Whitemarsh Township
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XXVI
Off-Street Parking and Loading
§ 116-184 Required off-street parking facilities.
[Amended 10-21-1982 by Ord. No. 442; 10-28-1982 by Ord. No. 444; 7-25-1985 by Ord. No. 518; 10-24-1985 by Ord. No. 522; 5-16-2002 by Ord. No. 755; 1-28-2010 by Ord. No. 891; 3-28-2013 by Ord. No. 925; 12-9-2021 by Ord. No. 1009]
A.
Any building or other structure erected, altered, or used or a lot used or occupied for any of the following purposes shall be provided with minimum off-street parking spaces as set forth below, together with adequate passageways or driveways or other means of circulation and access to and from a street, provided that the number of such spaces which shall be handicapped (accessible) spaces shall be based upon the requirements set forth in the latest edition of the International Building Code and associated ANSI standards, as implemented by the Township in accordance with the Construction Code Act, 35 P.S. §§ 7210.101 to 7210.1103, as amended, and the Uniform Construction Code, 34 Pa. Code Part XIV, as amended.
Permitted Use | Minimum Requirements |
|---|---|
Animal boarding/dog day care | 1 per 200 square feet |
Auto service | 1 per service bay and 1 per 200 square feet of office space |
Cemetery | 1 per 250 square feet of office space; 1 per employee if no office building exists |
Clinic | 1 per 300 square feet |
College/junior college | 1 per faculty member and 1 per 10 classroom seats or 1 per 10 auditorium seats (whichever is greater) |
Commercial school | 1 per 250 square feet |
Conference center | 1 per guest room and 1 per 250 square feet of space allocated for conference rooms |
Continuing care retirement community | 1 per single-family detached, semidetached and attached dwellings and 1 per multifamily unit and 1 per 3 assisted living facility beds and 1 per 3 skilled nursing care facility beds and 1 per employee |
Country club | 1 per 4 people of total capacity and 1 per employee |
Day nursery/kindergarten | 1 per faculty member and 1 per 2 classrooms and offices |
Department store/supermarket | 1 per 250 square feet |
Dwelling | 2 per dwelling unit (single family, townhome, attached square feet); 1.5 per dwelling unit in apartment and multifamily dwellings |
Elementary school | 1 per faculty member and 1 per 2 classrooms and offices |
Emergency services | 3 per 4 employees on the 2 major shifts at max employment or 4 per emergency vehicle where no community room is part of the building (whichever is greater); where a community room is provided, 2 per emergency vehicle and 1 per 100 square feet |
Farmers/flea market, indoor and outdoor | 1 per 1,000 square feet and 1 per vendor |
Funeral home | 1 per 100 square feet of assembly room |
Home occupation uses | 1 per home occupation in addition to number required for the associated dwelling |
Hospital | 1 per patient bed and 1 per every 2 employees |
Hotel/tourist home/automobile court | 1 per rental unit |
Indoor theatre | 1 per 4 seats |
Industrial building (warehouses, manufacturing, storage, distribution) | 1 per 1,000 square feet |
Junior high school | 1 per faculty member and 1 per 2 classrooms and offices |
Laboratories, research and development facilities | 1 per 500 square feet of industrial use and 1 per 350 square feet of office use |
Library | 1 per 200 square feet |
Medical office | 1 per 200 square feet |
Microbrewery/microdistillery | 1 per 300 square feet |
Mini/self storage | 1 per 4,000 square feet and 1 per 250 square feet of office space |
Monastery or convent | 1 per 2 residents |
Museum | 1 per 400 square feet |
Nursing home | 1 per 2 patient beds and 1 per 2 employees |
Office | 1 per 250 square feet |
Other commercial buildings/uses | 1 per 1,000 square feet except authorized as a special exception |
Park/recreational facility/community center | 1 per employee and 1 per 200 square feet of floor area |
Place of worship | 1 per 4 seats and 1 per full-time employee |
Restaurant/cafe/tavern/bar/cabaret | 1 per 100 square feet up to 2,000 square feet, and 1 space for every 200 square feet thereafter |
Retail store or shop | 1 per 200 square feet |
Rooming house | 1 per room for rent |
Senior high school | 1 per faculty member and 1 per 10 students of projected building capacity |
Shopping center | 1 per 250 square feet (under 100,000 square feet); 1 per 300 square feet (over 100,000 square feet) |
B.
