Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/19/04 Zoning Text Amendment Art IV Sec 8.0,21.0HARNETT COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA A RESOLUTION AMENDING THE HARNETT COUNTY ZONING ORDINANCE TEXT WHEREAS, the Board of Commissioners of Harnett County adopted a Zoning Ordinance on July 18, 1988 and June 5, 2000 for the purpose of promoting the health, safety, and general welfare of the county residents; and WHEREAS, this ordinance was adopted under authority granted by the General Assembly of the State of North Carolina, particularly G.S. 153A -340; and WHEREAS, the Zoning Ordinance contains provisions for amending said ordinance and those provisions have been followed; and WHEREAS, the Harnett County Planning Board has reviewed the amendment to Article IV Sect. 8.0 Buffers & new addition of Sect. 21.0 Site Plan Requirements and recommends the adoption of the following amendment. NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS OF HARNETT COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA that Article IV Sect. 8.0 Buffers & new addition of Sect. 21.0 Site Plan Requirements of the Zoning Ordinance is amended by adding the following text: Section 21.0 Site Plan Requirements 21.1 General: All proposed non - residential, and multi - family developments, unless expressly exempted below, shall be subject to site plan review by the Zoning Administrator. No Building permits shall be issued until a site plan approval has been granted. 21.2 Development Exempt or Partially Exempt from Approval: The following activities or uses shall be exempt from a site plan review: Public Projects - The construction of any public street or utility service line, whether publicly or privately owned. Maintenance- Maintenance of any structure is exempt from site plan review. Agricultural - The use or intended use of land, with or without accessory structures, for purposes of agriculture, raising of crops or animals, forestry, mariculture and the like. Single Family Residences- Single family residences, including manufactured homes, are exempt from site plan review, but shall comply with all other requirements regarding single family residences and manufactured homes. Home Occupations- Home occupations as defined in this title. Accessory Structures Integral to Permitted Development - Any accessory structure or use, whether temporary or permanent, integral to an approved development permitted in accordance with the provisions of this title. Such accessory structure or use shall comply with the design standards and all other sections of this title. In situations where the size or use of the accessory structure can be considered detrimental to public safety the Zoning Administrator may require the applicant to submit a site plan. Temporary Uses, Nonmaterial - Those activities of short duration that do not materially affect the area's natural environment, parking requirements, transportation patterns, public health or economic values shall be reviewed for approval by the Zoning Administrator. 21.3 Requirements for a Complete Site Plan: In order for a Site Plan to be considered complete the applicant must submit five (5) copies of a Site Plan drawn to scale containing at least (but not limited to) the following information: Title Block Information (Items located under this heading must all be located in the same place on plat) • Name of Development & Date • Name, Address, telephone number of owners and applicant • Zoning Classification • Watershed District and extent of the area to be developed (% coverage of lot to be impervious surface if located in a designated watershed area) • Parcel Identification Number and Tax ID of the tract(s) • Deed Reference for the Tract being Divided • Flood Plain (Zone, Map number, and Effective date) General Requirements • Map Size 18" X 24" & Scale 1" =200' or larger • North Point, Graphic Scale, Vicinity Map • Names and Right of Ways of Streets and State Roads • Show Boundaries of Tract • Show Adjacent Uses • Net or total Acreage for Lot • Show building envelope and required setback areas • Location of all existing and proposed Mechanical, Utility, and Trash Containment Areas • Proposed or existing fencing, screening, gates, and /or off - street loading docks • Show all existing structures located on the parcel • Locations and widths of all easements and rights -of -way within or adjacent to the site, including access roads and existing Street Layout. • Location of existing and proposed utilities. • Location of all parking areas on site (based on type of business and/or square footage) • Provide a parking space typical • Proposed parking lot material • Proposed hours and days of operation • Location, type, and size of proposed signage • List of all hazardous materials that will be stored on site • Methods to control and respond to spillage and to prevent pollution of surface and groundwater • When, located within the one hundred year flood plain you must delineate boundary of flood plain. • A copy of the erosion control plan submitted to the appropriate authority, if such plan is required. Buffering Plan • Proposed buffering regulations as required in section 8.0 of this ordinance. Storm Water Management Proposed storm water management plan and