Whitpain Township City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XXIV
SC Shopping Center Districts
[Added 5-17-1965 by Ord. No. 4-13]
§ 160-162 Legislative intent.
In expansion of the purposes contained in Article I, § 160-2, it is hereby declared to be the intent of this article with respect to Shopping Center Districts to establish reasonable standards for the height and size of buildings, the areas and dimensions of yards and open spaces, the provision of facilities to minimize traffic congestion, noise, glare, pollution, so as to lessen the danger to the public safety and surrounding building values from traffic congestion, overcrowding of land, inadequate provisions for water and sewerage facilities and inadequate transportation; and to establish reasonable standards for a shopping center suitable with the general character of the adjoining district. In an SC Shopping Center District, the following regulations shall apply.
§ 160-163 Permitted uses.
In an SC Shopping Center District, a building or combination of buildings may be erected or used and a lot area may be used or occupied for any of the following purposes and no other:
A.
Retail store, including retail outlet or showroom, but not including automobile sales agency, provided that no goods shall be displayed on the exterior of any building or on that lot, and provided that only incidental storage, including floor samples, shall be permitted.
B.
Restaurant.
C.
The following personal service shops dealing directly with customers: beauty parlor, barbershop, clothes cleaning (not including a cleaning and dyeing plant), automatic self-service laundry, dressmaking, millinery or similar shop, provided that all repair or processing work is conducted in accordance with Subsection H below.
D.
Theater, not including outdoor motion-picture establishment; assembly hall or community building; indoor recreational establishment or library; child day-care center.
E.
Bakery, confectionery or custom shop for the production of articles to be sold at retail on the premises, provided that all baking or processing is conducted in accordance with Subsection H below.
F.
Bank.
G.
Passenger bus station; telephone and telegraph offices.
H.
The following uses, provided that if such uses are located on the ground floor, they shall not be visible from 20 feet of the front of the building, and provided that they shall be effectively screened from the front portion of the building by a wall or partition:
(1)
General servicing or repair.
(2)
Upholstering.
(3)
Carpentry or woodworking.
(4)
Electrical, radio, television repair.
(5)
Hand laundering, dry cleaning or pressing, provided that no flammable fluids are used.
[Amended 8-18-1980 by Ord. No. 4-60]
(6)
Tailoring, dressmaking or repair.
(7)
Millinery repair.
(8)
Baking, confectionary making or similar processing.
(9)
Any similar use involving repair, processing or storage activity.
I.
Accessory use customarily incidental to any of the above uses.
J.
The following uses when authorized by special exception:
[Amended 7-1-2003 by Ord. No. 4-186]
(1)
Any use of the same general character as any of the above permitted uses when authorized as a special exception by the Zoning Hearing Board, provided that such use shall be permitted subject to such reasonable restrictions as the Zoning Hearing Board may determine, and further provided that no trade or business shall be permitted which is either noxious or hazardous.
(2)
Convenience store.
K.
Signs, when erected and maintained in accordance with Article XXVI and § 160-164 below.
§ 160-164 Development requirements.
The general plan for a shopping center shall include evidence and facts showing that it has considered and made provision for, and the development shall be executed in accordance with, the following essential conditions:
A.
The total area shall not be less than two developable acres.
B.
No more than 20% of the lot area shall be occupied by buildings. Total allowable floor area divided by area of lot shall not exceed 0.4 (40%).
C.
The distance at the closest point between any two buildings or groups of units of attached buildings shall not be less than 12 feet.
D.
The maximum height of any building or structure erected or enlarged in this district shall be 40 feet.
E.
No building or structure shall be located closer than 50 feet to the ultimate right-of-way of all adjacent streets, nor closer than 100 feet to a side or rear property line adjacent to a residential district line, nor closer than 25 feet to any property line not subject to the additional standards outlined herein.
[Amended 8-19-1985 by Ord. No. 4-84]
F.
No parking area, access drive, loading or service area may be located closer than:
[Amended 8-19-1985 by Ord. No. 4-84]
(1)
Fifty feet to a side or rear property line adjacent to a residential, park and recreation or institutional zoning district.
(2)
Twenty-five feet to the ultimate right-of-way line of all adjacent streets.
(3)
Fifteen feet to any other property lines.
(4)
In addition to landscaping required elsewhere in this article, all off-street parking areas shall be landscaped in accordance with § 160-107.
G.
Lighting facilities shall comply with § 160-220 of this chapter.
H.
The shopping center 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, which 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.
[Amended 6-3-1968 by Ord. No. 4-23; 11-16-1999 by Ord. No. 4-168]
I.
At least 20% of the area of any lot shall be retained as open space. Impervious cover of any nature is prohibited within the open space area. This area shall be properly landscaped with trees, shrubs or other plantings in order to blend the project with the natural surroundings.
[Amended 11-14-1977 by Ord. No. 4-52]
J.
For the purpose of calculating the minimum area, lot dimension and yard requirements established by this section, a single planned Shopping Center District cannot lie on two sides of a public street or alley. Any area designated as being an SC District and lying on both sides of a public street shall be deemed to be two SC Districts, and all minimum requirements shall be met by buildings on each side of said public street as separate districts.
[Amended 11-14-1977 by Ord. No. 4-52]
K.
Outside storage or display of any articles, goods, wares or merchandise whatsoever is prohibited.
[Amended 11-14-1977 by Ord. No. 4-52]
§ 160-165 Off-street parking and loading.
Adequate off-street parking and loading space is permitted in accordance with Article XXVII of this chapter.