Any development that provides parking, other than residential uses, shall not exceed the minimum number of parking spaces by more than 110%.
C.
Required parking spaces shall be all-weather and shall be paved unless an alternate surface treatment is approved by the Township Engineer. Such parking spaces shall be on the same lot as the principal use except as provided in § 116-185.
D.
Parking areas. A maximum of 30 individual parking spaces may be placed together in any parking area. No dimension of any parking area may exceed 150 feet. Parking areas shall be separated from each other by planting strips not less than 10 feet in width. Where a double row of parking spaces is provided, a ten-foot-wide planting strip is required to separate each row. Such planting strips shall be planted and maintained with grass and/or ground cover and trees as approved by the Shade Tree Commission.
E.
No parking shall occur within 10 feet of any structure except the entrance to an approved garage.
F.
All parking shall conform to the requirements of the Whitemarsh Township Fire Prevention Code as enacted and amended.
§ 116-185 Off-site parking spaces.
[Amended 12-9-2021 by Ord. No. 1009]
The parking spaces required in § 116-184A herein may be located elsewhere than on the same lot when authorized as a special exception, subject to the following conditions:
A.
That the owners of two or more establishments shall submit with their application for special exception a site plan showing joint use and location of a common off-street parking area.
B.
That some portion of the common off-street parking area lies within 200 feet of an entrance, regularly used by patrons, into the building served thereby.
C.
That the Zoning Hearing Board may, in its discretion, reduce the required aggregate amount of required parking space upon determination that the greater efficiency is effected by joint use of a common parking area, but in no case shall the ratio of total off-street parking area to total sales-floor area be reduced less than 25%.
§ 116-186 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.
§ 116-187 Required off-street loading and unloading.
In addition to required off-street parking spaces, the foregoing uses shall be provided with adequate off-street loading space.
§ 116-188 Special events.
In addition to the parking permitted under other sections of this chapter, the owner of a lot in any zoning district may permit public parking for a fee upon such lot for the express and sole purpose of serving a special event which is occurring within 1/2 mile of any portion of such lot upon the following conditions:
A.
Such use shall be limited to a maximum of seven consecutive days.
B.
Such lot shall not be used for this purpose more frequently than once in any six-month period.
C.
The owner of such lot shall be responsible for compliance with all Township ordinances, resolutions and regulations relating to parking, including obtaining requisite permits.
D.
A special event shall include any event which occurs not more frequently than once every six months.
§ 116-188.1 Incorporation of reserve parking and electric vehicle charging stations.
§ 116-188.2 Reserve parking.
[Added 12-9-2021 by Ord. No. 1009]
A.
Reserve parking. Required parking may be held in reserve if the applicant can show, to the satisfaction of the Board of Supervisors, that the additional parking is not currently needed. Regardless of the number of spaces actually installed, a parking area to accommodate the aggregate number of parking spaces required shall be fully designed and the area which is proposed to be held in reserve shall be shown on the site plan application as "reserve parking area."
B.
Where the Board of Supervisors determines that the required number of parking spaces is not currently needed, it may authorize up to 50% of the required parking spaces to be held in reserve as part of a land development application, provided the following criteria are met:
(1)
The applicant demonstrates that 100% of the required parking spaces can be paved without violating any applicable provisions of this chapter. When constructed, the reserve parking must meet all applicable provisions of this chapter in effect on the date of approval of the land development plan.
(2)
The Township Engineer recommends the reduction and the applicant then demonstrates, to the satisfaction of the Board of Supervisors, that the number of required parking spaces is not currently needed for the proposed use's operations.
C.
The authorization of reserve parking shall be conditioned upon the following:
(1)
The applicant shall install stormwater management facilities, as required by the Township, for the total number of required parking spaces, including those parking spaces held in reserve, unless the applicant demonstrates to the Board of Supervisors' satisfaction that postponing the installation of the stormwater management facilities required for the reserve parking allows natural features on the site to be maintained until such time, if ever, that the construction of the reserved parking is deemed necessary.