calculations as required. Topographic Map with contour intervals of no greater than five (5) feet drawn at an engineering scale. Certifications • All developments located along a major thoroughfare, that disturb more than one 1 acre of land, located within the Watershed, Flood Plain, Airport Overlay, Highway Corridor Overlay, or requires an extension of Public Utilities must have the site plan prepared and certified by a Professional North Carolina Land Surveyor, or Engineer. • Certification from NCDOT that all Driveway permits have received approval. • Certification, written and signed by the development site owner of record that such owner formally consents to the proposed development. • Certification by the County Health Department or Public Utilities, that the proposed development has adequate water supply and sewage disposal systems. Fees • Pay a fee as set by the Harnett County Board of Commissioners. 21.4 Expiration of an Approved Site Plan: Any site plan that has received final approval shall be valid for a period of one - hundred and eighty (180) days from the date the plan received approval from the Zoning Administrator. Once this period has passed thesite plan shall be considered null and void. 21.5 Right of Appeal: If any site plan has been denied the applicant has 30 days to appeal the action of the Zoning Administrator to the Board of Adjustment. Beyond the decision of the Board of Adjustment, recourse shall be to the Courts as provided by law. Section 8.0 Buffers 8.1 General: Buffers shall be required in accordance with the table in section 8.12. 8.2 Development Exempt from Approval: The following activities or uses shall be exempt from Buffer requirements in this section: Public Projects- The construction of any public street or utility service line, whether publicly or privately owned. Maintenance- Maintenance of any structure is exempt from site plan review. Agricultural - The use or intended use of land, with or without accessory structures, for purposes of agriculture, raising of crops or animals, forestry, mariculture and the like. Single Family Residences- Single family residences, including manufactured homes, are exempt from buffer requirements, but shall comply with all other requirements regarding single family residences and manufactured homes. Home Occupations- Home occupations as defined in this title. Accessory Structures Integral to Permitted Development - Any accessory structure or use, whether temporary or permanent, integral to an approved development permitted in accordance with the provisions of this title. Such accessory structure or use shall comply with the design and performance provisions of this title. Temporary Uses, Nonmaterial - Those activities of short duration that do not materially affect the area's natural environment, parking requirements, transportation patterns, public health or economic values shall be reviewed for approval by the Zoning Administrator. Highway Corridor Overlay (HCO) - Properties located within the HCO districts shall follow the buffer requirements provided for that district. 8.3 Responsibility of requirements: One hundred (100) percent of the applicable buffer requirements shall be the responsibility of the developing land use, unless expressly provided otherwise. 8.4 Standards for Trees and Shrubs: Required trees and shrubs shall meet the following standards: *(except as may be specifically provided elsewhere in the ordinance) 1. All required large maturing trees shall have a minimum caliper of two (2) inches measured six (6) inches above the proper planting level. 2. Shrubs shall be a minimum of three (3) Gallon at time of planting. 3. All specifications for the measurement, quality, and installation of trees and shrubs shall be in accordance with the American Standards for Nursery Stock published by the American Association of Nurserymen, free of disease, and in otherwise sound and healthy condition. 8.5 Modification of Planting Types: If it is demonstrated that existing vegetation meets the intent of this section, the zoning administrator may waive the requirements for the plant material. 8.6 Maintenance of Buffer: the owner of the property where the buffer or screening is shall be responsible for maintaining the buffer and all required plantings in good condition. 8.7 Buffering of Expanded Uses: Expansion of a use existing prior to the effective date of this chapter shall be required to come into conformance with all buffer requirements. 8.8 Development Sureties: When it is impractical to plant required screening during optimal planting seasons, the owners of the property upon which the required screening is to be located may in lieu of requiring the completion, and installation of any and all improvements prior to zoning approval, the Planning Department may enter into a written agreement with the owner whereby the owner shall agree to complete all required improvements within a specific date, but in no case more than six (6) months. Once said agreements is signed by both parties and the security required herein is provided, the project may be approved by the Planning Department, if all other requirements of this Ordinance are met. To secure this agreement, the owner shall provide, as approved by the Planning-Department, either one or a combination of the following guarantees equal to 1.25 times the entire cost of the improvements secured: 1. Surety Performance Bond(s) The owner shall obtain a performance bond(s) from a surety bonding company authorized to do business in North Carolina and approved by the Harnett County Planning Department. The bond shall be payable to Harnett County and shall be in an amount equal to 1.25 times the entire cost, as estimated by the owner and verified by the County, of installing all required improvements. The duration of the bond(s) shall be until such time as the improvements are accepted by the County. Any expenses associated with the cost verification by the County shall be paid entirely by the owner. 