Whitpain Township City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XXI
C-1 Commercial Districts
§ 160-134 Applicable regulations.
In C-1 Commercial Districts, the following regulations shall apply.
§ 160-135 Use regulations.
[Amended 8-19-1985 by Ord. No. 4-84; 7-5-1988 by Ord. No. 40-107; 10-6-1997 by Ord. No. 4-157]
A building may be erected, altered or used and a lot or premises may be used or occupied for any of the following purposes and no other:
A.
A single-family dwelling use is permitted in the C-1 Commercial District, provided that the regulations of the R-2 Residence District shall be observed and shall apply to such use.
B.
Business or professional office, studio.
C.
Bank, savings and loan association, financial institution.
D.
Municipal uses, excluding a dump.
E.
Telephone central office; telegraph or other public utility office; passenger station for public transportation.
F.
Greenhouse, florist shop.
G.
Any use of the same general character as any use hereinbefore specifically permitted by a special exception.
I.
Accessory use on the same lot with and customarily incidental to any of the foregoing permitted uses.
[Added 7-1-2003 by Ord. No. 4-186]
§ 160-136 Height regulations.
[Amended 7-5-1988 by Ord. No. 4-107]
The maximum height of any building erected or used shall not exceed two stories and shall not be greater than 30 feet in height. No part of any building or structure, including chimneys, spires, towers, elevator penthouses, tanks and similar projections, shall be higher than 40 feet above the ground.
§ 160-137 Area, width and yard regulations.
A.
Minimum lot area and width. For any building erected or used for any dwelling use permitted by § 160-135A herein, there shall be a lot area and lot width as prescribed for the residential district designated in accordance with said § 160-135A. Minimum lot area for any other use shall be no less than necessary to satisfy requirements in Subsections B, C, D, E and F below and the parking requirements of Article XXVII.
B.
Minimum lot area for a C-1 use shall be 10,000 square feet, and a lot must have at least 60 feet of frontage on a public road.
C.
Front yard. There shall be a front yard on each lot, which shall not be less than 25 feet in depth from the street ultimate right-of-way line.
[Amended 7-5-1988 by Ord. No. 4-107]
D.
Side yards. There shall be two side yards with an aggregate width of at least 30 feet, with a minimum side yard having a width of not less than 10 feet.
[Amended 7-5-1988 by Ord. No. 4-107]
E.
Rear yard. There shall be a rear yard on each lot, the depth of which shall be not less than 30 feet.
F.
Building coverage. Not more than 25% of the area of any lot shall be occupied by buildings.
I.
Setbacks from residential districts.
[Added 8-19-1985 by Ord. No. 4-84]
(1)
Where a building is adjacent to a residential district or faces a street on the opposite side of which is zoned residential, a setback of 50 feet or twice the height of the building, whichever is greater, shall be required, provided that, for each building having a height of 25 feet or less, the corresponding setback from the ultimate right-of-way line may be reduced on the following basis: Setback in feet equals building height times two but not less than 25 feet (setback = building height times 2 greater than 25 feet).
[Amended 7-5-1988 by Ord. No. 4-107]
(2)
No parking or paved area shall be permitted within 25 feet of a residential district or the ultimate right-of-way line of a street on the opposite side of which is zoned residential.
J.
Outdoor storage and sales. No permanent or temporary storage of merchandise, articles or equipment shall be permitted outside a building, and no goods, articles or equipment shall be displayed or offered for sale between the front line of any building in the case of an existing building and the front street line of the property.
[Added 8-19-1985 by Ord. No. 4-84]
§ 160-138 Prohibited uses.
No building may be erected, altered or used for any trade or business that is noxious or offensive by reason of odor, dust, smoke, gas, vibration or noise.
§ 160-139 Screening.
[Amended 7-5-1988 by Ord. No. 4-108; 11-16-1999 by Ord. No. 4-168]
A C-1 Commercial District use shall be provided with a permanent screen buffer from adjoining and contiguous Residential, Park and Recreation, and Institutional Districts by a combination of the following: wall, fence, evergreen hedge or other suitable enclosure of a minimum height of 6 1/2 feet, placed at least four feet inside the C-1 Commercial District property line. The buffer shall be planted in accordance with a plan approved by the Board of Supervisors following a recommendation by the Planning Commission, which, at the very least, shall conform to the standards and requirements of § 160-107, Buffer yards and planting materials, of this chapter.
§ 160-140 Off-street parking and loading.
Adequate off-street parking and loading space is permitted in accordance with Article XXVII of this chapter.