West Conshohocken City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XXII
O-1 Office District
§ 113-146 Legislative intent.
In expansion of the declaration of legislative intent and the statement of community development objectives of this article, it is hereby declared to be the intent of the O-1 Office District to establish reasonable performance standards for the development of office and selected commercial uses that will take advantage of the location and highway accessibility offered by the interchanges of the Schuylkill and Mid-County Expressways and promote employment within the Borough, while protecting the Borough's sensitive environmental features, including river banks, woods, etc. It is further the intent of the article that development shall not have a detrimental effect upon traffic conditions nor community services and facilities and that development shall provide adequate parking and landscaping to protect adjacent areas.
§ 113-147 Permitted uses.
A.
A building may be erected, altered or used and a lot may be used or occupied for any of the following uses and no other:
B.
The following uses shall be permitted, provided that the uses do not occupy more than 30% of the total gross floor area of the building in which they are occupied, unless authorized by special exception by the Zoning Hearing Board:
§ 113-148 Required recreation/open space.
Within this O-1 District, an average of 10% of the total lot area shall be designated for recreation/open space use. The Borough may but shall not be required to accept any portion or portions of the open space, provided that such land is freely accessible to and of benefit to the general public of the Borough and there are no acquisition costs involved. The required recreation/open space herein may be located other than on the same lot subject to the following conditions:
§ 113-149 Dimensional standards.
A.
Lot area. No lot area within the O-1 District shall be less than 3 1/2 acres, except under the following conditions:
B.
Lot width. A lot width of not less than 150 feet shall be provided for each lot in this O-1 District.
C.
Building coverage. Not more than 35% of the area of each lot may be occupied by buildings, excluding parking garages.
D.
Floor area ratio. No building, excluding parking garages, within the O-1 District shall have a gross floor area greater than 95% of the area of the lot except under the following conditions:
(1)
Two or more lots are involved in land development or subdivision.
(2)
The two or more lots are located within the O-1 District.
(3)
The average gross floor area, excluding parking garages, does not exceed 95% of the cumulative total lot area.
(4)
In any such land development or subdivision, the apportioned gloss floor area for each lot shall be stipulated on the subdivision plan and in the deed indenture.
E.
Impervious surface coverage. Impervious surface coverage within the O-1 District shall not exceed 85% of the lot area, except under the following conditions:
F.
Height. The maximum height of any building, measured from the mean elevation of surrounding grade, shall be 250 feet.
G.
Building setbacks. The following setbacks shall apply for any building, excluding parking garages, except as otherwise noted, within this district:
(1)
The minimum building setback measured from the existing center line of any primary arterial roadway shall be 55 feet, but in no event shall the building setback be less than 20 feet from any legal right-of-way line.
(2)
The minimum building setback, excluding parking garages, measured from any lot line shall be 20 feet, except that no building setback is required from a railroad right-of-way.
[Amended 5-12-1987 by Ord. No. 381, approved 5-12-1987]
(3)
Notwithstanding anything contained in this article to the contrary, no building setback is required from any roadway right-of-way that is parallel to a railroad right-of-way, so long as the property owner has agreed to maintain the roadway right-of-way, including roadway structures and bridges. However, in no event shall a building or structure be less than six feet from the paved edge of any roadway.
[Added 5-9-1989 by Ord. No. 398, approved 5-9-1989]
H.
Minimum distance between buildings. The minimum distance between a building or group of buildings shall be 25 feet, except that all structures connected by common rooflines or covered walkways shall be considered one building.
I.
Parking setbacks. The following setbacks shall apply for any parking area within this district:
(1)
The minimum surface parking setback measured from any street curbline shall be 10 feet.
(2)
The minimum surface parking setback measured from any lot line shall be 10 feet.
(3)
The minimum surface parking setback measured from any building shall be 10 feet.
(4)
There shall be no setback requirement with respect to below-grade parking garages. For above-grade parking garages which do not exceed a height of 12 feet above grade or a height of 24 feet above grade, when approved by the Borough Council as a conditional use, the minimum setback measured from the existing center line of any primary arterial roadway shall be 40 feet; the setback shall be no less 10 feet from any legal right-of-way line, except that no setback shall be required from a railroad right-of-way. Where a parking garage exceeds a height of 12 feet above grade or exceeds a height of 24 feet above grade in the case of a conditional use permitting a height up to 24 feet, the setbacks shall be in accordance with Subsection G(1) of this section.
[Amended 5-12-1987 by Ord. No. 381, approved 5-12-1987]
(5)
Notwithstanding anything contained in this article to the contrary, no parking setback, with regard to below- and above-grade parking, is required from any roadway right-of-way that is parallel to a railroad right-of-way, so long as the property owner has agreed to maintain the roadway right-of-way, including roadway structures and bridges. However, in no event shall any below- or above grade parking or parking structure be less than six feet from the paved edge of any roadway.
[Added 5-9-1989 by Ord. No. 398, approved 5-9-1989]
§ 113-150 Off-street parking facilities.
A.
Off-street parking spaces shall be provided with proper access from a street in the amounts indicated below. For any primary use, the required parking spaces shall be all-weather and paved and located on the same lot, except as provided within this article.
