited where otherwise prohibited.
No more than one satellite dish shall be permitted on any lot.
When not roof-mounted, the satellite dish shall be completely screened from adjoining lots by the installation and maintenance of a planted visual barrier to consist of evergreen plantings.
Before erection of any such satellite dish, a permit application shall be made to the Village of Walton Codes Enforcement Officer, which permit shall be issued in accordance with this section and with the other provisions of the Code of the Village of Walton.
General regulations. Each satellite dish located within the Village of Walton shall be subject to the following additional general regulations:
No satellite dish may be erected in any district or any location within a district which is prohibited by regulation of the Federal Communications Commission or other regulatory agency having jurisdiction.
Each satellite dish shall be properly anchored and installed to resist a minimum wind load of 30 pounds per square foot of projected horizontal area. Supports, anchors and foundations shall take into account overturning movements and forces created by wind loading. The safety factor against overturning or sliding for wind forces on satellite antennas shall be 2.0.
In granting a special exception under Subsection D(1)(b) or (d) of this section, the Zoning Board of Appeals:
Shall not permit the erection of any satellite antenna exceeding 10 feet in diameter or 15 feet in height.
May require additional screening.
May require additional setback from the property line to that imposed by these regulations.
Shall attach such additional reasonable conditions as it shall require, consistent with the intent of these regulations, that the essential character of the neighborhood shall not be disturbed by the installation of any such satellite dish.
This section is not intended to and shall not be construed to permit, authorize or allow the construction, installation or use of a parabolic dish, satellite dish, antenna or other device or equipment of whatever nature or kind used, intended to be used or capable of being used for the propagation or transmission of radio, microwave or electromagnetic waves.
This section shall not apply to satellite dishes that are 18 inches or less in diameter.