Washougal City Zoning Code

The city council finds that orderliness, beauty, architectural harmony, and design with nature in mind bear a substantial relationship to community welfare. The regulations in this chapter promote the maintenance of existing natural areas and the reestablishment of vegetation for aesthetic and health reasons, establish a pleasant visual character by softening the effects of built and paved areas, promote compatibility between land uses by reducing impacts of development on abutting uses, and enhance the livability of residential lands. The city council intends to upgrade the aesthetic character, and ensure the compatibility of institutional, multiple-family residential, commercial, industrial and other developments through the application of screening requirements for outdoor storage uses, maintenance and replanting of natural buffers between incompatible uses, the reservation of sufficient open space, and the installation of landscape strips along street rights-of-way, within parking lots and along side property lines, as more fully set forth in this chapter and other chapters of this title.

Outdoor storage areas shall meet the following requirements:

Any loading bays or berths required by this title or provided to serve development shall not face public streets and shall be located to the side or the rear of buildings. Such loading bays or berths must be screened from abutting residential lots by a B3 buffer or equivalent.

Mechanical equipment located on the ground, such as heating or cooling equipment, pumps, or generators must be screened from the street and any abutting residential lots. Mechanical equipment on roofs must be screened from the ground level of any abutting residential lots.

New development or additions and expansion of existing development shall provide landscaping consistent with Table 18.48-1 and for parking lots as required by WMC § 18.52.070.

New development or additions and expansions of existing development shall provide buffers along property lines consistent with the screening and buffering requirements as specified in Table 18.48-1. If a new development or addition and expansion of existing developments occur that are abutting a lower intensity use a B3 buffer is required, even if both uses are within the same zone district.

Landscaping is to be maintained in a healthy and neat manner and may be subject to periodic inspection by the city.

No person shall operate or cause to be operated any source of sound in such a manner as to create a sound level that could be considered a public disturbance noise as provided in Chapter 9.73 WMC.

Glare may not directly or indirectly from reflection cause illumination on other properties in excess of a measurement of one foot candle of illumination. Strobe lights visible from another property are not allowed.

Measurements for compliance with the standards specified in this chapter are to be made from the property line or within the property of the affected site. If the city does not have the equipment or expertise to measure and evaluate a specific complaint, it may request assistance from another agency or may contract with an independent expert to perform such measurements. The city may accept measurements made by an independent expert hired by the controller or operator of the off-site impact source. If the city contracts to have measurements made and no violation is found, the city will bear the expense. If a violation is found, city expenses will be charged to the violator.