[Amended 9-6-2000 by Ord. No. 00-14, approved 9-7-2000]
Use | Number of Spaces | |
|---|---|---|
Office | 6 per 1,000 square feet of gross floor area | |
Theater, auditorium or other place of assemblage | 1 per 3 seats | |
Banks and other financial institutions | 6 per 1,000 square feet of gross floor area; in addition, where a drive-in facility and/or automated banking machine is included, 6 in-line automobile waiting spaces for each bank teller and or remote teller station or window | |
Municipal building; community facility | 1 per 500 square feet of gross floor area | |
All other uses | The requirements of § 113-98 shall apply |
B.
Mixed or multiple uses within one building or site shall require parking as per the sum of the requirements of the various usages unless approved by special exception.
§ 113-151 Modifications to parking requirements.
The parking spaces required herein may be located elsewhere other than on the same lot, subject to the following conditions:
§ 113-152 Parking design standards.
All nonresidential parking lots shall be operated and maintained in accordance with the following conditions:
A.
The minimum dimensions for all parking spaces shall be:
(1)
Parking garages: eight feet six inches by 18 feet clearly delineated for standard size, and seven feet nine inches by 16 feet measured from the face of the column clearly delineated for compact size. Notwithstanding this provision, however, the provisions of § 113-150A shall apply.
[Amended 5-12-1987 by Ord. No. 381, approved 5-12-1987]
(2)
Parking lots: nine feet by 18 feet clearly delineated.
B.
All parking lots shall include handicap parking spaces of sufficient numbers and in close proximity to entrances. There shall be a minimum of two or 1% of the total number of spaces per lot, whichever is greater, to be devoted to handicap parking. The design of these spaces shall be subject to all applicable federal, state and local codes.
C.
Parking lots shall not be used for sale, repair or dismantling of vehicles, equipment, materials or supplies.
D.
Parking lots shall be properly graded for drainage, surfaced and maintained in good condition.
E.
Lighting facilities in parking lots shall be so arranged that they produce safe lighting levels without glare or disturbance to adjacent residences nor interfere with traffic by either location nor glare.
F.
Trash receptacles located in parking areas shall be easily accessible by trucks and shall be screened and buffered from view.
G.
In a parking garage with at least 25 spaces, the designation and use of a maximum of 35% of the parking stalls in a garage or parking area as compact size is permitted.
[Added 5-12-1987 by Ord. No. 381, approved 5-12-1987]
§ 113-153 Off-street loading facilities.
In this O-1 District, off-street loading berths shall be provided and maintained in accordance with the following:
A.
For any building or use, a minimum of two off-street loading spaces shall be provided. The loading spaces shall not be in conflict with parking spaces nor vehicular circulation.
B.
Safe ingress and egress to adjacent streets or driveways shall exist.
C.
Proper location in relation to vehicular circulation in adjacent uses shall be considered.
D.
The nature of the establishment and its required schedule for loading shall be considered in the design of loading areas.
§ 113-154 Landscaping.
[Amended 11-14-1995 by Ord. No. 95-436, approved 11-14-1995]
Landscaping, including buffers, screens, parking lot landscaping, street trees and preservation of existing vegetation, shall be provided according to the requirements of Chapter 102, Subdivision and Land Development.
§ 113-155 Additional design standards.
A.
Trash and refuse areas. The design of buildings in this district shall include either a provision for storage of trash, refuse and garbage inside the building or within a screened area outside of the building. The trash and refuse area must be shielded from the direct view from any adjacent property by using walls, opaque fences and/or evergreen screens which must be at least eight feet high.
B.
Storage. No storage of materials, equipment or goods shall be permitted outside of a building.
C.
Outside lighting. All outside lighting shall be shielded so that the source of light shall not be visible from any point off the lot on which the light is located. In no case shall lights be permitted to be directed or reflected towards any residential district, and there shall be no glare or hazardous interference of any kind on any roadway.
D.
Utilities. All new utility lines (electrical, telephone, etc.) shall be placed underground.
E.
Water and sewer. All uses shall be in conformance with all requirements relating to public water and sewer services of the Borough codes and ordinances.
§ 113-156 Traffic study.
A traffic study shall be submitted for review by the Borough Council and shall indicate that satisfactory provisions are being made to prevent traffic congestion and hazardous road conditions resulting from the proposed development. This study shall be prepared by a professional traffic engineer and shall contain the following information:
A.
A study impact area agreed to by the Borough Engineer.
B.
An inventory of site conditions which shall include:
(1)
A sketch plan of the proposed development.
(2)
Existing average daily traffic (ADT) on roads within the study area. This shall include traffic volumes at peak highway hours and at peak development generated hours.
(3)
Existing levels of service (A through F) on roads and intersections within the study area.
(4)
Other information requested by the Borough Engineer.
C.
The impact of the proposed development on the area's transportation system, which shall include:
(1)
The number of trips generated by the proposed development (in and out and at peak hours).
(2)
The estimated average daily traffic on roads within the study area with the proposed development.
(3)
The level of service (A through F) with the anticipated development.
(4)
Documentation of the source(s) of generated traffic estimates (such as the Institute of Transportation Engineers, Trip Generation Report).
(5)
Evaluation of the adequacy of the development's ingress and egress point.
D.
Documentation of on-site or off-site improvements proposed to mitigate any projected adverse transportation impacts of the proposed development. This shall include, when warranted, such improvements as road widening, intersection improvements, acceleration/deceleration lanes, traffic control devices, signs or other improvements deemed necessary by the Borough Engineer.