General purpose and description.

It is the purpose and intent of this section to permit a wide variety of housing types and development configurations and layouts to meet the residential and related needs of current and future residents of the City of West Point.

1.

Dimensional regulations. No building shall be erected, reconstructed, or structurally altered to exceed the dimensional requirements herein established for the district in which such building is located. See Area and Dimension Regulations in section 16.

2.

Lot required. Every building hereafter erected shall be located on a lot, and in no case shall there be more than one (1) main building and the customary accessory buildings on one (1) lot.

3.

Exterior finish material. All single family dwellings in a new subdivision of three (3) or more lots shall be built with brick, stone, stucco, wood, or fiber cement plank (hardiplank). Vinyl siding is not allowed as an acceptable product.

4.

Utilities. All new subdivisions shall provide underground utilities.

5.

Entrance requirements. All new subdivisions containing more than one hundred (100) units shall provide at a minimum two (2) entrances. However, subdivisions containing less than one hundred (100) units are strongly encouraged to provide or plan for the development of a second entrance.

6.

Driveway and parking standards. No building shall be erected or added to except in conformity with the off-street parking and loading requirements of section 18.

(a)

No residence shall have a driveway and parking area with a total area that exceeds twenty-five (25) percent of the front yard.

(b)

All driveway and parking areas shall be asphalt or concrete and accessible via an approved curb cut.

(c)

The width of a driveway intersecting a public street shall not exceed eighteen (18) feet within the right-of-way with a minimum curb-line radius of two (2) feet on each side.

(d)

No residence shall be allowed to park vehicles in the front yard to include boats, recreational vehicles, travel trailers or vehicles not in operating condition or currently licensed.

(e)

No residence shall be allowed to park any commercial vehicle or any other vehicle over ten thousand (10,000) pounds gross vehicle weight or twenty-four (24) feet in length in any residential districts, unless parked within an enclosed building or structure.

7.

Curb and gutter. All new residential streets shall be constructed with curb and gutter. The type shall be twenty-four (24) inch stand-up curb and gutter.

8.

Sidewalks. All new developments shall provide sidewalks on both sides of the street. Sidewalks shall be a minimum of four (4) feet wide and placed two (2) feet from the back of curb.

9.

Yard. All yard areas shall be sodded and landscaped. Individual lots within a platted subdivision shall be required to plant a minimum of two (2) shade/canopy trees that have a trunk of not less than two (2) caliper inches.

10.

Open space. Open space is required for developments with twenty-five (25) or more units or lots. Open space may include parks, commons, plazas, community green or lawn, landscaped buffers or other areas, decorative plantings, formal or informal gardens, pedestrian walkways or paths, and active or passive recreation areas. Open space shall not include streets, drives, off-street parking and loading areas or any area within residential lots. No more than forty (40) percent of the required open space shall be located within floodplains, wetlands, steep slope areas, utility easements, etc. Open space shall be maintained by and be the sole responsibility of the developer/owner of the project or home owners association.

11.

Landscaped entrance. Any residential development involving new access from a public street shall provide a landscaped entrance. Landscaped entrances shall be maintained by and be the sole responsibility of the developer/owner of the project or home owners association.

12.

Buffers/screening. Buffers shall be required between uncomplimentary uses. Landscape buffers are intended to eliminate or minimize potential nuisances such as dirt, litter, noise, glare of lights, signs and unsightly buildings or parking areas. Buffer requirements are outlined in section 22.

13.

Recreation facilities.

(a)

For any single-family residential development of seventy-five (75) or more units, a common recreation area of one hundred twenty-five (125) square feet per unit shall be provided. Such area shall, at a minimum, provide at least three (3) of the following elements: swimming pool, outdoor playground equipment, tennis courts, basketball courts, horseshoe or lawn bowling, passive recreation (shall include walking paths) or other recreation amenity as agreed upon by the planning director.

(b)

For any townhouse, condominium or multi-family residential development of fifty (50) or more units a common recreation area of one hundred (100) square feet per unit shall be provided. Such area shall, at a minimum, provide at least three (3) of the following elements: swimming pool, outdoor playground equipment, tennis courts, basketball courts, horseshoe or lawn bowling, passive recreation (shall include walking paths) or other recreation amenity as agreed upon by the planning director.

(c)

A staging or construction timetable specifying the construction of all recreational areas, facilities and amenities shall be included on the concept plan and/or accompanying documents for the proposed residential development. The staging or construction timetable may be related to the number of residential units under construction or complete, or population levels, or other appropriate standard. The adherence to the performance of such timetable may, at the discretion of the city council, be secured by the withholding and suspension of all permits for any project lying within the approved residential development. Amendments of the timetable may be made upon approval of the planning board.

14.

Homeowners association. For specific development options contained within this ordinance, a homeowners association may be required as part of the approval process. The minimum provisions for such covenants are provided as appropriate and shall be included in such covenants. However, the City of West Point does not have any responsibility nor right to enforce specific provisions contained within the covenants of a homeowners or any similar association.

15.

Minimum standards for townhouses.

(a)

A row of townhouses shall not contain more than eight (8) dwelling units.

(b)

Exterior finish material shall be brick, stone, traditional three (3) coat stucco, wood or fiber cement planks. It is recommended to use a combination of materials to prevent the appearance of row houses. Vinyl siding is not allowed as an acceptable product.

(c)

Townhouses shall either incorporate a flat roof design utilizing a decorative parapet wall or a have a minimum 6:12 roof pitch. Vents and similar objects shall not be visible from the front of the structure.

(d)

Townhouses shall meet the fire resistance-rated construction requirements outlined in the latest edition of the building code.

(e)

HVAC units shall not be visible from the right-of-way.

(f)

Each townhouse shall front on a dedicated public street.

(g)

Driveway standards. Individual driveways are recommended. If shared driveways are to be used, no more than two (2) units shall share the same driveway. All areas between driveways shall be sodded. Driveways shall be designed to provide maximum greenspace areas.

16.

Minimum standards for condominium developments.

(a)

Condominiums constructed in townhouse style shall follow the same requirements as townhouses with the exception of subsection 13.(f), above.

(b)

Condominium developments shall conform to all applicable rules and requirements as established by the Georgia Condominium Act. Prior to approval of any condominium development, the applicant shall provide the city with a copy of the condominium homeowner declaration prepared per the Georgia Condominium Act and filed with the office of the clerk of Superior Court of Troup County.

(c)

Condominiums established via the conversion of an existing apartment development are exempt from this provision.

(d)

Condominiums shall meet the fire resistance-rated construction requirements outlined in the latest edition of the building code.

17.

Minimum standards for multi-family developments.

(a)

Exterior finish material shall be brick, stone, traditional three (3) coat stucco, wood or fiber cement planks. Vinyl siding is not allowed as an acceptable product.

(b)

Minimum unit size, by type is described in the Area and Dimensional Regulations in section 16.

(c)

Minimum average unit size. The average square footage of all residential units proposed for a development must be a minimum of eight hundred (800) square feet. This provision does not apply to apartments above commercial storefronts.

(d)

Multi-family developments shall meet the fire resistance-rated construction requirements outlined in the latest edition of the building code.

(e)

Unless a minimum of two (2) entrances are provided from a public dedicated street, all units within a condominium development shall be located within one thousand (1,000) feet from the main entrance.

18.

Storage of certain property. Storage of boats, trailers and RV's within a townhouse, condominium or multi-family development project shall only be allowed in designated areas that are properly screened and enclosed.

(Ord. No. 2007-10, 3-12-07; Ord. No. 14-7, § 1, 5-12-14; Ord. No. 15-6, § 1, 4-13-15)