2. Cash or Equivalent Securitx The owner shall deposit cash, an irrevocable letter of credit or other instrument readily convertible into cash at face value, either with the County or in escrow with a financial institution designated as an official depository of the County. The use of any instrument other than cash shall be subject to the approval of the Harnett County Planning Department. The amount of deposit shall be equal to 1.25 times the entire cost, as estimated by the owner, and verified by the County, of installing all required improvements. If cash or other instrument is deposited in escrow with a financial institution as provided above, then the owner shall file with the Harnett County Planning Department an agreement between the financial institution and himself guaranteeing the following: That said escrow amount will be held in trust until released by the Harnett County Planning Department and may not be used or pledged by the owner in any other transaction during the term of the escrow. 8.9 Default: Upon default, meaning failure on the part of the owner to complete the required improvements in the time allowed by this Ordinance or as spelled out in the performance bond or escrow agreement, then the surety, or financial institution holding the escrow account, shall, if requested by the County pay all or any portion of the bond or escrow fund to the County of Harnett up to the amount needed to complete the improvements based on an estimate by the County. Upon payment, the County in its discretion may expend such portion of said funds as it deems necessary to complete all or any portion of the required improvements. The County shall return to the owner any funds not spent in completing the improvements. 8.10 Release of Guarantee Security: The County may release a portion of any security posted as the improvements are completed and recommended for approval by the Zoning Administrator. Within thirty (30) days after receiving the Zoning Administrator's recommendation, the Harnett County Planning Department shall approve or disapprove said improvements. When the Harnett County Planning Department approves said improvements, it shall immediately release the portion of the security posted which covers the cost of the improvements approved. 8.11 Required Screening Types: In situations where a development is adjacent to multiple uses then the buffer requirement for each use shall be required along each property line otherwise the development shall follow the requirements listed below. Type A. a. Buffer: Fifth teen (15) feet. (applies to side and rear property lines) b. Screening shall be one (1) of the following: 1. A row of evergreen conifers or broadleaf evergreens placed not more than five (5) feet apart which would grow to form a continuous hedge of at least six (6) feet in height within two (2) years of planting; or 2. A masonry wall located within the required buffer; such wall shall be a minimum height of six (6) feet (above finished grade;) and, if a block wall, it shall be painted on all sides; or an opaque fence six (6) feet in height finished side of fence must face out; or 3. A berm (maximum of 3:1 slope) and planting combination, with the berm an average height of three (3) feet and dense plantings which will, when combined with the berm, achieve a minimum height of six (6) feet and seventy -five (75) percent opacity within two (2) years. C. Lawn, low- growing evergreen shrubs, evergreen ground cover, or mulch covering the balance of the buffer. Type B. Type C. a. Buffer: Thirty (30) feet. (applies to the front, side, and rear property lines) b. Screening shall consist of 1. A row of trees, fifty (50) percent of which are large maturing trees and which are not less than eight (8) feet high at the time of planting and are spaced not more than fifty (50) feet apart. 2. An opaque fence or berm (maximum of 3:1 slope) located within the required buffer; Such fence or berm shall be a minimum height of six (6) feet; and 3. Lawn, low- growing evergreen shrubs or broadleaf evergreens, evergreen ground cover, or rock mulch covering the balance of the buffer. a. Buffer: Ten (10) feet Landscaping Buffer (applies to area between right of way and building front) b. Lawn, low- growing evergreen shrubs or broadleaf evergreens, evergreen ground cover, or rock mulch covering the balance of the buffer. 