(2)
The reserve parking area shall be fully designed and clearly designated on the land development plan. The total surface area of required parking spaces and reserve parking spaces must be utilized to calculate the proposed impervious ground cover ratio.
(3)
The applicant shall install landscaping, as required by all applicable Township ordinances, for the total number of required parking spaces. The reserve parking area shall be planted with vegetative cover and integrated into the applicant's landscaping plans until the reserve parking is constructed. The landscaping shall not be counted toward landscaping as required by the Zoning Ordinance or any other chapter of the Township Code.
(4)
The landscaping shall be distributed in a manner to provide appropriate screening of the parking facilities and shall not be concentrated on only one portion of the site.
D.
Reserve parking shall be enforced as provided below:
(1)
The reserve parking, or a limited portion thereof as determined by the Township, must be constructed when the Township Engineer and/or Township Zoning Officer determines that such spaces are needed to accommodate the operation of the use(s) on the property.
(2)
If there is any change in the use, ownership, building size or number of occupants/employees using the property that affect the number of parking spaces required, the Township Engineer and/or Township Zoning Officer will notify the applicant, in writing, of the requirement to install parking spaces.
(3)
The Township Zoning Officer may deny or revoke a use and occupancy permit for failure to construct the previously reserved parking spaces when directed to do so under this section.
§ 116-188.3 Electric vehicle charging stations.
[Added 12-9-2021 by Ord. No. 1009]
A.
Size and location. A standard-size parking space shall be used for electric vehicle charging stations where such a station is required or planned.
(1)
Placement of electric vehicle parking stations is preferred at the beginning or end of a series of parking stalls.
B.
Design. The following requirements apply with respect to the design of electric vehicle charging stations:
(1)
Charging station equipment mounted on pedestals, bollards or other devices shall be a minimum of 24 inches clear from the face of the curb.
(2)
Charging station outlets shall be no lower than 36 inches and no higher than 48 inches from the top of the surface where mounted and shall contain a retraction device and/or place to hang permanent cords and connectors sufficiently above the ground or pavement surface.
C.
Maintenance. Charging station equipment shall be maintained in all respects, including the functioning of charging equipment. A phone number or contact information shall be provided on the charging station equipment for reporting when the equipment is not functioning or other problems are encountered.
D.
Number of spaces. Parking spaces providing electric vehicle (EV) charging stations are to be included in addition to the minimum number of parking spaces required, as provided in Article XXVI, Off-Street Parking and Loading. The required number of EV charging stations is based on the total number of spaces required as part of land development plan or applicable permit plan approval and shall not be reduced based on approved spaces held in reserve.
(1)
EV charging stations shall be required for all new, expanded, or reconstructed parking areas. The number of spaces shall be counted as total spaces associated within a development parcel, even if parking areas are broken into smaller facilities within the larger development parcel.
(a)
Electric vehicle charging stations are not required for parking facilities with less than 20 off-street parking spaces.
(b)
Two electric vehicle charging stations are required for any parking facilities that contain at least 20 but not more than 50 off-street parking spaces.
(c)
Five electric vehicle charging stations are required for parking facilities that contain at least 50 but not more than 100 off-street parking spaces.
(d)
One additional electric vehicle charging station shall be provided for every 50 spaces over 100 off-street parking spaces.
(2)
Publicly accessible electric vehicle charging stations are required, as specified above, within residential developments even when charging stations are provided for individual dwelling units.
(3)
A minimum of 50% of all required EV charging stations shall be ADA-accessible, provided, however, that where only one electric vehicle charging station is required, it shall be ADA-accessible.
E.
Access. All EV charging stations must have a barrier-free route of travel.
F.
Fees. The property owner is not restricted from collecting a reasonable service fee for the use of electric vehicle charging stations made available to residents, employees, and visitors to the property on which it is located.
G.
Signage. Each electric vehicle charging station must include signage identifying spaces as "No Parking Except for Electric Vehicle Charging." Days and hours of operation shall be included if time limits or tow-away provisions are to be enforced.