8.12 Land Use Relationships: The following land use relationships shall be used to determine required screening and buffering as provided in Section 8.11. All uses listed in group one (1) shall be exempt from buffer requirements. Group 1 (least Intensive) Exempt from buffer requirements 1) Single - family dwellings 2) Modular homes 3) Manufactured housing on individual lots 4) Duplexes on individual lots. 5) Residential or Conservation zoned land Adjacent Use Proposed Use Group 1 Group 2 Group 3 Group 4 Group 1 None None None None Group 2 Type A, C T eC Type C T e C Grou 3 T ype A,C Type A, C T eC Type C ou Gr4 Type B Type B Type A, C T e C Group 1 (least Intensive) Exempt from buffer requirements 1) Single - family dwellings 2) Modular homes 3) Manufactured housing on individual lots 4) Duplexes on individual lots. 5) Residential or Conservation zoned land Group 2 1) Institutional uses 2) Residential clustering 3) Golf Courses 4) Emergency Facilities 5) Group Care Facility 6) Day Care and Elderly Care Facilities 7) Religious uses including churches and other places of worship, religious education buildings, and parish houses 8) Social halls, lodges, fraternal organizations, clubs, and similar activities 9) Single - family residential subdivisions with more than six (6) lots 10) Multi - family Developments Group 3 1) Commercial Planned Unit Developments 2) Flea Markets, Rummage and Second Hand Sales and Activities (indoors or outdoors) subject to the following requirements: 3) Manufactured home, modular home and recreational vehicle sales, including related repair activities and sale of parts 4) Mini- Warehouse (Self - Storage) 5) Motels, hotels, boarding and rooming houses, and other similar establishments 6) Offices for business, professional, and governmental purposes 7) Outdoor display, storage, or sale of vehicle or other equipment 8) Private owned public utility structures and facilities 9) Recreational Vehicle Park 10) Recycling collection centers 11) Restaurants 12) Retail shops and stores and service establishments whose operation is conducted entirely within an enclosed building 13) Service stations and other auto oriented business establishments 14) Trades catering to households and business establishments 15) Recreational facilities 16) Amusement Centers (arcades) 17) Commercially Zoned land Group 4 (most intensive) 1) Adult bookstores 2) Adult motion picture theatres 3) Adult nightclub 4) Airports and related uses 5) Assembling, processing industries, wholesale, warehouse, and transfer activities 6) Fertilizer manufacturing 7) Junkyards and automobile wrecking yards and similar types of used material 8) Land Clearing and Inert Debris Landfill 9) Manufacturing 10) Massage parlors 11) Microwave towers, T.V. towers, telephone towers, radio towers and cellular 12) Mining activities 13) Recycling plants 14) Truck driving school 15) Wholesale storage of gasoline or bulk terminal plants. 16) Industrial Zoned land Note: If a specific use is not mentioned then it will be the duty of the zoning administrator to determine which existing use is most closely related to the proposed use in order to determine which group to classify the use under. 8.13 Alternative Buffers and Screening: In lieu of compliance with the above buffer and screening requirement, an applicant may submit to the Planning Board for review and approval a detailed plan and specifications for landscaping and screening. The Planning Board may approve the alternative buffering and screening, upon finding that the proposal will afford a degree of buffering and screening, in terms of height, opacity and separation to or exceeding that provided by the above requirements. 8.14 Existing Vegetation: The retention of existing vegetation shall be maximized to the extent practical, wherever such vegetation contributes to required buffering and screening or to the preservation of significant trees. 8.15 Utility & Mechanical Screening: All non - residential and multi - family developments mechanical, utility equipment which is located on, beside, or adjacent to any building or developments shall be fully screened from the view of streets and adjacent property. The screen shall exceed the height of the equipment, shall not interfere with the operation of the equipment, and shall use one or a combination of the following screening techniques: 1. Building materials and design which are compatible with those used for the exterior of the principal building or 2. Evergreen plantings or other acceptable alternative approved by the Zoning Administrator. In situations where mechanical and utility equipment is (are) located on the roof of a structure, all devices will be fully screened from the view of streets or adjacent property using technique 1 (one). 8.16 Trash Containment Areas Screening: All trash containment devices, including compactors and dumpsters, shall be located and designed so as not to be visible from the view of adjacent streets and properties. If the device is not visible from off the site, then it need not be screened. The type of screening used shall be a continuous row of evergreen plantings or other acceptable alternative approved by the Zoning Administrator. Duly adopted this 19'h day of July, Two Thousand four and effective upon adoption. 1IARN TT COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS 1" 1 41j Te Byrd Chairman ATTEST: Kay S. $lanchard Clerk to the Board,:' 't